San Jose State has hired Jonas Chatterton as its new women’s basketball head coach, according to a source familiar with the program’s decision. This will be Chatterton’s first head-coaching stint.
Chatterton replaces April Phillips, who was let go last month after three underwhelming seasons at the helm. The Spartans went 23-71 (.324) under Phillips and saw a number of departures of top talent to the transfer portal. They finished the 2024-25 season at 10-22 and just 3-15 in conference competition. They were eliminated in the opening round of the Mountain West Tournament, falling to Fresno State 67-62.
A Utah native, Chatterton comes to San Jose by way of Oklahoma, where he spent the 2024-25 season serving as the Sooners’ associate head coach. While he was there, Oklahoma advanced to the SEC Tournament final and made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.
Chatterton spent the decade prior as the associate head coach at Oregon State, during which the Beavers saw significant success. The program won three straight Pac-12 regular season titles and advanced to the 2016 Final Four and 2024 Elite Eight during his time in Corvallis. He also spent time on the coaching staff at Colorado and BYU.
With more than 20 years of Division I coaching under his belt, Chatterton will be tasked with leading the Spartans in a new direction. The team’s most recent campaign concluded with a seven-game losing streak, landing it 10th in the conference rankings, above only Utah State. With a new-look Mountain West Conference on the way, the time is right for a team turnaround.
With assistance from Howard Megdal.
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