Former Stanford and Golden State Warriors coach Mike Montgomery will be the next head coach at Cal, Sports Illustrated and ESPN are reporting. Montgomery fills the opening created when Ben Braun, who had been on the job for 12 years, was fired last week. Braun only reached the NCAA Tournament once in the last five years.
Montgomery was a very successful coach at Stanford, with an overall record of 393-167, 12 NCAA tournament berths and a Final Four appearance in 1998. He was significantly less successful when he left Stanford in 2004 to coach the Golden State Warriors, leaving the NBA with a 68-96 record.
Montgomery has maintained close ties to Stanford, including advising his successor and former assistant, Trent Johnson, and the school's athletic director, Bob Bowlsby. It's fair to say Stanford fans won't be happy to learn that he's now coaching their biggest rival.
