Penn State women's basketball has its new head coach in place. The Nittany Lions went through a series of coaching changes across its athletics landscape, and they opted for a former player to lead the women's basketball team moving forward.
Penn State parts ways with another head coach and Mike Rhoades should be antsy
Penn State relieved Carolyn Kieger of her head coaching duties after her squad went 11-18 overall and 4-14 in the Big Ten in 2025-26. She was fired at the beginning of March and it took only 13 days to find her replacement.
Tanisha Wright, former Chicago Sky assistant coach, returns to Happy Valley as the Nittany Lions' new head coach. The move was first reported on Wednesday, March 18 by Matt Fortuna of The Inside Zone.
Wright is a former Penn Stater herself, playing for the blue and white from 2001-05. She was a three-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year winner and earned All-American honors.
BREAKING: Penn State has hired Chicago Sky asst coach Tanisha Wright as their next head coach, sources confirmed to @On3. @Matt_Fortuna had it first.
— Talia Goodman (@TaliaGoodmanWBB) March 19, 2026
Wright is a Penn State alum and was named 3x Big Ten DPOY, alongside All-American honors.
READ: https://t.co/Kb3ZOGNYrK pic.twitter.com/sYOBIlAxJP
Penn State women's basketball hires Tanisha Wright as next head coach
Her coaching experience comes primarily from the professional level in the WNBA.
Wright started as an assistant for UNC at Charlotte 49ers in 2017 before being hired as an assistant for the Las Vegas Aces in 2020. She was a defensive specialist for the Aces and very quickly took her first head coaching gig with the Atlanta Dream in 2021.
She coached the Dream to 14-22, 19-21, and 15-25 records. Her 2023 and 2024 teams made it into the playoffs, but ultimately lost in the first round. In her first season in Atlanta, Wright led the team to its most wins since 2018. She was named the Associated Press Coach of the Year and was second in WNBA Kia Coach of the Year voting.
In 2023, Wright was also named a court coach for the USA Basketball Women's National Team November camp. Chicago hired her as an assistant in Jan. 2025.
Wright is also a former WNBA champion, winning with Seattle as a player in 2010. She had a 14-year-long career on the court across three teams, finishing her playing days at the conclusion of the 2019 season.