Texas Tech Athletics Fires Candi Whitaker, Names Gray-Miller Interim Lady Raider Head Coach

2018 started off with breaking news for the Texas Tech Lady Raiders Basketball team.

During a New Year's Day press conference, Texas Tech Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt announced the firing of Candi Whitaker from her position as Lady Raider Basketball head coach.

Hocutt said he made the decision to fire Whitaker on New Year's Eve.

"Lady Raider Basketball has a proud tradition of excellence," Hocutt said, adding: "We are not satisfied with the current state of the program and are determined to bring Texas Tech Women’s Basketball back to where it belongs in the Big 12 and national landscape."

Lady Raider Basketball assistant coach Shimmy Gray-Miller (pictured, below) was named interim head coach for the rest of the 2017-18 season.

Hocutt also said he wasn't seeing "progress" with the Lady Raiders in terms of wins and play on the court. Right now, Texas Tech Lady Raider Basketball has a (6-7, 0-2) record, with 16 games left to play in the 2017-18 regular season.

The 2017-18 season was Whitaker's fifth as the head coach for Lady Raider Basketball. The Lady Raiders' next game is Wednesday evening against Kansas at the United Supermarkets Arena.