Joe Scott

Joseph Winston Scott (born July 28, 1965) is an American college basketball coach who was most recently the head coach at Air Force. Scott previously was head coach at Air Force once before, as well as at Princeton and Denver.

Early life and education Growing up on Pelican Island near Toms River, New Jersey, Scott played baseball, basketball and football at Toms River High School East, where he set the school's basketball career scoring record. Scott played at point guard in high school and set a school record for career basketball points with 1,550.

Scott served as captain of the 1986–87 Princeton Tigers men's basketball team. As a player in the mid-1980s, Scott learned the "Princeton offense," a methodical system that seeks high-percentage shots by passing until the right opportunity rather than a fast-pace offense with more shots. As a result, Scott has frequently instituted a deliberate pace as a coach, often coaching the slowest-paced team in the country.

In 1990, Scott earned his J.D. degree at Notre Dame Law School and became a personal injury lawyer at New Jersey law firm Ribis, Graham, & Carter. However, he resigned after one year, believing that the profession prioritized billing hours over helping clients.

Coaching career

Early coaching career (1991–2000) After being an assistant coach at Monmouth University for the 1991–92 season, Scott returned to Princeton as an assistant coach, first under Pete Carril from 1992 to 1996 and Bill Carmody from 1996 to 2000. Scott's time as assistant coach included a 1996 win over defending champion UCLA in the NCAA Tournament and a no. 7 ranking and another second-round NCAA appearance in 1998. The 1998 team earned a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the highest ranking ever for an Ivy League school. Scott earned Mountain West Coach of the Year honors and finished fourth in polling for AP Coach of the Year.

Princeton (2004–2007) Scott succeeded John Thompson III as the head coach at Princeton in 2004 and had a 38–45 record through three seasons. On March 11, 2016, Denver fired Scott with two years remaining on his contract. An associate vice chancellor at Denver commented: "We want to get to the NCAA Tournament in men’s basketball. We looked at what Joe’s team had done over the nine years and decided it was time to make a transition. Postseason success had not occurred."

Holy Cross and Georgia assistant (2016–2020) On May 23, 2016, Scott became an assistant coach at Holy Cross for his second stint working under Bill Carmody, having previously been an assistant under Carmody at Princeton from 1996 to 2000. After two seasons with Holy Cross, Scott was hired by Tom Crean to be an assistant at the University of Georgia.

Second stint at Air Force (2020–2026) On March 31, 2020, Scott returned to Air Force for his second stint as head coach. On January 17, 2026, Scott was suspended indefinitely amid an investigation into the treatment of players. On February 20, Air Force announced that Scott and the school had mutually parted ways.

Head coaching record

Personal life Scott's wife, Leah Spraragen, is a 1992 Princeton graduate who played at point guard on the Princeton Tigers women's basketball team. They have two children, one of whom, Jack, plays basketball at Princeton.