| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Baylor |
| Conference | Big 12 |
| Record | 102–36 (.739) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | (1975-05-13)May 13, 1975 (age 50) Indiana, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1993–1995 | Purdue |
| 1995–1997 | Marquette |
| 1997 | BCM Alexandros |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2001–2003 | Colorado State (assistant) |
| 2003 | Ball State (assistant) |
| 2003–2005 | Louisville (assistant) |
| 2011–2014 | Arkansas (assistant) |
| 2014–2015 | Florida Gulf Coast (assistant) |
| 2015–2017 | Connecticut Sun (assistant) |
| 2018–2020 | Atlanta Dream |
| 2021–present | Baylor |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 102–36 (.739) (NCAA) 38–52 (.422) (WNBA) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| |
| Awards | |
| |
Nicki Collen (née Taggart; born May 13, 1975) is an Americanbasketball coach and is currently the head women's basketball coach atBaylor University.
Collen was born inIndiana and her family moved toPlatteville, Wisconsin when she was 10 years old. While living in Wisconsin, Collen attended basketball camps withBo Ryan.[1]
Collen began her playing career atPurdue, where she was on a team that made consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in 1994 and 1995 and won consecutive Big 10 Championships. During her junior year, she transferred toMarquette, where she led the team to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. She earned all conference honors while at Marquette and was ranked third nationally in assists during her senior season.[2] After her college career, Collen played one year of professional basketball in Greece with BCM Alexandros.[3]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | Purdue | 28 | - | - | 22.2 | 0.0 | 69.2 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.1 | - | 0.8 |
| 1994–95 | Purdue | 28 | - | - | 22.7 | 18.2 | 53.8 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 0.0 | - | 0.9 |
| 1995–96 | Sat out due to NCAA transfer rules | ||||||||||||
| 1996–97 | Marquette | 31 | - | - | 31.9 | 23.9 | 81.5 | 2.8 | 6.6 | 1.9 | 0.3 | - | 6.8 |
| 1997–98 | Marquette | 29 | - | - | 38.1 | 37.4 | 72.0 | 2.7 | 7.4 | 1.6 | 0.1 | - | 9.8 |
| Career | 116 | - | - | 34.5 | 32.2 | 74.0 | 1.7 | 4.1 | 1.1 | 0.1 | - | 4.7 | |
| Statistics retrieved fromSports-Reference.[4] | |||||||||||||
Collen began her coaching career at Colorado State as an assistant. After her tenure there, she was an assistant at Ball State, Louisville, and Arkansas, before moving to Florida Gulf Coast. While at Florida Gulf Coast, she helped the 2014–2015 team to a historic 31–3 record.[5] Collen coached underCurt Miller with theConnecticut Sun after her time as a college assistant. Collen helped the Sun turn around from a 14–20 finish in 2016 to a 21–13 record in 2017.[6]
On October 30, 2017, Collen was announced as the head coach of theAtlanta Dream. Collen took over forMichael Cooper after the Dream finished 12–22 in 2017.[7]
Collen led the Dream to a slow start; posting a 2–2 record in May and a 5–6 record in June. June was an up and down month, with the team winning on the road against theSeattle Storm, but giving theIndiana Fever their second win of the season. July saw the team find its form. The Dream posted a 9–2 record, which was tied for the best record in the league. The run moved the team from 9th in the standings to 2nd. Collen led the team on an eight-game win streak including a perfect 4–0 record on the road. For her efforts, Collen was named WNBA Coach of the Month for July.[8] Collen was again selected WNBA Coach of the Month in August. She led the Dream to a 7–1 record, which secured them the number 2 seed in theplayoffs and a bye to the semifinals. The team's only loss was toPhoenix on the road.[9] The team finished with a 23–11 record, a franchise best.
On August 28, 2018, it was announced that Collen was selected theWNBA Coach of the Year. She received 37 of 39 possible votes for the award. She is the second Dream coach to win the award.[10]
On May 3, 2021, Collen was hired as the head coach atBaylor followingKim Mulkey's departure toLSU.[11]
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL | 2018 | 34 | 23 | 11 | .676 | 1st in East | 5 | 2 | 3 | .400 | Lost inWNBA Semi-Finals |
| ATL | 2019 | 34 | 8 | 26 | .235 | 6th in East | — | — | — | — | Did not qualify |
| ATL | 2020 | 22 | 7 | 15 | .318 | 4th in East | — | — | — | — | Did not qualify |
| Career | 90 | 38 | 52 | .422 | 5 | 2 | 3 | .400 |
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baylor Bears(Big 12 Conference)(2021–present) | |||||||||
| 2021–22 | Baylor | 28–7 | 15–3 | 1st | NCAA Second Round | ||||
| 2022–23 | Baylor | 20–13 | 10–8 | T–4th | NCAA Second Round | ||||
| 2023–24 | Baylor | 26–8 | 12–6 | T–4th | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
| 2024–25 | Baylor | 28–8 | 15–3 | 2nd | NCAA Second Round | ||||
| 2025–26 | Baylor | 4–1 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Baylor: | 106–37 (.741) | 52–20 (.722) | |||||||
| Total: | 106–37 (.741) | ||||||||
Collen is married to basketball coachTom Collen. The couple have three children.[7] The two met when Tom was an assistant at Purdue when she played there and then he later hired her as his assistant at Colorado State. They married in 2001 and she served as his assistant at Louisville and Arkansas.[12]