When Miles opens its 2022-23 women's basketball season on Friday at 2:30 p.m against Oakwood in the Lady Bears Tip-Off Classic, there will be a new person leading the Lady Bears into battle.

Pete Asmond was handed the reins of the Lady Bears program this past summer on an interim, becoming the first new head coach of the Miles women's basketball program in nearly two decades. He replaced Phillip Wallace, Jr., who after 18 seasons and more than 200 victories, took an administrative position at Morehouse College. The unexpected move left athletic director Fred Watson with a sudden decision, well past the time the normal offseason coaching carousel had stopped moving.

"It was a hard decision but a no-brainer to give Coach Asmond the opportunity to lead the women's basketball program in an interim role. It was hard because I did not want to lose him, but due to the timing of Coach Wallace's departure to accept a new position, I felt Coach Asmond was as prepared for the opportunity as anyone, and would be a great fit with the program and their current roster," said Watson, who added that a national search for a head coach will commence at the conclusion of the season.

"I am confident that Coach Asmond will do great things in his interim role and I am grateful I was in a position to afford him this opportunity. He is more than deserving."

Asmond is no stranger to Miles or Watson. He played for Watson at Benedict in his first two seasons as head coach, averaging 10 points per game and winning a Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title as a senior in 2004. He would then join Watson's staff as an assistant coach at Benedict and would ultimately make his way to Miles as the lead assistant in 2018, winning SIAC titles in 2019 and 2020 while earning NCAA South Region bids in those seasons plus the 2022 campaign that saw the Golden Bears nationally ranked for the second time.

While this was a sudden move, and Asmond's first run as a women's basketball head coach, he feels ready for the challenge. 

"I'm grateful for this opportunity and appreciate Coach Watson in having faith in me to lead this program," Asmond said. "I think we're all getting more comfortable with each other and the things we have to do to be successful. We had a practice the other day and you can see the players are starting to understand more of the concepts that we are putting in for this season. I think when the season starts, we'll be ready to go."

This year's iteration of the Lady Bears has some lofty expectations. They return just five players from last year's roster that finished 19-8, including Imani Williams, last season's SIAC Freshman of the Year. The team was also picked to finish second this season in the SIAC Western Division in the preseason poll voted on by the conference's head coaches and media relations professionals. Still, Watson believes he has the right person to match - and exceed - those predictions.

"Coach (Reginald) Ruffin, one of my mentors, always told me to hire on pedigree. Coach Asmond has won on every level in basketball. He was a high school state champion, brought me my first championship as a player and was part of several championship teams as my assistant coach," Watson said. "While he will bring his own brand of basketball to the women's program, he understands what winning looks like and how to accomplish it."

This is not the first time Watson has entrusted the helm of a program to Asmond. During the 2020-21 season that was severely affected and influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, Watson stepped aside and let Asmond run the Golden Bears program for that season.

The results? A 10-1 record with the only loss coming by one point on the road at Tuskegee. Watson knows he has the right person to take on this task.

"Having the opportunity to witness him first-hand coach in games, practices, and how he conducted film sessions, I have no doubt that he has the ability to do the job," Watson said. "He will bring a wealth of knowledge, the work ethic, and temperment necessary to be successful as the leader of our women's basketball program."