Staff Directory
Bruno, Doug
Doug Bruno
- Title:
- Special Assistant to the Vice President & Director of Athletics
After a run of nearly four decades as head coach of the DePaul women's basketball program, Doug Bruno announced he would be stepping down as head coach on March 28, 2025. Bruno will assume a new role of Special Assistant to the Vice President/Director of Athletics for Women's Basketball effective May 1, 2025.
Bruno’s powerful impact on the game he loves has resonated across the entire spectrum of women’s basketball as not only a highly successful college coach and staunch advocate of academics, but a passionate and undaunted promoter of the sport itself.
The former DePaul basketball player who is forever grateful to the athletic scholarship he received from legendary Blue Demon coach Ray Meyer concluded his 39th season at the helm of his alma mater in 2024-25. Born and raised in Chicago and a product of Quigley South High School, Bruno transformed DePaul women’s basketball into a steadfast national power.
Bruno's program made its 25th NCAA tournament appearance in 2021-22. DePaul qualified for its 18th-straight NCAA Tournament in 2020 after winning a three-peat BIG EAST Tournament title. The NCAA canceled the 2020 NCAA Tournament because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Blue Demons were 28-5 in the 2019-20 season and on track to host the opening two rounds of the NCAA Tournament as a top-16 seed. They won the BIG EAST regular-season crown with a 15-3 record.
On June 11, 2022, Bruno was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tenn.
In his career as head coach, DePaul won 786 games, competed in 25 NCAA Tournaments and four Sweet Sixteen’s (2006, 2011, 2014, 2016). Bruno became the fourth active Division I head coach to reach the 600-win plateau and closes his career ranked 18th among all Division 1 women's basketball coaches in career wins. He won the 700th overall game of his career (including professional) on Feb. 9, 2018 at Butler and the 700th as a college coach on Dec. 1, 2019 at Northwestern.
The DePaul alumnus who played for legendary Blue Demon coach Ray Meyer, led the women's basketball program to six BIG EAST regular-season titles in a seven-year span and five BIG EAST Tournament titles in that same time period. DePaul defeated Marquette 88-74 behind tournament Most Outstanding Player Lexi Held's career-high 31 points in the BIG EAST title game on March 9, 2020 at Wintrust Arena.
Bruno has worked with athletes at the highest level through his involvement with USA Basketball. Since 2009, Bruno has been an assistant coach for the USA Women’s Basketball National Team. He has helped lead the USA to FIBA World Championships in 2010 and 2014, and to its fifth and sixth straight Olympic gold in London in 2012 and again in Rio in 2016.
Bruno is the only coach to be recognized twice as USA Basketball’s Developmental Coach of the Year after leading the U18 team in 2006 and the U19 team in 2007 to gold medals at the FIBA Americas and World Championships.
Bruno’s influence on the game extended to the WNBA where he previously assisted the Chicago Sky as a consultant to the professional franchise. There have been 15 DePaul players drafted by the WNBA, and 10 who have signed with a franchise. One Blue Demon is currently competing on active roster--- three-time All-BIG EAST selection, Lexi Held who was named to Phoenix Mercury's opening dat roster in May of 2025. DePaul's Allie Quigley went on to have a successful professional career from 2008-2022 when she was named a three-time WNBA All-Star, won the WNBA Three-Point contest on four occasions and was twice named WNBA Sixth Player of the Year. Quigley guided the Sky to the first ever WNBA title in 2021. Amarah Coleman was drafted by the Sky on April 13, 2018.
Academically, the Blue Demons were ranked in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Academic Top 25 13 times since its inception in 1998 and finished in the top eight in six times which included No. 2 finishes in 2011 and 2012. They also earned the BIG EAST Team Academic Award in nine times for having the top team GPA. DePaul was named Inside Higher Education’s academic national champion twice and runner-up three times.
For all of his success, Bruno has been recognized as conference Coach of the Year numerous times and was a WBCA National Coach of the Year finalist three times. In 2005, Bruno was selected as Conference USA's Coach of the Decade. The Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) has named him Coach of the Year on 23 occasions and on May 5, 2018 he became the first recipient of the Rich and Ron Herrin Award for lifetime contributions to the sport.
Along with the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, Bruno has been inducted into the DePaul Athletics Hall of Fame, the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame and the IBCA Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the National Italian-American Sports Hall of Fame on Nov. 18, 2017. Bruno has also been awarded the Leonardo Da Vinci Outstanding Achievement in Education Award by the Sons of Italy. He received the Carol Eckman Award in 2008, presented annually to an active WBCA coach who exemplifies Eckman's spirit, integrity and character through sportsmanship, commitment to the student-athlete, honesty, ethical behavior, courage and dedication to purpose.
A true leader among his peers, Bruno completed a two-year term as president of the WBCA beginning in the summer of 2007. He is the chairman of the WBCA/State Farm All-American Committee and is the East Regional representative for the NCAA Division I Tournament selection. He serves on the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Committee, the Wade Trophy committee, represents District I on the WBCA Ethics Committee and has served as a conference captain.
For more than 40 years, Bruno has been involved with growing the game of women’s basketball through his Doug Bruno Girls Basketball Camps. He has mentored over 80,000 young athletes, and many of his former campers have gone on to successful careers in every walk of life.
Prior to returning to DePaul in 1988, Bruno spent eight seasons as the associate men's head coach at Loyola Chicago under Gene Sullivan. The Ramblers posted 17 or more wins in four campaigns, including a pair of 20-win seasons, and won three Midwestern Collegiate Conference titles. The 1984-85 team went 27-6 and reached the NCAA Sweet 16.
Bruno spent two seasons as the head coach and director of player personnel for the Chicago Hustle of the Women's Basketball League (WBL). His first team (1978-79) won the league's Midwest Division and led the WBL in 11 offensive categories as well as attendance.
During the 1973-74 season, Bruno began his coaching career as an assistant varsity boys' basketball coach at Chicago's Francis Parker High School before becoming the head boys’ varsity coach at St. Vincent de Paul High School (1974-75).
Bruno was a three-year letter winner for DePaul and Hall of Fame coach Ray Meyer after playing high school basketball at Quigley South for the legendary Dick Flaiz. Bruno was a two-year starter at DePaul and led the 1971-72 squad in assists. He received his B.A. in English in 1973, and later returned to earn his M.A. in English in 1988.
Doug and his wife Patty are the parents of six sons---Bryan, Kevin, David, Brendan, Patrick and Bradley--- and the proud grandparents of 12.
The Bruno family calls the Rogers Park neighborhood on Chicago's North Side home.
Bruno Head Coaching Career
Bruno’s powerful impact on the game he loves has resonated across the entire spectrum of women’s basketball as not only a highly successful college coach and staunch advocate of academics, but a passionate and undaunted promoter of the sport itself.
The former DePaul basketball player who is forever grateful to the athletic scholarship he received from legendary Blue Demon coach Ray Meyer concluded his 39th season at the helm of his alma mater in 2024-25. Born and raised in Chicago and a product of Quigley South High School, Bruno transformed DePaul women’s basketball into a steadfast national power.
Bruno's program made its 25th NCAA tournament appearance in 2021-22. DePaul qualified for its 18th-straight NCAA Tournament in 2020 after winning a three-peat BIG EAST Tournament title. The NCAA canceled the 2020 NCAA Tournament because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Blue Demons were 28-5 in the 2019-20 season and on track to host the opening two rounds of the NCAA Tournament as a top-16 seed. They won the BIG EAST regular-season crown with a 15-3 record.
On June 11, 2022, Bruno was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tenn.
In his career as head coach, DePaul won 786 games, competed in 25 NCAA Tournaments and four Sweet Sixteen’s (2006, 2011, 2014, 2016). Bruno became the fourth active Division I head coach to reach the 600-win plateau and closes his career ranked 18th among all Division 1 women's basketball coaches in career wins. He won the 700th overall game of his career (including professional) on Feb. 9, 2018 at Butler and the 700th as a college coach on Dec. 1, 2019 at Northwestern.
The DePaul alumnus who played for legendary Blue Demon coach Ray Meyer, led the women's basketball program to six BIG EAST regular-season titles in a seven-year span and five BIG EAST Tournament titles in that same time period. DePaul defeated Marquette 88-74 behind tournament Most Outstanding Player Lexi Held's career-high 31 points in the BIG EAST title game on March 9, 2020 at Wintrust Arena.
Bruno has worked with athletes at the highest level through his involvement with USA Basketball. Since 2009, Bruno has been an assistant coach for the USA Women’s Basketball National Team. He has helped lead the USA to FIBA World Championships in 2010 and 2014, and to its fifth and sixth straight Olympic gold in London in 2012 and again in Rio in 2016.
Bruno is the only coach to be recognized twice as USA Basketball’s Developmental Coach of the Year after leading the U18 team in 2006 and the U19 team in 2007 to gold medals at the FIBA Americas and World Championships.
Bruno’s influence on the game extended to the WNBA where he previously assisted the Chicago Sky as a consultant to the professional franchise. There have been 15 DePaul players drafted by the WNBA, and 10 who have signed with a franchise. One Blue Demon is currently competing on active roster--- three-time All-BIG EAST selection, Lexi Held who was named to Phoenix Mercury's opening dat roster in May of 2025. DePaul's Allie Quigley went on to have a successful professional career from 2008-2022 when she was named a three-time WNBA All-Star, won the WNBA Three-Point contest on four occasions and was twice named WNBA Sixth Player of the Year. Quigley guided the Sky to the first ever WNBA title in 2021. Amarah Coleman was drafted by the Sky on April 13, 2018.
Academically, the Blue Demons were ranked in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Academic Top 25 13 times since its inception in 1998 and finished in the top eight in six times which included No. 2 finishes in 2011 and 2012. They also earned the BIG EAST Team Academic Award in nine times for having the top team GPA. DePaul was named Inside Higher Education’s academic national champion twice and runner-up three times.
For all of his success, Bruno has been recognized as conference Coach of the Year numerous times and was a WBCA National Coach of the Year finalist three times. In 2005, Bruno was selected as Conference USA's Coach of the Decade. The Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) has named him Coach of the Year on 23 occasions and on May 5, 2018 he became the first recipient of the Rich and Ron Herrin Award for lifetime contributions to the sport.
Along with the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, Bruno has been inducted into the DePaul Athletics Hall of Fame, the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame and the IBCA Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the National Italian-American Sports Hall of Fame on Nov. 18, 2017. Bruno has also been awarded the Leonardo Da Vinci Outstanding Achievement in Education Award by the Sons of Italy. He received the Carol Eckman Award in 2008, presented annually to an active WBCA coach who exemplifies Eckman's spirit, integrity and character through sportsmanship, commitment to the student-athlete, honesty, ethical behavior, courage and dedication to purpose.
A true leader among his peers, Bruno completed a two-year term as president of the WBCA beginning in the summer of 2007. He is the chairman of the WBCA/State Farm All-American Committee and is the East Regional representative for the NCAA Division I Tournament selection. He serves on the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Committee, the Wade Trophy committee, represents District I on the WBCA Ethics Committee and has served as a conference captain.
For more than 40 years, Bruno has been involved with growing the game of women’s basketball through his Doug Bruno Girls Basketball Camps. He has mentored over 80,000 young athletes, and many of his former campers have gone on to successful careers in every walk of life.
Prior to returning to DePaul in 1988, Bruno spent eight seasons as the associate men's head coach at Loyola Chicago under Gene Sullivan. The Ramblers posted 17 or more wins in four campaigns, including a pair of 20-win seasons, and won three Midwestern Collegiate Conference titles. The 1984-85 team went 27-6 and reached the NCAA Sweet 16.
Bruno spent two seasons as the head coach and director of player personnel for the Chicago Hustle of the Women's Basketball League (WBL). His first team (1978-79) won the league's Midwest Division and led the WBL in 11 offensive categories as well as attendance.
During the 1973-74 season, Bruno began his coaching career as an assistant varsity boys' basketball coach at Chicago's Francis Parker High School before becoming the head boys’ varsity coach at St. Vincent de Paul High School (1974-75).
Bruno was a three-year letter winner for DePaul and Hall of Fame coach Ray Meyer after playing high school basketball at Quigley South for the legendary Dick Flaiz. Bruno was a two-year starter at DePaul and led the 1971-72 squad in assists. He received his B.A. in English in 1973, and later returned to earn his M.A. in English in 1988.
Doug and his wife Patty are the parents of six sons---Bryan, Kevin, David, Brendan, Patrick and Bradley--- and the proud grandparents of 12.
The Bruno family calls the Rogers Park neighborhood on Chicago's North Side home.
Bruno Head Coaching Career
| Season | Overall | Conference | Conf. Finish | BIG EAST Tournament | Postseason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | 12-20 | 4-14 | 10th | First Round | |
| 2022-23 | 16-17 | 8-12 | 7th | Quarterfinals | |
| 2021-22 | 22-11 | 14-6 | 4th | Quarterfinals | NCAA Tournament First Round |
| 2020-21 | 14-10 | 11-5 | 4th | Quarterfinals | WNIT Second Round |
| 2019-20 | 28-5 | 15-3 | 1st | Tournament Champion | canceled |
| 2018-19 | 26-5 | 14-4 | 2nd | Tournament Champion | NCAA First Round |
| 2017-18 | 27-8 | 15-3 | T-1st | Tournament Champion | NCAA Second Round |
| 2016-17 | 27-8 | 16-2 | T-1st | Tournament Runner-Up | NCAA Second Round |
| 2015-16 | 27-9 | 16-2 | 1st | Semifinals | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 2014-15 | 27-8 | 15-3 | T-1st | Tournament Champion | NCAA Second Round |
| 2013-14 | 29-7 | 15-3 | 1st | Tournament Champion | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 2012-13 | 21-12 | 9-7 | T-6th | Quarterfinals | NCAA First Round |
| 2011-12 | 23-11 | 9-7 | 8th | Quarterfinals | NCAA Second Round |
| 2010-11 | 29-7 | 13-3 | T-2nd | Semifinals | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 2009-10 | 21-12 | 9-7 | T-6th | Quarterfinals | NCAA First Round |
| 2008-09 | 23-10 | 10-6 | T-4th | Quarterfinals | NCAA First Round |
| 2007-08 | 20-12 | 8-8 | T-8th | First Round | NCAA First Round |
| 2006-07 | 19-13 | 8-8 | 10th | Quarterfinals | NCAA First Round |
| 2005-06 | 27-7 | 11-5 | T-3rd | Semifinals | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 2004-05 | 26-5 | 13-1 | 1st | Semifinals | NCAA Second Round |
| 2003-04 | 23-7 | 10-4 | 4th | Quarterfinals | NCAA Second Round |
| 2002-03 | 22-10 | 10-4 | 3rd | Semifinals | NCAA First Round |
| 2001-02 | 15-14 | 8-6 | 4th | Quarterfinals | |
| 2000-01 | 18-14 | 8-8 | 8th | Semifinals | |
| 1999-00 | 18-12 | 10-6 | T-4th | First Round | |
| 1998-99 | 12-15 | 7-9 | 8th | First Round | |
| 1997-98 | 11-18 | 5-11 | T-7th | First Round | |
| 1996-97 | 20-9 | 10-4 | T-4th | Quarterfinals | NCAA First Round |
| 1995-96 | 21-10 | 13-1 | 1st | Tournament Runner-Up | NCAA Second Round |
| 1994-95 | 20-9 | 9-3 | T-2nd | NCAA First Round | |
| 1993-94 | 10-20 | 5-7 | 4th | ||
| 1992-93 | 20-9 | 8-2 | 2nd | Tournament Champion | NCAA First Round |
| 1991-92 | 21-10 | 10-2 | T-1st | Tournament Champion | NCAA Second Round |
| 1990-91 | 19-12 | 11-3 | 3rd | Tournament Champion | NCAA First Round |
| 1989-90 | 22-10 | 10-2 | NCAA Second Round | ||
| 1988-89 | 23-10 | 12-2 | T-1st | Tournament Champion | |
| 1977-78 | 16-6 | ||||
| 1976-77 | 11-10 | ||||
| Overall | 786-405 (.660) | 379-183 (.674) |
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