Keith Freeman completed his second season as associate head coach for Old Dominion women's basketball in 2019-20.
This past season, Freeman helped lead the Monarchs to its second-straight 20+ win season. The Monarchs went 24-6 overall and 14-4 in C-USA play. He helped ODU to its first win over a Power 5 team since March 2015 with an 89-77 win over Auburn on Nov. 11 on the road. ODU's season was also highlighted by a 66-59 OT win over Rice, which snapped the Owls' 30-game conference game win streak. On Feb. 18, ODU was tabbed NCAA Team of the Week after its performances against Rice and North Texas. On the same day, ODU received seven votes in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. The last time ODU received votes in the coaches poll was over a decade ago on December 18, 2008. Her Monarchs finished the season with an RPI of 33.
In his first season with ODU in 2018-19, Old Dominion posted one of the biggest turnarounds not only in program history, but in the nation. The Monarchs went 21-11, marking a 13-win improvement from the previous season. The 13+ win mark was the sixth-highest in the NCAA in 2018-19 and the second-best in program history. With the 21 wins, ODU earned an at-large bid to the WNIT, the program's seventh appearance in the WNIT and first postseason appearance since 2015. ODU had a nearly 15-point improvement offensively from a season ago, as the Monarchs increased their scoring average from 54.6 in 2017-18 to 68.5.
A veteran of the women's basketball game, Freeman, the former long-time head coach at Valparaiso, has nearly 30 years of coaching experience.
Freeman came to ODU from Wright State, where he served as the associate head coach and assistant coach for a combined six seasons from 2012 to 2018. At Wright State, Freeman helped guide the Raiders to a 135-67 record during his tenure, including a school-record 26 wins and the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2013-14. Wright State won 20+ games in five of the six seasons and also secured four WNIT bids.
Prior to Wright State, Freeman served as a head coach for 24 seasons, most notably at Valparaiso. Freeman's all-time head coaching record stands at 415-294.
At Valparaiso from 1994 to 2012, Freeman went 286-247 and is the all-time winningest coach in program history. Freeman pioneered the Crusaders to four 20-win seasons and seven top-two finishes in the league. In 2001-02, he orchestraded one of the greatest turnarounds in the nation, leading Valparaiso to a 26-7 record and was named a finalist for the National Coach of the Year. Overall, Freeman was a three-time Mid-Continental Conference Coach of the Year at Valparaiso and also helped lead the Raiders to their first-ever NCAA Tournament and Mid-Continental Conference Championship.
Prior to Valparaiso, Freeman also held head coaching stints at Saint Joseph's College and Huntington College, both small schools in Indiana.
At Saint Joseph's, Freeman went 85-28 in four seasons from 1990 to 1994 and was the Great Lakes Valley Coach of the Year in 1991-92. At Huntington, Freeman coached from 1983 to 1990. Freeman was 19 when he was named the head women's coach and then 21 when he was named the head men's coach. As the youngest collegiate coach, Freeman guided the Huntington women to a National Christian College Athletic Association National Championship in 1984.
Freeman graduated cum laude from Huntington College in Indiana in 1986 with a degree in Business Administration. He then earned his MBA in 1987 from Ball State. Freeman is a member of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and the Fellowship of Christan Athletes.