Chris Mooney (basketball)

Christopher Scott Mooney (born August 7, 1972) is an American college basketball coach and the current head men's basketball coach at the University of Richmond. Prior to taking the helm of the Spiders basketball program, he was the head coach at Air Force. In his only year there, he led the Falcons to their second best record in school history (18–12). He played college basketball at Princeton. As a four-year starter at Princeton, he ranks 22nd on the school's all-time leading scoring list with 1,071 points, and 11th in three-point field goals made (142).[1]

Chris Mooney
Mooney coaching in February 2013
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamRichmond
ConferenceAtlantic 10
Record325–258 (.557)
Biographical details
Born (1972-08-07) August 7, 1972
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Playing career
1990–1994Princeton
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1994–1998Lansdale Catholic HS
1998–2000Beaver
2000–2004Air Force (assistant)
2004–2005Air Force
2005–presentRichmond
Head coaching record
Overall367–297 (.553)
Tournaments3–3 (NCAA Division I)
5–3 (NIT)
3–3 (CBI)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
2 A-10 tournament (2011, 2022)

Early years and college

Mooney was born and raised in working-class neighborhood in Philadelphia, spending his high school years at Archbishop Ryan High School as the child of a single father after his mother died from breast cancer when he was 13 years old.[2] Mooney's father was a Greyhound bus driver.[2]

In 1990, Mooney enrolled at Princeton University, majoring in English and playing basketball for legendary coach Pete Carril.[3] Mooney was a four-year starter at Princeton, starting all 107 games in his career and amassing 1,071 points, good for 20th place in program history.[4] He finished second for Rookie of the Year in the Ivy League as a freshman and received honorable mention all-conference honors as a sophomore, First Team All-Ivy League honors as a junior and Second Team All-Ivy League honors in his senior year.[4]

Coaching career

Mooney began his coaching career fresh out of college at Lansdale Catholic High School in Lansdale, Pennsylvania. In 1998, Mooney took the helm of the program at Beaver College, now known as Arcadia University. After two years at Beaver, Mooney took an assistant coaching position under Joe Scott at the United States Air Force Academy. When Scott left to take the head coaching position at Princeton University in 2004, Mooney was elevated to the head position at Air Force. After one season at Air Force, Mooney became head coach at the University of Richmond.

The University of Richmond announced on March 27, 2011, following a run to the Sweet Sixteen in the 2011 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament that Mooney had signed a new contract running through the 2020–21 season.[5]

With an 84–74 win over Wake Forest on December 1, 2018; Mooney tallied his 240th win at Richmond, vaulting him past Dick Tarrant to become the winningest coach in Richmond history.

On February 17, 2023, Richmond announced that Mooney would miss the remainder of the 2022–23 season due to heart surgery to address an aneurysm in his ascending aorta. Assistant coach and former Richmond player Peter Thomas served as interim head coach in Mooney's absence. Mooney returned to the bench shortly after the conclusion of the season.[6]

Head coaching record

College
Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Beaver Knights (Pennsylvania Athletic Conference) (1998–2000)
1998–99 Beaver 8–177–96th
1999–00 Beaver 16–1012–42nd
Beaver: 24–27 (.471)19–13 (.594)
Air Force Falcons (Mountain West Conference) (2004–2005)
2004–05 Air Force 18–129–53rd
Air Force: 18–12 (.600)9–5 (.643)
Richmond Spiders (Atlantic 10 Conference) (2005–present)
2005–06 Richmond 13–176–10T–11th
2006–07 Richmond 8–224–12T–12th
2007–08 Richmond 16–159–7T–4thCBI First Round
2008–09 Richmond 20–169–7T–5thCBI Semifinal
2009–10 Richmond 26–913–33rdNCAA Division I Round of 64
2010–11 Richmond 29–813–33rdNCAA Division I Sweet 16
2011–12 Richmond 16–167–9T–9th
2012–13 Richmond 19–158–8T–8thCBI Quarterfinal
2013–14 Richmond 19–148–87th
2014–15 Richmond 21–1412–6T–4thNIT Quarterfinal
2015–16 Richmond 16–167–119th
2016–17 Richmond 22–1313–5T–3rdNIT Quarterfinal
2017–18 Richmond 12–209–9T–5th
2018–19 Richmond 13–206–12T–10th
2019–20 Richmond 24–714–42nd Postseason cancelled due to COVID-19
2020–21 Richmond 14–96–58thNIT Quarterfinal
2021–22 Richmond 24–1310–86thNCAA Division I Round of 32
2022–23 Richmond 13–14*6–8*T–11th
2023–24 Richmond
Richmond: 325–258 (.557)160–135 (.542)
Total:367–297 (.553)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

*Mooney was on medical leave of absence from February 17 through the season end, missing the final six games of the season.

References
  1. Princeton Men's Basketball Record Book
  2. Litos, Michael (4 October 2010). "Chris Mooney's Graceful Toughness Rebuilds Richmond into Threat". AOL News. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
  3. Jerardi, Dick (23 March 2011). "Success heads resume of Richmond coach Mooney". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
  4. "Men's Basketball Coaches: Chris Mooney". University of Richmond Sports Information. Archived from the original on June 8, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
  5. Mooney Signs 10-Year Contract At Richmond Archived July 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Chris Mooney To Have Heart Surgery, Miss Remainder of Season". richmondspiders.com. University of Richmond Athletics. 2023-02-17. Retrieved 2023-02-23.
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