bd Global client Ray Harper, playing in consecutive NCAA Tournaments after taking over as Western Kentucky head basketball coach in midseason last year, ranks among the top coaches in the field of 68 in terms of NCAA Tournament bonus, according to ESPN.
During a tournament preview show aired live on the network, ESPN sports business reporter Darren Rovell listed the top coaches bonuses in the tournament. Harper’s cash bonus of $37,500 ranked fourth among known bonuses, behind Louisville’s Rick Pitino, Florida’s Billy Donovan and Ohio State’s Thad Matta. UCLA’s Ben Howland rounded out the top-five.
Harper, who had won two NCAA DII titles at Kentucky Wesleyan and two NAIA Championships at Oklahoma City, was named interim head coach midway through the 2011-12 season after the Hilltoppers had begun the year with a 5-11 start. He turned the team around, ending the season by winning seven of WKU’s last eight games, including four straight in the Sun Belt Tournament and a first round game in the NCAA Tournament.
In 2013, his team battled multiple injuries, including a mid-season broken foot by starting guard Jamaal Crook, yet again won four straight in four days to win the league tournament and capture the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Shortly after the season, Harper, 51, signed a four-year contract with the Hilltoppers.