Staff Directory
- Title:
- Assistant Coach / Recruiting Coordinator
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Los Angeles native Willnett Crockett enters her second season as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at USC. She joined the Trojans in August 2023, bringing 13 years of coaching experience to her role with the Women of Troy.
"Coach Will is a winner,” USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said of Crockett. "She won two national titles right here in LA as a top high school player. She was an All-American and Gatorade State Player of the Year in California, and then went on to win two national titles in college. She has literally walked in the shoes that our players aspire to, and she will be a terrific mentor and leader for them. She has also built a tremendous reputation as a college coach. At Temple, she had a hand in all aspects of a winning program and helped develop pros. I am most excited to add Coach Will for the quality of human being she is. A woman of high character and work ethic, we are thrilled she has come home to LA to help USC Women’s Basketball achieve our goals.”
A product of Narbonne High School in Los Angeles, Crockett played collegiate basketball at UConn before being drafted by the Los Angeles Sparks and continuing in a pro career that saw her play in the WNBA and internationally. Her coaching career began at Temple, where she spent 13 years as an assistant coach. With the Owls, Crockett helped head coach Tonya Cardoza become the winningest coach in program history with 251 victories. During Crockett’s tenure at Temple, the Owls made three trips to the NCAA Tournament and four WNIT appearances, including two WNIT quarterfinal runs and a semifinal run in 2015.
Temple’s 2016-17 season was one of its best, as the Owls went 24-8 overall, earned an NCAA bid, and finished second in the American Athletic Conference. Reaching the 20-win plateau for the third-straight year, Temple notched the program's best-ever RPI of 18 at the end of regular-season play. The Owls were ranked nationally for five weeks of the season, and beat two nationally-ranked teams (#16/17 DePaul, #20/21 USF).
Crockett was instrumental in mentoring and developing post players at Temple. She also had significant roles in the Owls' recruiting, scouting, practice scheduling, equipment coordinator and individual skill development while also serving as the liaison to strength & conditioning.
In 2022, Crockett returned to her home state of California to serve as director of women’s basketball operations at CSUN for the 2022-23 season.
Crockett is a 2006 graduate of the University of Connecticut, where she earned a bachelor's degree in sociology. She helped UConn win two NCAA Championships along with two BIG EAST regular season titles and two BIG EAST Tournament title. She was also a part of UConn's record-breaking Division I 70-game winning streak from 2001-03.
Crockett was selected in the second round of the 2006 WNBA Draft by the Los Angeles Sparks (22nd pick overall). She also played for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury and competed professionally overseas in Africa, Latvia and Lithuania.
