HOPEWELL, N.J. - Second year Santa Clara head coach Loree Payne has been named to the 2027 Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Preseason Watch List.
Payne made an immediate impact on the program last season, leading the Broncos to the WBIT. The team's 24 wins and 10 nonconference wins were the most by a first-year head coach in program history and the 13 West Coast Conference wins were tied for the most ever by Santa Clara.
The team also set single-season program records for points (2,728), scoring average (80.2), 3-pointers (319), 3-point attempts (1,030), rebounds (1,442), and blocks (183). Against Simpson, the Broncos set program marks for points in a game (125) and margin of victory (82).
On the national level, Santa Clara finished fifth in turnovers per game (11.4), fifth in 3-point attempts per game (30.3), sixth in 3-pointers made per game (9.4), seventh in assist to turnover ratio (1.4), eighth in rebounds per game (42.4), 13th in blocks per game (5.4), 16th in scoring offense (80.2), and 25th in turnover margin (plus-5.3).
After stops at Puget Sound and Northern Arizona, Payne is 10 wins away from 300 as a head coach.
To be eligible for the award, coaches must compete in a conference deemed to be "mid-major." The following conferences are considered high-major for the purposes of this award and thus ineligible: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, and SEC. Coaches in the re-formed Pac-12 are eligible. Interim head coaches are eligible, though total games coached are taken into consideration.
The 10-person midseason watch list will be announced in January. The five finalists for the award will be announced in March, with the winner being named around the Final Four. Coaches will be assessed across the entire season, including postseason play. Beyond on-court success, other factors such as recruiting, preseason expectations, injuries, and tactical coaching will also be weighed when assessing each candidate. Inclusion on previous watch lists is not a requirement to be considered for future watch lists.
The Broncos open the season at Wyoming on November 2. The home-opener comes against local rival Stanford on November 13. Tickets can be purchased here.
