The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Men's Basketball
- Title:
- Associate Head Coach
- Alma Mater:
- UC Davis '05 / Maryland '08
- Experience:
- 4th season as head coach, 8th on staff
- Hometown:
- Sacramento, Calif.
Robert Ehsan will begin his fourth season leading the UAB men’s basketball program in 2019-20.
Ehsan is coming off a successful 2018-19 campaign where he won 20 games while advancing to the Conference USA semifinals for the first time since 2015. The Blazers wrapped up the year with a postseason berth in the College Basketball Invitational.
The team’s leading scorer Zack Bryant (14.9 ppg) was named All-Conference Third Team as well as to the Conference USA All-Tournament Team after averaging 20.7 points in three games.
During the 2017-18 campaign, Ehsan led the Blazers to their third 20-win season in four years and the sixth in the last 10 years, clinching the team’s fifth consecutive winning season in the process.
He produced three All-Conference players during his second season in Bryant (All-Freshman), Chris Cokley (First Team) and William Lee (All-Defense). Bryant broke the all-time scoring record by a UAB freshman with 448 points, while Lee broke the school record for career blocks with 292.
Cokely and Lee were rewarded for their outstanding careers with invitations to the 2018 NBA Summer League from the Charlotte Hornets and the Memphis Grizzlies, respectively.
In his first season as head coach, Ehsan guided UAB to 17 wins and directed the Blazers to their fourth consecutive winning season. UAB continued to serve as one of the top defensive teams in the country, ending the year first in Conference USA and 25th in the NCAA with 4.9 blocked shots per game.
Lee became the first player in school history to win the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year award in consecutive seasons, finishing the year first in the league and 20th in the country with 2.4 blocks per game. Lee was also selected to the All-Conference USA Second Team, marking the third-straight year in which he was named all-conference.
Lee is also only the fourth player in league history to be named Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year twice. In addition, Lee earned a spot on the All-Conference USA Second Team.
As an associate coach under Jerod Haase, Ehsan played a key role in the resurgence of UAB basketball, as he helped the Blazers capture the 2015 Conference USA Tournament championship and an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. UAB would go on to make shockwaves in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament, as the 14th-seeded Blazers knocked off No. 3 seed Iowa State, 60-59, to advance to the NCAA Round of 32.
Ehsan and UAB enjoyed more success the following season when the Blazers won the 2016 Conference USA Championship with a 16-2 record inside the league. Additionally, UAB set school records for overall wins (26), Conference USA wins, road wins (10) and consecutive wins (14).
Individually, Robert Brown, Cokley, Lee and Nick Norton were named all-conference, while Lee was tabbed the C-USA Defensive Player of the Year and Dirk Williams the Sixth Man of the Year.
A second consecutive trip to the postseason capped the year when the Blazers earned a berth in the NIT for the 12th time in school history.
Prior to his time at UAB, Ehsan spent a season as an assistant coach at Virginia Tech under Seth Greenberg and six seasons under Gary Williams at Maryland, where he was heavily involved with many aspects of the program, including coaching, player development, recruiting, academics, scouting, scheduling and fundraising.
At UMD, Ehsan was instrumental in securing two Top 25 recruiting classes, and developed players like Jordan Williams, All-ACC, and ACC Player of the Year Greivis Vasquez. He was also involved in the recruitment of Brown, who was originally recruited by Ehsan at Virginia Tech before transferring to rejoin him at UAB, as well as UAB standout Lee and others.
Ehsan played four seasons at UC Davis and started his last two seasons for the Aggies, serving as team captain in his senior year. Ehsan finished 23rd in the nation in free-throw percentage as a junior for UC Davis, which was in a transition period while moving from NCAA Division II to Division I. At UC Davis, Ehsan received the Gordon S. Baranco Award, symbolizing exceptional leadership, unselfishness, work ethic and commitment to the team.
Ehsan earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at UC Davis and completed a Master of Business Administration degree at Maryland. Ehsan is a native of Sacramento, Calif., and is married to the former Lindsey Rattray. They have one daughter, Katelyn, and two sons, Davis and Robert Ryder.
Robert Ehsan File
Born: May 3, 1982
Wife: Lindsey, daughter Katelyn, sons Davis and Robert Ryder
Hometown: Sacramento, Calif.
Education: UC Davis (B.A., Economics, 2005) / Maryland (M.A., Business Administration, 2008)
Collegiate Coaching Experience:
Maryland (Graduate Assistant Coach, 2005-07)
Maryland (Assistant Recruiting Director, 2007-08)
Maryland (Assistant Coach, 2008-11)
Virginia Tech (Assistant Coach, 2011-12)
UAB (Assistant Coach, 2012-14)
UAB (Associate Head Coach, 2014-16)
UAB (Head Coach, 2016-2020)
Ehsan's Career Record
| Season | Team | Overall | Conf. | Finish | Postseason |
| 2016-17 | UAB | 17-16 | 9-9 | T-7th / C-USA Quarterfinals | |
| 2017-18 | UAB | 20-13 | 10-8 | 6th / C-USA Quarterfinals | |
| 2018-19 | UAB | 20-15 | 10-8 | 5th / C-USA Semifinals | College Basketball Invitational - First Round |
| 2019-20 | UAB | 19-13 | 9-9 | T-7th / C-USA Semifinals | College Basketball Invitational - First Round |
| Totals | UAB (4 seasons) | 76-57 | 38-34 |
