Vanderbilt women’s basketball head coach Shea Ralph announced the hiring of Kaili McLaren as assistant coach on May 8, 2025. The 2025-26 season will be her first year on the sidelines in the Music City.
McLaren came to Nashville with a heap of collegiate coaching experience, as she has spent the last five seasons as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level. McLaren was on the sidelines at Providence each of the last two seasons, and she had a three-year stint at UC Santa Barbara prior to her time with the Friars.
“We are so excited to welcome Kaili McLaren to Vanderbilt,” said Vanderbilt women’s basketball head coach Shea Ralph. “Our program has been built by great people who happen to be great basketball players and coaches, and Kaili perfectly fits this mold. She will bring a high level of energy and passion that will resonate deeply with our student-athletes.
“She also possesses an elite skill set for evaluating and training top-level talent, which will immediately elevate our player development and recruiting footprint. Kaili is a champion and has won championships at every level. She is a wonderful human being who will add depth and invaluable expertise to our coaching staff and program.”
At Providence, McLaren joined first-time head coach Erin Batth’s staff during her first two seasons with the Friars. During the 2024-25 campaign, Providence claimed the No. 7 seed in the BIG EAST Tournament, improving two seed positions from her first year. It marked Providence’s highest finish in the league standings since the 2020-21 season. McLaren was key in the development of Grace Efosa and Olivia Olsen, as both players reached the 1,000-point milestone and earned All-BIG EAST recognition in 2024-25. It marked the first time since 1996-97 that multiple Friars earned all-conference honors in the same season.
In her three seasons at UC Santa Barbara (2020-23), McLaren helped the Gauchos claim their first 20-plus win season since 2008-09, finishing at 21-12 in 2022-23. UCSB also advanced to the Big West Tournament Championship game as a No. 5 seed that season. The Gauchos posted back-to-back winning campaigns over McLaren’s final two seasons, as the program saw a plus-14-win improvement compared to her first and final years at UC Santa Barbara.
The Washington D.C., native played professionally overseas for a decade in Greece, Israel, Switzerland, Turkey and Australia. She picked up several honors along the way, including a Player of the Year and Forward of the Year award in 2011 while in the Greek league.
She played at UConn for four years from 2007-10, where she was coached by Ralph. She was a two-time NCAA Champion, winning in 2009 and 2010, with both of those squads finishing with perfect seasons as well. The Huskies won three-straight BIG EAST titles during her tenure. She earned a spot on the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team in 2008.
McLaren graduated from UConn in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in an individualized major in Social and Technological aspects of entrepreneurship.