Ritchie McKay - Head Men's Basketball Coach - Men's Basketball Coaches

Ritchie McKay

Title:
Head Men's Basketball Coach
Start Date:
04/01/2015

After spending six seasons working under Tony Bennett as associate head coach at Virginia, McKay returned to Liberty as the men's basketball head coach on April 1, 2015. McKay previously served as the program's head coach during the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons and has taken the program to new heights since returning to Lynchburg.

In nine seasons since returning to Liberty, McKay has led the Flames to seven 20-plus win seasons, including a school-record 30 games during the 2019-20 season. In Liberty's first three years in the ASUN Conference, McKay and the Flames won the ASUN title in each of those years (2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21), punching their ticket to the NCAA Tournament in each instance. Liberty had three ASUN Tournament titles and four ASUN regular crowns in four years in the league as well as the East Division crown during the 2021-22 campaign. The Flames were 65-14 in five seasons of ASUN regular season play and finished tied for fourth in the CUSA regular season standings in their first year in the league (2023-24).

McKay and the Flames won 27 games during the 2022-23 season, earned a share of the ASUN regular season crown and played in the NIT for the first time in school history. Liberty bested 2022 Final Four participant Villanova in the NIT. Liberty finished the year at No. 46 in the nation in the NET rankings and No. 48 in the KenPom rankings, both new program records at season's end. McKay and the Flames have won 149 games over the last six seasons, eighth most in the country during that span.

McKay and the Flames made history in 2019, winning the school's first ever NCAA Tournament game against the No. 5 seed, Mississippi State. In Liberty's three previous NCAA Tournament appearances, the Flames were a No. 16 seed, and in 2019, Liberty was slotted as a No. 12 seed, the highest in school history. In 2018-19, Liberty earned its first-ever AP Top 25 vote and also earned two votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll.

In his first 12 seasons at Liberty, McKay has led the Flames to postseason play in seven seasons, including three NCAA Tournament appearances (CoVID-19 pandemic prevented Liberty from competing in the NCAA Tournament in 2020), an NIT berth and three CIT appearances.

Before returning to Liberty, McKay helped the Cavaliers post a 136-64 record, including back-to-back 30-win seasons in 2013-14 and 2014-15. Virginia advanced to the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in three out of McKay's last four years with the program. Following an ACC Championship in 2014, the Cavaliers were the No. 1 seed in the East Region and advanced to the Sweet 16. The Cavaliers spent seven weeks ranked as the No. 2 team in the country in 2014-15, finishing the year with a 30-4 overall record and a 16-2 mark in ACC play. Virginia advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Final Four team Michigan State.

Prior to his days in Charlottesville, McKay served two seasons as Liberty's men's basketball coach, posting a 39-28 overall record and a 19-13 mark in Big South play. He was named the seventh head coach in program history on March 26, 2007. McKay led the Flames to a 23-12 record in 2008-09, matching at the time the program's NCAA Division I record for most wins in a season (Liberty finished the 1996-97 season with a 23-9 overall record). McKay has been able to recruit elite talentto Liberty, as he brought Seth Curry to Liberty, who made an immediate impact on the program as a rookie. He finished the year averaging 20.2 points per game and was named 2009 Big South Freshman of the Year (second player in program history to receive the honor). Curry spotlighted McKay's Top 50 recruiting class in 2008, which was ranked No. 48 in the country by Basketball Times.

McKay has compiled a 409-285 career coaching record in 22 seasons as a head coach. McKay has the winningest career coaching record in program history with a .589 winning percentage. Prior to his first stint as head coach at Liberty, McKay served as head coach at Portland State (1996-98), Colorado State (1998-00), Oregon State (2000-02) and New Mexico (2002-07).

Overall at New Mexico, McKay sported an 82-69 coaching record over five seasons. He finished the 2005 campaign with a 26-7 record, winning the Mountain West Conference championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament.

McKay posted a 37-23 record at Colorado State, which included a 1999 National Invitational Tournament (NIT) berth. The Rams defeated Mississippi State and in-state rival Colorado at the event, before losing to eventual NIT Tournament champion California in the quarterfinals.

The 1999-2000 season featured the first year of play for CSU in the Mountain West, and the Rams logged an 18-12 record and a fourth-place conference finish.

A pair of victories over nationally ranked opponents, the first time the program had accomplished the feat at Colorado State in a decade, and capturing the title at the second annual Pearl Harbor Classic in Hawaii were some of the highlights during the season. College Hoops Insider magazine noticed the success of the 2000 Rams and tabbed McKay as its MWC Coach of the Year.

Before arriving on the Colorado State campus, McKay began his head coaching career when he was named the head coach at Portland State. McKay started at Portland State in 1995, helping revive a program which had been dormant for 15 years. McKay led the program to nine victories in the school's first season of competition (1996-97) since the early 1980s.

After the initial season at Portland State, McKay was named one of six finalists for the Clair Bee Award, given annually to the coach with the most influence and innovation in the game of basketball. Two other finalists for the honor that year were Dean Smith of North Carolina and Mike Krzyzewski of Duke. The 1997-98 Portland State team followed with a 15-12 mark and a third-place finish in the Big Sky Conference.

McKay started his basketball coaching career in 1988 as a graduate assistant at the University of Washington. After his start with the Huskies, he spent time as an assistant at Queens College in North Carolina (1989-90), Seattle Pacific (1990-91), Bradley (1991-93) and back to Washington (1993-95). McKay also served as an assistant under Jim Molinari at the 1997 World University Games in Italy, where the USA captured the gold medal.

McKay earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in athletic administration from Seattle Pacific in 1987. A stellar player for the Falcons, McKay left the program as the school's single-season and career record holder for steals, and he was third in career assists. He still holds the school record with 10 steals in a 1987 game against Pacific Lutheran.

McKay has been married to the former Julie Summers since 1990. The couple has three children. His daughter Ellie is a Liberty graduate and resides in Nashville, Tenn. His son Luke is on staff with the program as the Video Coordinator and was previously a student manager, player on the team and graduate assistant. McKay's other son Gabriel played for the Flames for four seasons (2021-25).

Coaching Experience

2015-Present: Head Coach at Liberty
2009-15: Associate Head Coach at Virginia
2007-09: Head Coach at Liberty University
2002-07: Head Coach at New Mexico
2000-02: Head Coach at Oregon State
1998-00: Head Coach at Colorado State
1996-98: Head Coach at Portland State

Coaching Accolades

Led Liberty to its first ever NCAA Tournament win in 2019
Has posted 409 career wins throughout his head coaching career and 244 victories at Liberty
Coached 23 All-Conference players at Liberty, including five Player of the Year honorees (four POT, one DPOY)
2022 Nation of Coaches Master Coach Award
2020 NABC District 3 Coach of the Year
2020 and 2021 ASUN Coach of the Year
2019 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year (Top Division I Coach in America)
2019 Hugh Durham Coach of the Year Nominee
2019 Ben Jobe Coach of the Year Nominee
2017 Skip Prosser Man of the Year Nominee
2017 Ben Jobe Coach of the Year Nominee
2016 Big South Coach of the Year
Owns seven of Liberty’s 11 20-win seasons