Army basketball is moving in another direction on the sideline.
Army announced Wednesday that head coach Jimmy Allen and athletic director Mike Buddie “have mutually agreed” to part ways after seven seasons.
Stadium’s Jeff Goodman was the first to report the news.
“As is our practice following each season, we conducted a holistic review of all facets of the program,” Buddie said in a press release. “We are thankful to coach Allen for his years of service to the program and to these cadets.
“We are excited for the future of Army basketball with a new leader to continue to elevate the program and provide an extraordinary Division I experience. We wish coach Allen the very best in the next chapter of his career.”
Allen led Army to 98-112 record and stands fourth on West Point’s all-time wins list behind Leo Novak (126, 1926-39), Bobby Knight (102, 1965-71) and Zach Spiker (102, 2009-2016).
The news comes somewhat of a surprise after the Black Knights finished their season Sunday with a Patriot League semifinal 91-74 loss to top-seeded Colgate. Army will return most of its nucleus including first-team, all-league guard Jalen Rucker and Patriot League rookie of the year Ethan Roberts along with starters Charlie Peterson and Coleton Benson. Starting forward Chris Mann was the only senior in Army’s rotation.
The decision was a surprise to the basketball team. Allen wanted to continue coaching at West Point. Figured Allen would get another season with the returning roster. The coaching change also likely caught players off guard and it may lead to some in the rotation transferring.
Allen succeeded Spiker as head coach after serving six seasons as his assistant. Allen guided the Black Knights to two of the program’s four winning seasons (12-10, 2020-21, 17-16 this season) since Army joined the Patriot League in 1990-91. Allen was 56-66 in conference play but Army still seeks its first berth in the Patriot League championship game. This season’s 17 wins were the most during Allen’s head coaching tenure. Allen was 7-7 against Navy and 3-7 in the Patriot League tournament.
