Fresno State women's basketball introduces Ryan McCarthy as new head coach

Ryan McCarthy was officially introduced as the 12th head coach in Fresno State women's basketball history on Monday afternoon.

A six-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball Coach of the Year Honoree, McCarthy led Alaska Anchorage to the third-best winning percentage and the fourth most total victories in NCAA D-II over the past 10 years with a 309-67 overall record (.822).

Fresno State Athletic Director Garrett Klassy says he believed McCarthy had multiple opportunities to leave for the DI level, but that wasn't going to stop him from recruiting him to come to the Valley.

"We have a high-level coach," Klassy said. "Doesn't matter what level -- winners are winners."

Klassy also stressed McCarthy's passion for the game, and even gave some insight into their dinner meeting at Fresno's Yosemite Ranch.

"As intense as he was about basketball, I needed to see the soft side on this guy," Klassy said. "As soon as we leave Yosemite Ranch, he immediately holds his wife's hand, and I'm like okay, this guy has a soft side, he's very empathetic and cares about people."

Klassy says the hiring process came down to finding a culture driver -- something he sees in both McCarthy and Bulldog Head Football Coach, Matt Entz.

McCarthy also comes to Fresno State with a 'mayhem' style of play that draws inspiration from Jerry Tarkanian's amoeba defense.

"We want to play fast," McCarthy said. "I know every coach says that. I think you can have an interview with any coach that says they want to play really fast and score a lot of points, and you got to have the players to be able to do that."

McCarthy says the program needs to focus on time and skill development moving forward.

"Defensively, we are going to play a high-pressure system," McCarthy said.

"We can mix up our looks between man and our version of amoeba. We were beating DI teams doing this."

Prior to his time at Alaska Anchorage, McCarthy spent five seasons at GNAC rival Northwest Nazarene from 2007-12. At NNU, he served as an assistant, interim head coach, and associate head coach, helping the Crusaders to two NCAA Tournament berths and a .633 winning percentage.

In 2010-11, McCarthy stepped up as acting head coach and led the Crusaders to a 14-13 record and a bid to the inaugural GNAC Tournament. In 2011-12, McCarthy was named associate head coach and helped pilot NNU to an 18-10 season.

McCarthy played professionally for Tus Bramsche in Bramsche, Germany, in 2006-07, where he led the league in three-pointers and free throw percentage. He spent 2006 with the Central Oregon Hotshots of the International Basketball League, averaging 16 points, four assists, and four rebounds per game.

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