Former Maryland men’s basketball coach Mark Turgeon has been hired to lead Kansas City, the school announced Saturday.

Turgeon, 60, will succeed Marvin Menzies, who will finish the remainder of this season. The Roos, who joined NCAA Division I in 1987, have yet to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

The move is a return to his roots for Turgeon, who grew up in Topeka, Kansas, and played and coached for the Jayhawks. He also coached at Wichita State.

“It is an honor to be returning home and to be trusted to build a winning tradition with Kansas City men’s basketball,” Turgeon said in a statement. “I’ve always had a great love for Kansas City, and I believe that this city deserves a team that reflects its championship culture. There is so much untapped potential and with the full strength of the Kansas City community behind us, we will be able to elevate this program to new heights.”

Turgeon coached the Terps from 2011 to 2021. During that span, he amassed a 226-116 overall record (.661 winning percentage) and a 105-79 mark in the Big Ten (.571) and guided the program to five NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Sweet 16 march in 2016.

The 2019-20 squad captured a share of the Big Ten regular-season championship and climbed as high as No. 3 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, but the coronavirus pandemic canceled the NCAA Tournament.

In December 2021, Maryland and Turgeon abruptly announced that they mutually agreed to part ways. Turgeon’s departure came eight months after he signed a three-year, $17 million contract extension through the 2025-26 season.

In his first public comments since stepping down about a year later, Turgeon said that he was “extremely burnt out” when he left the program and would take some time before deciding whether to return to the sport.

“Whether I coach again we’ll see, but it’s not where I’m thinking I absolutely have to do it,” he said. “It’s something that if the right thing comes along and at the right time, and it’s the best thing for my family, we’ll do it. Otherwise, I’m content with my career. I had a good career, I had a lot of fun doing it.”

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