Episode 319: Carly Thibault Dudonis, Transforming Fairfield Basketball

May 8, 2024

48:15

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Guests: Carly Thibault Dudonis, Fairfield Head Coach

In this week’s coaching conversation, Fairfield head coach Carly Thibault-DuDonis joins the Basketball Podcast to share her insights on 5-Out and, team and basketball identity.

In just her second season at the helm, Thibault-DuDonis led the Stags to a program-record 31 wins as part of an historic 31-2 campaign, the second-highest winning percentage in the nation. That mark featured a conference-record 29 game winning streak culminating in a MAAC Championship, their fifth in program history.

Thibault-DuDonis was named the Maggie Dixon Coach of the Year, All-Met Coach of the year, the ECAC Coach of the Year, the College Insider Kay Yow Coach of the Year, and the MAAC Coach of the Year to celebrate Fairfield's historic season. The Stags also achieved the program's first-ever national ranking as they slotted No. 25 in the AP Top-25 poll and also received votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll. They finished the season ranked fourth in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll. The Stags capped off their historic season with the MAAC Tournament and Regular Season Championship while punching their ticket to the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

In her first season with the Stags, she led the team to a top-5 finish in the conference, receiving a bye into the MAAC Championship Quarterfinals with an 11-9 conference mark.

Carly most recently served as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Minnesota. Before joining Minnesota, Carly was an assistant coach at Mississippi State and Eastern Michigan.

Thibault-DuDonis' father Mike Thibault was a three-time WNBA Coach of the Year previously coaching the Connecticut Sun and Washington Mystics while also being an assistant coach in the NBA for the Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks. Her brother Eric, is the current Head Coach of the Washington Mystics.

Breakdown

1:00 - Introduction

2:00 - Positive Team Environment

5:30 - Offensive Identity

9:00 - Coaching Strategies for Mid-Major Teams

12:00 - Creative Advantages in Offense

14:30 - Cutting and Spacing

18:00 - Basketball Analytics and Player Development

23:30 - Defensive Strategies

27:30 - Defensive Fundamentals

30:30 - Film Analysis abd Drills

34:00 - Workload Management