UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST: Mike Leflar Named Assistant Coach of Women’s Basketball

Source: University of Massachusetts Amherst

University of Massachusetts Amherst issued the following announcement on May 31.

Veteran collegiate coach Mike Leflar has joined the women’s basketball program as assistant coach. The appointment was announced May 30.

No stranger to the Commonwealth, Leflar makes the trek to western Massachusetts after three seasons at Northeastern University in Boston.

Head coach Tory Verdi said, “I’m very excited to have the opportunity to welcome Mike to the University of Massachusetts. I feel that his level of experience and knowledge of the game will greatly improve our program. His resume speaks volumes. He has impacted every single program that he has been a part of and we expect him to do the same here.”

At Northeastern, Leflar was promoted from assistant coach to associate head coach prior to the 2017-18 campaign. In his final year in Boston, the Huskies won 16 games including a program-record 11 victories in the CAA, capping the season with a trip to the WBI Tournament. It was the program’s first postseason appearance since 1999.

“Coaching in the region, I have always looked at UMass women’s basketball as having great potential,” Leflar said. “Over the past two seasons, coach Verdi has built a great foundation. I am excited to be a part of the next step, helping UMass climb to the top of the Atlantic 10.”

Leflar came to Northeastern following a stint as Binghamton's associate head coach in 2014-15.

He spent 10 seasons at Boston University, both as an assistant coach (2004-12) and associate head coach (2012-14). Under Leflar's tutelage, the Terriers were crowned America East regular season champions in 2009 and 2012 and reached the WNIT on four occasions.

Before his first coaching stop in Boston, he served as an assistant at the University of Pennsylvania, where he helped the Quakers bring home the 2004 Ivy League title.

A native of Horsham, Pennsylvania, Leflar graduated from Boston College in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in communications, while also completing minors in American studies and black studies. He has previously been invited to participate in Nike's Villa 7 and has presented at the WBCA Assistant Coaches Roundtable.

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