Virginia Tech’s Brooks is halfway to 1,000 wins
Coach and women’s team think like champions, play like champions
Fred Jeter | 12/28/2023, 6 p.m.
Kenny Brooks has lifted Virginia Tech women’s basketball to new heights, and he’s far from finished.
The 54-year-old Waynesboro native picked up his 500th career coaching victory Dec. 17 with a win over Rutgers. No. 501 soon followed against William & Mary.
This is Coach Brooks’ eighth season in Blacksburg after 14 years at his alma mater, James Madison, where he was 337-121. Coach Brooks’ overall record is 501-197, including 9-2 this season. The losses were to last year’s NCAA finalists, LSU and Iowa.
This is an encore season for the Hokies, which won their first ACC title and advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 2022-23 before falling to eventual champ LSU.
“I like where we are. It’s kind of crazy,” Coach Brooks told the media after his 500th win. “Control what we can control. Focus on us.”
Think like champions and play like champions can well be Coach Brooks’ mantra.
“We can put ourselves into a position to win another ACC championship. When you challenge for the ACC championship, you put yourself into position to win a national championship.”
Coach Brooks, who played at JMU under Lefty Driesell and is the cousin of former NBA player Cory Alexander, is well compensated for his talents.
His six-year contract is worth $6.4 million, including $925,000 for this season.
His older daughters, Kendyl and Chloe, played for him at Tech and his youngest daughter, Gabby, is now a Hokie freshman.
Tech’s next game is 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, against visiting ACC foe Pittsburgh.
