Cori Close
Close with UCLA in 2026
Current position
Title Head coach
Team UCLA
Conference Big Ten
Record 358–144 (.713)
Biographical details
Born (1971-07-29) July 29, 1971 (age 54)
Milpitas, California, U.S.
Playing career
1989–1993 UC Santa Barbara
Position Guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1993–1995 UCLA (assistant)
1995–2004 UC Santa Barbara (Asst./Assoc.)
2004–2011 Florida State (AHC)
2011–present UCLA
Head coaching record
Overall 358–144 (.713)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
  • NCAA Division I tournament (2026)
  • 2 NCAA Regional—Final Four (2025, 2026)
  • WNIT (2015)
  • 2 Big Ten tournament (2025, 2026)
  • Big Ten regular season (2026)
Awards
  • USBWA Coach of the Year (2025)
  • Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year (2025)
  • Big Ten Coach of the Year (2026)

Cori Rashel Close (born July 29, 1971)[1] is an American basketball coach who is the head coach for the UCLA Bruins women's team.[2] She played college basketball as a guard for the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos from 1989 to 1993, serving as a team captain during her final two seasons and helping them reach consecutive NCAA tournament appearances.[3] Following the end of her playing career, Close served as an assistant coach with UCLA from 1993 to 1995, UC Santa Barbara from 1995 to 2004, and the Florida State Seminoles from 2004 to 2011 before being named UCLA's head coach in 2011. Close won the 2026 basketball championship with the Bruins, the women team's first NCAA title.

College statistics

Source[4][5][6][7][8]

Ratios
Year Team GP FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG BPG SPG PPG
1989–90 UC Santa Barbara 13 43.2% 27.3% 65.2% 2.85 2.69 0.00 2.08 6.31
1990–91 UC Santa Barbara 29 41.3% 30.8% 75.9% 2.62 4.28 0.03 1.90 8.97
1991–92 UC Santa Barbara 32 48.8% 31.9% 77.5% 2.28 5.84 0.06 1.88 12.69
1992–93 UC Santa Barbara 31 43.4% 36.8% 79.8% 0.52 8.29 0.06 2.52 15.35
Career 105 44.6% 33.8% 77.2% 1.92 5.74 0.05 2.10 11.66
Totals
Year Team GP FG FGA 3P 3PA FT FTA REB A BK ST PTS
1989–90 UC Santa Barbara 13 32 74 3 11 15 23 37 35 0 27 82
1990–91 UC Santa Barbara 29 93 225 8 26 66 87 76 124 1 55 260
1991–92 UC Santa Barbara 32 145 297 23 72 93 120 73 187 2 60 406
1992–93 UC Santa Barbara 31 169 389 35 95 103 129 16 257 2 78 476
Career 105 439 985 69 204 277 359 202 603 5 220 1224

Coaching career

UCLA

Close was assistant on the Bruin coaching staff in for the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons, where she established a mentorship relationship with coach emeritus John Wooden.[9][10]

UC Santa Barbara

Cori became an assistant coach at her alma mater in 1995.[11]

Florida State

In May 2004, Close became associate head coach at Florida State under head coach Sue Semrau.[12] The Seminoles made the NCAA Tournament in each of Close’s seven seasons on the staff in Tallahassee, including the program’s first appearances in the Sweet Sixteen (2007) and Elite Eight (2010).

UCLA

On April 21, 2011, Close was named head coach at UCLA.[13] She led the Bruins to their first Final Four of the NCAA tournament in 2025, after taking them to the Sweet Sixteen six times, advancing to the regional final once in 2018.[14]

In the 2026 NCAA national championship game, the Bruins defeated South Carolina 79–51 for the program's first NCAA title.[15]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
UCLA (Pac-12 Conference) (2011–2024)
2011–12 UCLA 14–16 9–9 T–5th
2012–13 UCLA 26–8 14–4 3rd NCAA Second Round
2013–14 UCLA 13–18 7–11 8th
2014–15 UCLA 19–18 8–10 6th WNIT Champions
2015–16 UCLA 26–9 14–4 T–3rd NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2016–17 UCLA 25–9 13–5 4th NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2017–18 UCLA 27–8 14–4 T–3rd NCAA Elite Eight
2018–19 UCLA 22–13 12–6 4th NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2019–20 UCLA 26–5 14–4 T–2nd Postseason not held
2020–21 UCLA 17–6 12–4 3rd NCAA Second Round
2021–22 UCLA 18–13 8–8 7th WNIT Semifinals
2022–23 UCLA 27–10 11–7 T–4th NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2023–24 UCLA 27–7 13–5 T–2nd NCAA Sweet Sixteen
UCLA (Big Ten Conference) (2024–present)
2024–25 UCLA 34–3 16–2 2nd NCAA Final Four
2025–26 UCLA 37–1 18–0 1st NCAA Champions
UCLA: 358–144 (.713) 183–83 (.688)
Total: 358–144 (.713)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Awards and honors

  • March 23, 2016 – Close was named the 2016 United States Marine Corps/WBCA NCAA Division I Region 5 Coach of the Year
  • March 6, 2019 – Close was named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year by Pac-12 women's basketball media members[16]
  • March 20, 2025 – Close was named USBWA Coach of the Year[17][18]
  • March 24, 2025 – Close was named a finalist for the Naismith College Coach of the Year[19]
  • April 2, 2025 – Close was the 2025 Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year[20]

References

  1. ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Career". NCAA. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  2. ^ "Cori Close is introduced as UCLA women's basketball coach". Los Angeles Times. April 21, 2011. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  3. ^ "Cori Close Biography - UCLA Bruins Official Athletic Site | UCLABruins.com". Archived from the original on November 8, 2013. Retrieved October 3, 2014.
  4. ^ "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  5. ^ "FINAL 1990 DIVISION I WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STATISTICS REPORT" (PDF). NCAA.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 25, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  6. ^ "FINAL 1991 DIVISION I WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STATISTICSREPORT" (PDF). NCAA.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 25, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  7. ^ "FINAL 1992 DIVISION I WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STATISTICS REPORT" (PDF). NCAA.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 25, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  8. ^ "FINAL 1993 DIVISION I WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STATISTICS REPORT" (PDF). NCAA.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 25, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  9. ^ Shultz, Alec - UCLA women's basketball Coach Cori Close learned from a legend, John Wooden. Los Angeles Times, March 17, 2016
  10. ^ Jennings, Chantel - Tuesdays with Wooden: How visits with legendary UCLA coach shaped Cori Close’s Final Four path. New York Times, April 4, 2025
  11. ^ Foster, Ellah - Work Hard, Play Hard: An Alum’s Rise to Head Coach at UCLA. University of California, Santa Barbara Alumni, retrieved April 7, 2026
  12. ^ "Cori Close Joins Women's Basketball Staff". Florida State University Athletics. May 18, 2004. Retrieved April 4, 2026.
  13. ^ "Cori Close Named UCLA Women's Basketball Coach". UCLA Athletics. April 21, 2011. Retrieved April 4, 2026.
  14. ^ Bolch, Ben (March 30, 2025). "UCLA shines in critical moments to defeat LSU and reach Final Four for first time". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  15. ^ "UCLA storms past South Carolina to claim its 1st NCAA women's basketball title". Associated Press. April 5, 2026. Retrieved April 5, 2026.
  16. ^ "Cori Close Awarded Media Pac-12 Coach of the Year".
  17. ^ Moran, Malcom - UCLA's Close is USBWA Women's National Coach of the Year. U.S. Basketball Writers Association, March 20, 2025
  18. ^ "Cori Close Tabbed USBWA Coach of the Year".
  19. ^ Dawn Staley, Jon Scheyer Headline Finalists for Naismith Coach of the Year Awards. Sports Illustrated, March 24, 2025 Note: "...four-time Naismith winner South Carolina's Dawn Staley leads the nominee list. ... The other nominees include TCU's Mark Campbell, UCLA’s Cori Close and Southern California’s Lindsay Gottlieb, who are all first-time nominees... "
  20. ^ Considine, Madeline -Bruins' Cori Close Earns Another National Coaching Honor. Sports Illustrated, April 3, 2025, In the midst of a record-breaking season and UCLA’s first NCAA Final Four appearance, Coach Cori Close has been honored as the 2025 Werner Ladder Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year.
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