Robert Allen Williams (born July 13, 1953) is an American college basketball coach and the former head men's basketball coach at UC Santa Barbara. He is sometimes referred to as the Dean of the Big West Conference's basketball coaches. He was previously the head coach at the UC Davis, winning the NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Championship in 1998. Williams is the all-time winningest coach at UC Santa Barbara with a 19-year record of 313âÂÂ260.
Prior to his arrival at UCSB, Williams spent eight years at UC Davis. His UC Davis teams recorded 20 or more wins five times and had an eight-year record of 158âÂÂ76 record. In Williamsâ final season at UC Davis, the Aggies went 31âÂÂ2, won the NCAA Division II National Championship. Williams was named NABC Division II Coach of the Year.
Williams took over a UCSB program that had not recorded a winning season in five years. In 1998âÂÂ99, the Gauchos won 15 games and won the West division of the Big West. The 2002 Gauchos won the schoolâÂÂs first Big West tournament title, advancing to the NCAA tournament. In 2003, they won the leagueâÂÂs regular season title and played in the NIT. In 2007âÂÂ08, UCSB set the all time school record for most wins in a season with 23. They won the Big West regular season title for a second time and received a bid to the 2008 NIT.
The 2009âÂÂ10 season marked the fourth Big West Regular Season title captured during Williams' tenure at UCSB. It also was the first time in the basketball program's history that the Gauchos won both the Big West Regular Season and Big West tournament championships in the same year. Williams was also awarded the 2010 Big West Coach of the Year Award, his third. It marked the school's second trip to the NCAA tournament under Williams.
On Feb. 5, 2011, he recorded his 400th career win when his team defeated UC Davis. The 2011 team also garnered their second consecutive NCAA tournament bid. Williams became UCSBâÂÂs all-time leader in coaching victories when, on January 2, 2012, his team defeated Cal Poly. The 2015âÂÂ16 Gauchos were invited to play at the inaugural Vegas 16 at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The postseason bid was the eighth for the program under Williams and a victory over Northern Illinois in the first round was its first postseason win since 1990.
Following a disappointing 2016âÂÂ17 season, Williams was informed that he would not return as head coach after 19 years with the school.