A new era of UT Arlington men’s basketball began on Apr. 6, 2018, with the appointment of former Big 12 and Southeastern Conference assistant Chris Ogden as the eighth head coach in program history.
In his second year at the helm of UTA in 2019-20, Ogden helped guide the Mavericks to the following accomplishments:
- By securing 10 Sun Belt Conference regular-season wins as part of a 10-10 league mark, UTA became one of only two schools (Georgia Southern) to have posted six-straight years of double-figure league victories.
- The Mavericks once again competed against top-flight competition all season as UTA played the 3rd-hardest non-conference schedule of any team in the nation. UTA performed admirably with that challenging slate as 13 of its losses during the season were by eight points or less. One of those was to then-#8 Gonzaga, 72-66 on Nov. 19, as UTA led for 16 minutes and held the Bulldogs to its worst field-goal percentage (39.1 percent) in 99 games – since Feb. 20, 2016, against Saint Mary’s.
- UTA finished in the top-40 in the nation in four key statistical categories: assist-to-turnover ratio (16th, 1.3), 3-point percentage defense (20th, 29.6), fewest turnovers per game (29th, 11.2) and assists per game (35th, 14.9). The 29.6 percent rate for opponents from the 3-point line set a single-season program record for defensive performance by the Mavs, bettering the mark set in 2018-19 of 29.8.
- Despite finishing the year with a 14-18 record, UTA still posted the 2nd-highest NET Ranking (formerly the RPI) in the Sun Belt at #129 – behind only Texas State at #120. To further demonstrate the Mavs’ consistency over the last six years, since 2014-15 UTA has the 2nd-best average NET/RPI among all Sun Belt teams at #121 (Georgia State: #119).
- David Azore was named to the Sun Belt Second Team and also the NABC All-District Second Team.
In his first season leading UTA in 2018-19, Ogden was named Sun Belt Coach of the Year after guiding a team predicted to finish 2nd-to-last in the Sun Belt Conference Preseason Poll to a 2nd-place finish in the regular-season standings and a berth in the Sun Belt Tournament Championship Game.
In addition to his SBC Coach of the Year honor, Ogden was named the 2018-19 National Association of Basketball Coaches District 24 Coach of the Year, and was a finalist for the Hugh Durham Award – presented annually to the nation’s top mid-major coach – and also the Joe B. Hall Award – given annually to the top first-year head coach in Division I.
In addition to those honors, Ogden guided UTA to the following accomplishments in 2018-19:
- The Mavericks posted a 17-16 overall record, and finished tied for 2nd in the SBC with a 12-6 league record. That nine-spot improvement from preseason to final regular-season finish was tied for the best in the nation along with Siena, which was picked 11th in the MAAC (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) and finished in a four-way tie for 2nd.
- After playing the 7th-hardest non-conference schedule in the nation according to ESPN, UTA came out of its non-league docket 4-9 and then dropped its first two SBC games at home to fall to 4-11 on the year. However, behind Ogden’s leadership, the Mavs finished above .500 – believed be to one of only a few teams in the nation to conclude with a winning record after being at least seven games below .500.
- In conference games, UTA led the SBC in field-goal percentage defense (.409), rebounds per game (38.4) and rebound margin (+3.8); the Mavs finished 2nd in points per game allowed (69), free-throw percentage (.752), scoring margin (+4.1) and assists per game (14.6).
- The rebounding numbers might be most impressive stats of all as, according to KenPom, UTA was the smallest team in the country in 2018-19 with an average height of just 74.5 inches (6-foot-2). The Mavs had only two players who stood taller than 6-5 on their 14-man roster, and were the only team in the league that didn’t have a single player average more than 30 minutes, and just two who averaged more than 25.
- UTA got the job done primarily on the defensive end in 2018-19 as the Mavs set a then-single-season program record by holding opponents to just 29.8 percent from 3-point range – besting the previous mark of 30.2 percent in 1994-95.
- Brian Warren was named to the Sun Belt Third Team.
- Entering 2018-19, UTA returned just 3.2 percent of its scoring – the fewest by any D-I team in the nation. The Mavs had just 87 of 2,640 points back from its 2017-18 roster, including just one scholarship player in DJ Bryant. UTA lost its top-9 scorers (eight seniors; one transfer) from 2017-18, but Ogden molded together a group of newcomers – of which UTA had 12 at the start of the year, the 3rd-most in the country – as 97.2 percent (2,219 of 2,284) of the Mavs’ points in 2018-19 came from players who didn’t suit up for UTA the year prior.
A native of Seminole, Texas, Ogden played for head coach Rick Barnes and served on his staff for 13 seasons at both the University of Texas and the University of Tennessee. He spent the two seasons prior to UTA as an assistant coach under head coach Chris Beard at Texas Tech.
During his 15 years on the basketball staffs at Texas, Tennessee and Texas Tech, Ogden helped compile a 346-173 record for a .667 winning percentage. In 10 seasons as a full-time assistant coach he went 215-130 and registered a total of 32 victories over Associated Press top 25 ranked teams. He helped lead three programs to 11 total NCAA Tournament appearances, including three regional finals.
During the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, Ogden served a member of the Texas Tech staff under Beard. The 2018 team captured the attention of the country with its run to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight. That season, the Red Raiders went 27-10 and, after defeating Stephen F. Austin, Florida and Purdue, fell to second-seeded Villanova in a regional final contest in Boston, Mass. Ogden recruited many of the Texas Tech players who would go on to finish as national runner-ups in 2018-19.
Prior to Texas Tech, Ogden spent the 2015-16 season at Tennessee after serving the previous seven seasons as an assistant coach at Texas. He was on the Texas staff for a total of 12 years, spending four as an administrative assistant and one as a student coach.
During his tenure as a full-time assistant, Ogden helped his alma mater to a 155-87 record and the Longhorns advanced to the NCAA Tournament six times.
Ogden was instrumental in signing six McDonald's All-Americans over a seven-year span at Texas (Avery Bradley in 2009, Cory Joseph in 2010, Tristan Thompson in 2010, Myck Kabongo in 2011, Cameron Ridley in 2012 and Myles Turner in 2014). He had a hand in assembling five recruiting classes that ranked nationally inside ESPN's Top 10.
Ogden has coached seven players who have gone onto have their name called in the NBA Draft, six of which were selected in the first round (Thompson, No. 4 by Cleveland in 2011; Jordan Hamilton, No. 26 by Dallas in 2011; Joseph, No. 29 by San Antonio in 2011; Avery Bradley, No. 19 by Boston in 2010; Damion James, No. 24 by Atlanta in 2010; and Turner, No. 11 by Indiana in 2015).
Ogden played four seasons at forward for the Longhorns from 2000-03 and was a member of four NCAA Tournament teams. The Longhorns reached the 2003 NCAA Final Four with Ogden serving as a senior captain. He finished his Texas career with 97 team victories, more than any other player in program history at the time.
Ogden played in 85 career games which included three starts. He totaled 144 points, 88 rebounds and 40 assists. Ogden earned the team's Jay Arnette Award as a junior in 2001-02. The honor is given to a player for behind-the-scenes efforts and contributions to the team.
Following his collegiate playing career, Ogden joined the Texas basketball staff as a student assistant coach for the 2003-04 season while he completed his undergraduate degree. He earned his Bachelor of Science in education in 2004.
Ogden played four years of varsity basketball at Seminole High School. He was crowned the state of Texas' "Mr. Basketball" following his senior season in 1998-99. That year, he averaged 17.3 points, 10.6 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game while leading SHS to a 36-4 record and a runner-up finish in the Class 3A state tournament.
Ogden and his wife, Katie, have three children: Bo, Ellie and Parker. Katie is a 2006 graduate of The University of Texas School of Law and she holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas, where she served as student body president from 2002-2003.
THE OGDEN FILE
UT Arlington (2018-Present) – Head Coach
2018-19: 17-16
| 12-6 Sun Belt
| T-2nd Place
| Sun Belt Tournament Finalist
| Brian Warren: Sun Belt Third Team
2019-20: 14-18
| 10-10 Sun Belt
| 7th Place
| Sun Belt Tournament First Round
| David Azore: Sun Belt Second Team
Texas Tech (2016-18) – Assistant Coach
Tennessee (2015-16) – Assistant Coach
Texas (2008-15) – Assistant Coach
Texas (2004-08) – Administrative Assistant
Texas (2003-04) – Student Assistant Coach
NCAA Playing Career
Texas (1999-03) – Team Captain, 2003 Final Four
Education
Texas (2004): Bachelor’s in Education
Personal
Wife: Katie
Children: Bo, Ellie & Parker
