The Wisconsin Badgers basketball programs in Madison have been a talking point lately, especially after the women’s team hired a new coach.
Former head coach Marisa Moseley resigned after the Badgers were bounced from the first round of the Big Ten Tournament, which was the last real chance at the team making some noise on the court.
With the flop of a season combined with serious allegations of misconduct and abuse, Moseley was destined to leave Madison and take her talents elsewhere as the tenure simply did not work out for either party.
Wisconsin now stands in a very similar position that the program started in before the hiring of Moseley, and while a key hiring could save the program, the announcement of the new coach will likely disappoint rather than excite.
Wisconsin Badgers Hire Robin Pingeton to Replace Marisa Moseley as Acting Women’s Basketball Coach
The Wisconsin Badgers have announced Robin Pingeton as the next head coach of the women’s basketball program, which brings the Iowa native close to home.
Pingeton is a decorated coach, with an overall record of 584-374 along with a record of 14-15 in postseason tournament play dating back to 1992 with St. Ambrose. Pingeton took Illinois State to the NCAA Tournament twice during her first tenure with a bigger, more powerful school before joining Missouri in the Big 12 Conference.
The coach saw the transition of the program from the Big 12 Conference to the Southeastern Conference, and spent the last 15 years with the team as the head coach. Pingeton was recently let go six days ago after a six year NCAA Tournament drought and two rough nine win seasons in 2019 and 2020, which made for an interesting hire.
Pingeton resigned just six days before her surprise hiring was set in motion, although her resignation was more of a mutual agreement than a lone decision.
The talented coach was not necessarily someone who many experts felt would be in the mix for a top opening, and the recent resignation makes the new hiring of Pingeton one that is rather shocking. Moseley was in part let go of due to her inability to make do with what the administration was providing the program.
Moseley was given some resources but ultimately not enough to put together a competitive team in the Big Ten Conference. Pingeton is in a rather similar boat, with resources dwindling and talent becoming more and more expensive as the days progress.
While Pingeton did not have the tools to turn Missouri back into a contender after the graduation of some of her best players, the coach does have plenty of experience and has taken rosters in all different conditions to postseason play, which bodes well for the future in Madison.
The reality behind the state of the Wisconsin Badgers women’s basketball team is that funds are hard to come by with heavy hitters like hockey, volleyball, and football eating away at the funds that Wisconsin will accrue.
Pingeton will be expected to make the most happen while being given the smallest amount of support she likely has had during her coaching career. During the upcoming season, Wisconsin is expected to still remain in the bottom third of funding for the women’s basketball program within the Big Ten Conference.
Along with the lack of funding, Pingeton will also be given nearly nothing to start with, as much of the staff and player pool has already left without a thought of potentially returning.
What is the Fuss Surrounding the Wisconsin Badgers, Robin Pingeton Following the Hiring News?
Pingeton is currently stuck in the middle of a mess, and it is one that may only continue to get worse as the search process itself was very revealing of what could come for the Wisconsin Badgers.
Wisconsin hired TurnKey, a hiring company known for recruiting bargain hires, which set the tone for a search that would be considered a ‘mess’ by many of the candidates interviewed.
One such candidate, who will remain anonymous, stated that the Wisconsin Badgers had asked questions about play style and on-court coaching, which quickly resulted in the candidate realizing that “[Wisconsin] did not know what they are talking about.”
Another issue that has quickly developed within the coaching search is the actual candidate that the Wisconsin Badgers fell on, as Missouri also used TurnKey and was given a much different pool of candidates.
Even with all funding and search issues aside, the hiring raises questions about the potential standards that the Wisconsin Badgers program will aim to uphold moving forward. While the time Moseley spent in Madison was beneficial to the program in the end, it had also become a massive headache for the program towards the end after allegations of abuse were revealed by former players.
To the surprise of many Badgers fans, Moseley was allowed to play out the season and no punishment was ever brought forward against the coach.
Unfortunately, Wisconsin might not be able to escape abuse allegations as a former Missouri player recently accused new Badgers coach Pingeton of emotional abuse.
Grace Berg, a standout for Drake, accused Pingeton of emotionally abusing her before her departure into the transfer portal following the 2018-19 season. Berg claims Pingeton pushed for her to stay with the Missouri program despite barely playing during her freshman year. Pingeton reportedly became hostile and threatened to make the transfer process difficult for the recruit.
Nothing has come of the Berg situation for Pingeton, but the eerily similar details to what occurred in Madison under the watch of coach Moseley is not a good look for the program whatsoever. Pingeton may bring more success to the court for the Wisconsin Badgers, but it might take multiple seasons before the effects of her changes are felt.
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