INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) — In his second season in Ann Arbor, Michigan’s Dusty May has been named the 2025-26 recipient of the Henry Iba Award as the U.S. Basketball Writers Association’s Men's National Coach of the Year.
May will be formally honored on April 16 at the USBWA Awards Dinner hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, along with the Oscar Robertson Trophy and Wayman Tisdale Award winners as the men's national player and freshman player of the year.
May guided Michigan to a 29-2 regular-season record, the best in program history, and the Wolverines earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament’s Midwest Regional — the fourth No. 1 seed in school history and the first since 2021. Michigan’s previous top seeds came in 1985 (Southeast), 1993 (West) and 2021 (East).
Michigan, now 31-3, secured the 2026 Big Ten regular-season championship outright with an 84-70 victory at then-No. 10 Illinois on Feb. 27, finishing conference play with a dominant 19-1 record, including 10-0 on the road. The title marked the Wolverines’ first since 2020-21, their ninth outright conference championship and 16th overall.
In just two seasons in Ann Arbor, May has transformed the Michigan program into a national contender. He has compiled a 58-13 record and became the fastest coach in program history to reach 50 victories, doing so in just 61 games.
Over his past four seasons overall, May has posted a remarkable 118-26 record, while his career mark stands at 184-82 in eight seasons as a head coach. His teams have recorded 10 or more conference victories in each of the past five seasons.
May was named Big Ten Coach of the Year by both the media and the Associated Press this season, becoming the sixth coach in program history to earn the honor and just the third to be recognized by the media.
Led by first-team USBWA All-American Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan is the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region and will open NCAA Tournament play against Howard on Thursday in Buffalo, with tipoff scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET.
May is the third Michigan coach to be named the USBWA’s National Coach of the Year, joining Juwan Howard (2020-21) and Johnny Orr (1975-76). He is also the 13th coach from the Big Ten Conference to receive the Henry Iba Award.
The Henry Iba Award, named in honor of the legendary Oklahoma State coach, has been presented annually since 1959 to the nation’s top Division I men’s basketball coach.
The Henry Iba Award is named in honor of the legendary coaching great at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) who won two NCAA championships and two gold medals and one silver as coach of the U S. Olympic teams. Iba held the dual position of basketball coach and athletic director until he retired in 1970. He was elected to the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the Missouri Hall of Fame, the Helms Foundation All-Time Hall of Fame for basketball, and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame at Springfield, Mass. Henry Iba passed away in 1993 in Stillwater, Okla.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. For more information on the USBWA and its award programs, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.
ALL-TIME HENRY IBA AWARD WINNERS
2025-26: Dusty May, Michigan (Big Ten)
2024-25: Rick Pitino, St. John's (Big East)
2023-24: Kelvin Sampson, Houston (Big 12)
2022-23: Shaka Smart, Marquette (Big East)
2021-22: Tommy Lloyd, Arizona (Pac-12)
2020-21: Juwan Howard, Michigan (Big Ten)
2019-20: Anthony Grant, Dayton (Atlantic 10)
2018-19: Rick Barnes, Tennessee (SEC)
2017-18: Tony Bennett, Virginia (ACC)
2016-17: Mark Few, Gonzaga (West Coast)
2015-16: Chris Mack, Xavier (Big East)
2014-15: Tony Bennett, Virginia (ACC)
2013-14: Gregg Marshall, Wichita State (Missouri Valley)
2012-13: Jim Larrañaga, Miami, Fla. (ACC)
2011-12: Frank Haith, Missouri (Big 12)
2010-11: Mike Brey, Notre Dame (Big East)
2009-10: Jim Boeheim, Syracuse (Big East)
2008-09: Bill Self, Kansas (Big 12)
2007-08: Keno Davis, Drake (Missouri Valley)
2006-07: Tony Bennett, Washington State (Pac-10)
2005-06: Roy Williams, North Carolina (ACC)
2004-05: Bruce Weber, Illinois (Big Ten)
2003-04: Phil Martelli, St. Joseph’s (Atlantic 10)
2002-03: Tubby Smith, Kentucky (SEC)
2001-02: Ben Howland, Pittsburgh (Big East)
2000-01: Al Skinner, Boston College (Big East)
1999-00: Larry Eustacy, Iowa State (Big 12)
1998-99: Cliff Ellis, Auburn (SEC)
1997-98: Tom Izzo, Michigan State (Big Ten)
1996-97: Clem Haskins, Minnesota (Big Ten)
1995-96: Gene Keady, Purdue (Big Ten)
1994-95: Kelvin Sampson, Oklahoma (Big 8)
1993-94: Charlie Spoonhour, Saint Louis (Great Midwest)
1992-93: Eddie Fogler, Vanderbilt (SEC)
1991-92: Perry Clark, Tulane (Metro)
1990-91: Randy Ayers, Ohio State (Big Ten)
1989-90: Roy Williams, Kansas (Big 8)
1988-89: Bob Knight, Indiana (Big Ten)
1987-88: John Chaney, Temple (Atlantic 10)
1986-87: John Chaney, Temple (Atlantic 10)
1985-86: Dick Versace, Bradley (Missouri Valley)
1984-85: Lou Carnesecca, St. John’s (Big East)
1983-84: Gene Keady, Purdue (Big Ten)
1982-83: Lou Carnesecca, St. John’s (Big East)
1981-82: John Thompson, Georgetown (Big East)
1980-81: Ralph Miller, Oregon State (Pac-10)
1979-80: Ray Meyer, DePaul (Independent)
1978-79: Dean Smith, North Carolina (ACC)
1977-78: Ray Meyer, DePaul (Independent)
1976-77: Eddie Sutton, Arkansas (Southwest)
1975-76: Johnny Orr, Michigan (Big Ten)
1974-75: Bob Knight, Indiana (Big Ten)
1973-74: Norm Sloan, N.C. State (ACC)
1972-73: John Wooden, UCLA (Pac-8)
1971-72: John Wooden, UCLA (Pac-8)
1970-71: John Wooden, UCLA (Pac-8)
1969-70: John Wooden, UCLA (Pac-8)
1968-69: Maury John, Drake (Missouri Valley)
1967-68: Guy Lewis, Houston (Independent)
1966-67: John Wooden, UCLA (AAWU)
1965-66: Adolph Rupp, Kentucky (SEC)
1964-65: Butch Van Breda Kolff, Princeton (Ivy League)
1963-64: John Wooden, UCLA (AAWU)
1962-63: Ed Jucker, Cincinnati (Missouri Valley)
1961-62: Fred Taylor, Ohio State (Big Ten)
1960-61: Fred Taylor, Ohio State (Big Ten)
1959-60: Pete Newell, California (AAWU)
1958-59: Eddie Hickey, Marquette (Independent)