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Virginia womenâs basketball has hired former Florida head coach Kelly Rae Finley as associate head coach. Finley, who was let go after a four-year tenure at Florida, is expected to enhance recruiting efforts for the program.
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GREENVILLE, SC - MARCH 06: Florida Gators head coach Kelly Rae Finley during the SEC women's college basketball tournament between the Florida Gators and the Alabama Crimson Tide on March 6, 2025 at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C. (Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Two weeks after taking over as head coach of the Virginia womenâs basketball program, Aaron Roussell has made his most significant hire yet, officially naming former Florida head coach Kelly Rae Finley as associate head coach on Monday.
Finley took over Floridaâs program as interim coach in 2021 before being hired permanently in February of 2022. After going 93-75 overall and 30-50 in SEC play and missing out on the NCAA Tournament the past four years, Finley was fired by Florida with one year remaining on her contract. Less than two months after being let go following an 18-15 season, including 5-11 in the SEC, Virginiaâs new head coach has brought Finley in to join his staff.
Despite limited on-court success during her tenure, including only one NCAA Tournament appearance, which came during her year as interim coach, Finley does bring some notable recruiting chops to Charlottesville. Most notably, she secured a top-10 recruiting class in 2024, according to ESPN, including five-star and No. 15 overall recruit Alivia McGill, the teamâs leading scorer and assister the past two seasons.
Finley was previously an assistant coach and associate head coach at Florida before being hired as head coach. Before that, she spent time as an assistant at Harvard, Colorado, and Arizona. During her time at Colorado, she helped recruit a top-25 recruiting class.
In Virginiaâs announcement of Finleyâs hiring, Roussell had this to say about his associate head coach hire: âKelly is someone Iâve admired for a long time. She has exceptional integrity and is genuine in how she goes about her relationshipsâŠSheâs a superstar recruiter with a relentless work ethic. Our relationship predates either one of us being in this business and sheâs always been someone Iâve leaned on for guidance.â
Kelly Rae Finley was fired after a four-year tenure where she had a 93-75 overall record and missed the NCAA Tournament for the past four years.
Kelly Rae Finley is expected to bring strong recruiting skills to Virginia, having secured a top-10 recruiting class in 2024 during her time at Florida.
Aaron Roussell is the new head coach of Virginia women's basketball, having taken over the program two weeks prior to Finley's hiring.

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Finley first met Roussell while she attended The Breck School in Minnesota, when he was the head coach of the JV boysâ team, according to Finleyâs bio on VirginiaSports.com.