A pair of Ivy League schools are now looking for new head coaches.
Both Columbia and Penn parted ways with their respective basketball coaches on Monday. Longtime Columbia coach Jim Engles opted to step down after eight seasons with the program, the school announced.
Engles went 71-150 during his near-decade run with the school. He was hired ahead of the 2016-17 campaign, though he failed to have a winning season or make the NCAA tournament. Columbia actually hasn't made the NCAA tournament since 1968. The school's last winning season came under former coach Kyle Smith, who is now at Stanford, right before Engles was hired.
Columbia started the year out on an 11-1 burst, and even upset Villanova on the road in November. But the Lions lost 14 of their last 15 games to end the year, which dropped them to 12-15 and to last in the Ivy League standings.
"Columbia has meant so much to me, and I've given everything I have to make this program the best it can be," Engles said in a statement. "We may not have accomplished our ultimate goals, but I'm proud of the culture we built and the student-athletes we developed on and off the court. I also want to thank [athletic director] Peter Pilling for his support throughout the years and know the future of this program is bright."
Penn fires coach Steve Donahue
Penn also split with its head coach on Monday. The Quakers fired longtime coach Steve Donahue after nine seasons with the program.
Donahue first took over at Penn ahead of the 2015-16 campaign, and he'll finish with a 131-130 record. He led the Quakers to a single Ivy League title and an NCAA tournament appearance in 2018, which was the team's only appearance over the last 17 seasons. The Quakers had just one winning record over the last four campaigns, and the team largely fell apart this season.
Penn went just 8-19 this campaign, though it still finished ahead of Columbia in the Ivy League standings after beating the Lions twice. It was Penn’s worst run in more than a decade. Neither Penn nor Columbia qualified for the Ivy League tournament this season, either.
Before Penn, Donahue spent four seasons at Boston College and 10 seasons at Cornell, where he reached the NCAA tournament in his final three years.
"I'm appreciative of Steve's long tenure of leadership and service to Penn basketball and our student-athletes, both as an assistant and head coach," athletic director Alanna Wren said in a statement. "Steve has been steadfast in his commitment to the program and the development of our student-athletes. I've always had great respect for his commitment to Ivy values, and he has been a strong representative of Penn during his career. Unfortunately, the competitive success on the court has not been up to our standards. While difficult, a change in leadership is necessary to provide the championship-caliber experience our student-athletes, alumni and fans expect. We wish Steve and his family the best moving forward."