Ira Bowman is in his eighth season at Auburn University and his first as associate head coach. Since his arrival on The Plains, Auburn has been ranked in the Top 11 nationally in seven of eight seasons, made two Final Four appearances (2019, 2025), and captured four SEC Championships (2019, 2022, 2024, 2025). During that span, the Tigers also earned the program’s first-ever No. 1 national ranking and secured a No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament following a school-record 32-win season.
Recognized as one of the Top 5 high-major assistant coaches in college basketball by MCA.com, Bowman has played a major role in recruiting and player development. He was instrumental in the recruitment and growth of NBA Draft selections Jabari Smith (No. 3 overall, 2022), Isaac Okoro (No. 5 overall, 2020), JT Thor (No. 37 overall, 2021), and Sharife Cooper (No. 47 overall, 2021). Under his guidance, Auburn signed a consensus Top 10 recruiting class and developed multiple All-Americans and conference award winners, including SEC and National Player of the Year Johni Broome.
