.png&width=48&height=48&type=webp)
University of Houston Athletics
Cummings, Rickett Named Assistant Coaches for Women's Basketball
7/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
July 15, 2009
HOUSTON - The University of Houston women's basketball bench will have a slightly different look in November when the Cougars hit the court to kick off their 2009-10 campaign. Veteran head coach Joe Curl will still be calling the shots as he enters his 12th season at UH, but assisting him will be a pair of new assistant coaches, Tari Cummings and Chad Rickett.
"I'm really excited about these new additions to our program," Curl said. "I've known Tari for over 10 years and she has always impressed me with her experience and loyalty. She will be a great addition to our program and bring a lot of experience that will make her a great asset to not only our program, but to the entire University."
Cummings comes to Houston after spending the last two seasons at the University of Cincinnati where she served under head coach J. Kelley Hall as an assistant coach and the program's recruiting coordinator.
Prior to her time at UC, Cummings spent four seasons at Arkansas-Fort Smith under long-time head coach Louis Whorton, where she helped the Lions to three NJCAA National Tournament appearances, including a pair of final fours and a consolation championship. She mentored three NJCAA All-Americans during her tenure at UA-Fort Smith.
She played collegially at UA-Fort Smith (then Westark College), where she earned All-American honors in 1999 and helped the Lions place seventh in the NJCAA National Tournament in 1997-98. She finished with 1,262 career points, ranking third in the program's history. She went on to play two seasons at Oklahoma State University, where she was an All-Big 12 performer in 2001-02, averaging 13.1 points per contest and leading the Cowgirls with 6.9 rebounds per game.
Cummings earned her Associate of Arts degree from Westark College in 1999 and received a B.S. in sociology from Oklahoma State in 2003. She is native of Pocola, Okla., and has an eight-year-old daughter, Tiya
 Chad Rickett  | |
Rickett brings the experience of having already worked with the program for the last two seasons to his new role as he joined UH women's basketball prior to the 2007-08 season as the Director of Basketball Operations.
"Chad has proved his commitment and loyalty to our program and shown himself to be a hungry up and coming coach," Curl added. "He is a hard worker who will do what needs to be done to make our program better."
In his previous role, he was in charge of arranging travel, organizing practice sessions and other team activates as well as the team's video tape exchange for the team.
Rickkett came to UH after a standout basketball career at Midwestern State in Wichita Falls, Texas. At MSU, he was a four-year letterwinner was part of the 2007 Lone Star Conference Championship team that was an NCAA Division II South Central Region Semifinalist. He was named to the 2007 LSC All-Tournament Team.
In addition to the two new assistant coaches, who will join Wade Scott to complete Curl's staff, Tiffanie Hatley also has joined the program as the Director of Basketball Operations. The Katy, Texas, native spent the last year working in the UH Sports Information office.
