Wisconsin’s Marisa Moseley stepping down after fourth straight losing season

MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin women's basketball coach Marisa Moseley has stepped down after posting a 47-75 record in four seasons at a program that has been struggling to compete in the Big Ten for over a decade.

The Badgers went 13-16 this season and lost 81-54 to Iowa in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday. Moseley didn't win more than one-third of her Big Ten games in any of her four seasons.

"I notified (athletic director) Chris McIntosh of my decision to resign for personal reasons," Moseley said Sunday in a statement released by the university. "It has been a privilege to lead the program at Wisconsin. I am grateful for the student-athletes, coaches and staff in our program who have put in so much time and effort. I am appreciative, also, of the Badger fans who supported us at the Kohl Center and around the country."

Associate head coach Margaret McKeon will serve as interim head coach while Wisconsin begins a national search for Moseley's successor.

"Marisa informed me this past Friday that she would be stepping down," McIntosh said in a statement. "I want to thank Marisa for the commitment she demonstrated as head coach of our women's basketball program. She had a clear passion for coaching our student-athletes and she worked hard to bring success to our program. I wish her well as she transitions to the next chapter of her life."

Wisconsin had announced in late January that it was looking into a former player's allegations that she was mistreated by Moseley and her staff.

Ball State center Tessa Towers, who played for Wisconsin from 2022-24, never mentioned Moseley by name while saying in a TikTok post that "my freshman year of college, I felt like a lab rat for my coaches and staff because they would put me on new medications every other week."

Towers also said her former coach "made me sign a release form for her to access my therapy sessions, or I'd be kicked off the team." Towers alleged that the coach and staff forced her to get tested for autism and added that "my coach gave me a choice between admitting myself to a mental hospital or getting kicked off the team."

After Wisconsin's first game following those allegations, Moseley said she couldn't comment on any student-athlete's health-related claims but added that "any of my players’ mental and physical well-being will always come before basketball."

"My staff and I work hard and pride ourselves on trying to create an environment that welcomes everyone, and we try to build both positive and lasting relationships with these players," Moseley said at the time. "I have fully participated in the university's procedures in regard to this matter, and I feel like, at this time, that's all that really needs to be said."

Wisconsin's release announcing Moseley's departure made no reference to Towers' allegations.

Moseley had come to Wisconsin after posting a 45-29 record in three seasons at Boston University. She previously was an assistant coach on five of coach Geno Auriemma's national championship teams at UConn.

But she was unable to turn around a Wisconsin program that has struggled for well over a decade.

The Badgers last avoided a losing season in 2010-11, when they went 16-15. Wisconsin posted its best winning percentage since that 2010-11 season when it went 15-17 and reached a WNIT quarterfinal under Moseley last year.

Wisconsin's last NCAA Tournament appearance was in 2010.