Head coach of the UCA men’s basketball team Anthony Boone has been fired following a 9-23 overall season record.

Boone coached the Bears for four and a half seasons.

Director of Athletics Brad Teague announced the decision March 2, only one day after UCA lost to North Alabama. The Bears also failed to obtain a spot in the 2024 ASUN tournament.

“Anthony Boone is a model of leadership,” Teague said to ucasports.com. “We could not have asked for a better person to lead our young men. That made the decision to change our direction much more difficult. But, I decided we needed to find a new leader to explore the possibilities of this program. 

“I want to thank coach Boone and his staff for many years of hard work and professionalism for our program. Great coaches of character bring great students of character. We have certainly enjoyed that success here.

“We will move quickly and efficiently to find our new head coach. We will focus on coaching experience, character and recruiting success,” Teague said.

The Bears’ season ended with five wins and 10 losses at home, as well as four wins and 13 losses away.

Boone began working with UCA as the team’s associate head coach in 2014. He held the position for five years until becoming the team’s interim head coach in 2019, taking over full time the following season. 

Throughout his coaching career, Boone’s best seasonal record was 11-20 during the 2021-2022 season.