Coach A in the Media
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2025-2026
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LA Sentinel - Aarika Hughes Makes Historic Run at LMU
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KCAL - Aarika Hughes On LMU Winning WCC Regular Season Title
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KCAL - LMU Special Bus Send-Off
• 2024-2025
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LA Sentinel - Aarika Hughes Breaks Barriers With LMU Women’s Basketball
• 2023-2024
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LA Loyolan - Meet Coach Aarika Hughes - Mic’d Up
• 2022-2023
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Tucson.com - Friends off the court, UA's Erin Grant, LMU's Aarika Hughes face off for the first time Friday night
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LA Loyolan - Aarika Hughes strives for consistency this season and beyond
• 2021-2022
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LA Loyolan - Aarika Hughes is a landmark hire for LMU women’s basketball
• 2020-2021
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New York Times - 21 assistant coaches ready to lead their own programs in 2021 and beyond
• 2016
• Coast-to-Coast Episodes
Impact Players Under Coach A
• Endyia Rogers - USC
- Pac-12 All-Conference First Team (2020)
- PAC-12 All-Conference Honorable Mention Team (2019)
- Went on to WNBA
• Alissa Pili - USC
- Pac-12 Freshman of the Year (2019)
- Pac-12 All-Freshman Team honors (2019)
- Pac-12 All-Conference Team (2019)
- Pac-12 All-Conference Honorable Mention Team (2020)
- Pac-12 Preseason All-Conference Team (2020)
- Drafted to the Minnesota Lynx (2024)
• Brooke Salas- New Mexico State
- WAC All-Newcomer Team (2015)
- WAC All-Conference First Team (2016)
- WAC Player of the Year (2017)
- WAC All-Conference First Team (2017)
- WAC All-Defensive Team (2017)
- WAC Player of the Year (2018)
- WAC Defensive Player of the Year (2018)
- WAC Preseason Player of the Year (2018)
- WAC Preseason All-Conference Team (2018)
- WAC All-Tournament Team (2018)
- Signed contract with Seattle Storm (2019)
Aarika Hughes has completed her fifth season as head coach of the Loyola Marymount University women’s basketball program, guiding the Lions through one of the most historic years in program history and into postseason play. During the 2025-26 season, Hughes led LMU to the West Coast Conference Regular Season Championship, securing the program’s first outright conference title since 2003-04. The Lions finished 15-3 in WCC play - the best conference record in program history - while recording 21 overall wins to tie for the second-most victories in a single season. LMU also put together a nine-game winning streak, the program’s longest since the 2003-04 championship season, and earned a signature victory over Gonzaga Bulldogs women's basketball, snapping a 35-game losing streak and marking the program’s first win in the series since 2008. The season concluded with a postseason appearance in the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament, where the Lions competed in the opening round at Stanford Cardinal women's basketball, ultimately falling in a tightly contested matchup to close out the year.
For her leadership in a championship season, Hughes was named West Coast Conference Coach of the Year, becoming just the second coach in program history to earn the honor and the first since 2004. Under her guidance, the Lions also earned widespread individual recognition, highlighted by Jess Lawson being named WCC Newcomer of the Year and earning a spot on the WCC Championship All-Tournament Team. Lawson and Maya Hernandez were both named All-WCC First Team selections - the program’s first since 2018-19 and the first time LMU placed two players on the First Team in the same season since 2003-04 - while Andjela Matic added All-WCC Second Team honors, capping one of the most decorated seasons in program history. The Lions’ success built upon a momentum-driven 2024-25 campaign that saw LMU finish 14-16 overall, close the year with three consecutive conference wins, and earn a WCC Tournament victory, including a signature comeback win over San Francisco Dons women's basketball after erasing a 19-point deficit - the program’s largest comeback in more than a decade. That season also featured standout performances from Naudia Evans, who earned All-WCC Second Team honors and delivered a 37-point performance against Washington State Cougars women's basketball, the second-highest single-game scoring output in LMU history.
Hughes was hired as LMU’s head coach in April 2021 by Athletic Director Craig Pintens after building a strong reputation as one of the nation’s top rising coaches. She arrived from University of Southern California, where she served as associate head coach beginning in 2019 and was part of the staff for four seasons. Recognized nationally for her leadership and impact, Hughes was named one of the top 21 assistant coaches in the country by The Athletic and previously earned distinction as one of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s “Top Thirty Coaches Under 30,” while also contributing to USC’s Athletics Black Lives Matter Action Team.
A former standout student-athlete, Hughes starred at USC, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and served as team captain from 2007-10. She ranked third all-time in program history for single-season three-point shooting percentage (.409) in 2007. Hughes later returned to her alma mater as a coach in 2017, helping guide the Trojans to two top-7 ranked recruiting classes in four seasons, including three McDonald’s All-Americans. She began her coaching career in New Mexico, spending five seasons at New Mexico State (2011-16), where she helped lead the Aggies to two NCAA Tournament appearances and back-to-back WAC Championships in 2014 and 2015, before a season at the University of New Mexico (2016-17). Across her coaching career, Hughes has mentored numerous All-Conference (12) and All-Academic honorees, including conference players of the year, freshmen of the year, newcomer of the year, a conference tournament team selection, and tournament MVPs, while helping develop seven players who advanced to the professional ranks.
“I am so humbled and grateful for the opportunity to be the head coach for the LMU women’s basketball program,” Hughes said upon her hiring. “I want to thank Craig Pintens and Ashley Armstrong for selecting me to lead this team. I am truly blessed and excited to work with these outstanding young women.”
Coaching Experience
2021-Present LMU, Head Coach
2019-2021 USC, Associate Head Coach
2017-2019 USC, Assistant
2016-2017 New Mexico, Assistant
2011-2016 New Mexico State, Assistant
Playing Experience
2006-2010 USC
