Challenging coaching path pays off for Tucsonan Alex Berman; Emory assistant named WBCA '30 under 30' top coach

Growing up in Tucson, the University of Arizona was basically her backyard. She spent hours with her dad, Mark, watching games; she attended UA basketball camps year in and year out run by Wildcat bosses Joan Bonvicini and Lute Olson.

She soaked up all that knowledge, plus saw up close how a strong woman in Michelle Berry could have an impact on the young women she coached when Berman played basketball locally at what is now called The Gregory School.

All of it pointed in one direction: coaching.

Berman, an assistant coach the last three seasons at Emory University, was recently named to the prestigious Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s “30 under 30” list.

Since Berman joined head coach Misha Jackson’s Emory staff, the NCAA Division III Eagles reached the NCAA D-III tournament for the second consecutive season in 2024. With a record of 51-24 overall in Berman’s three seasons as an Emory assistant, the Eagles were ranked as high as No. 6 nationally back in March.

While there are more than 1,300 four-year women’s college basketball teams nationwide, the WBCA considered Berman worthy for its 2024 list of 31 honorees (a tie in the selection process meant this year’s “30 under 30” list would actually include 31).

“I jokingly told my head coach that ‘It’s the last year of my 20s, so it’s the last year I’ll be eligible,’” Berman said with a laugh of her conversation with Emory coach Misha Jackson. “I’m just a kid that went to high school with 100 students and now I’m getting recognized by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. It’s really humbling to think about that kid in the stands with an ill-fitting Arizona jersey, being able to see these coaches on the sidelines and now I get to do that every single day as a coach. And it’s awesome.

“I always carry a little bit of Tucson pride with me, you know, everywhere I go, and (my Emory) players know it. I’m always talking about it,” Berman added. “For me, it’s just part of who I am.”

The email that informed her of her honor came the week of her 30th birthday, which made that celebration even more special.

A self-professed basketball junkie, who misses just about everything in Tucson. That, of course, includes her mom, Judith Riley. Also on the list is Southern Arizona’s Mexican food scene (El Torero is her favorite). And Berman longs for Tucson’s 300 days of summer — especially after living in Boston and Atlanta.

Berman said that while she’ll watch any random basketball game, her house, of course, is full of Wildcat memorabilia; and she always picks Arizona in her March Madness brackets.

Always connected to Tucson

Berman always knew she wanted to do something around sports but it took her time to land on coaching. She played nearly every sport growing up and attended too many UA sporting events to count.

But there was always something about basketball. While she admits she was probably a better softball player and “I’m not the tallest. I’m not the quickest,” basketball stood out.

“I just love the game.”

That pull towards basketball might have been what she experienced watching those teams coached by Bonvicini and Olson. Especially those years of multiple Sweet Sixteen and an Elite Eight NCAA appearances by the men’s team after the program’s 2001 Final Four appearance.

“I can still remember sitting in our seats watching some of those shots and feeling the energy and McKale — I love that,” Berman said.

Berman originally thought she’d go to college to study broadcasting or even sports medicine — her mom was a doctor — but eventually realized coaching would be her path. She was always studying the game, and also worked basketball camps in high school.

One person who knew she had what it takes to be a coach was her high school coach, Berry, who is now an assistant professor at the UA’s Department of History. Berry, who took over the program at a time when it was struggling, said she was looking for a player who was “the spark” for the rebuild. She was looking for players who had that strong work ethic — gym rats — and “the ones that want to stick it out even when it’s not all rainbows and butterflies,” she said.

“Alex had all of those traits and then she also had a family who, both her mom and her dad, were so supportive of her passion,” Berry said. “Even if it’s not traditional for, quote-unquote, a ‘girl to love sports like that,’ or a lot of times I think people (are like), ‘You’re gonna be a basketball coach?’

“Or that negative notion of what being a coach and being an athletic education means,” she added. “But (Berman’s) parents were really supportive of that. I think just between her work ethic, her passion for the game, her willingness to dig in, even when it was hard — those are all traits you have to have as a coach. I think that it was pretty obvious at the time that if she chose to be a coach, she was going to be a good one.”

Berman appreciates that just about everywhere she’s looked in her life she’s had role models who have helped shape her into the coach she is today. Besides her parents, her coaches — as a player and an assistant — another person who has influenced her is Arizona coach Adia Barnes.

Berman calls Barnes a mentor and a friend. When they see each other, they talk about life, not basketball. In March of 2020, Berman’s father, Mark, who owned Benjamin Plumbing Supply, was diagnosed with cancer. He passed away in February of 2022. He was a big supporter of UA’s women’s basketball so Barnes brought her team to see him during that time. Berman will be forever grateful for that simple act of kindness.

“We just are able to spend time with one another and talk about Tucson, talk about my dad and the legacy that he’s left,” Alex Berman said. “She’s an incredible person to have in your life. And I think that there’s something to be said for being a strong, powerful woman with kids and everything that she stands for on the sidelines is so great.”

Relationships are at the heart of Berman’s own coaching philosophy. On any given day, Emory players are sitting in her office just talking, asking for advice or watching basketball.

Climbing the coaching ladder

While playing guard at Wellesley, Berman settled on becoming a coach. She started out at Mount Ida College as she pursued her master’s. Then, she moved on to UMass Dartmouth for three seasons. Both positions were full-time assistant roles but only paid her a part-time wage. At Emory, she is still doing the full-time work, but now is being paid for it.

After experiencing the many daily challenges of coaching, to receive this recognition as one of the top coaches in the country, Berman said is “really validating.”

“I’ve spent my whole career at (NCAA) Division III, and I do think sometimes it’s hard to receive that recognition,” Berman said. “It’s amazing to see what’s going on now in women’s basketball. Turn on any channel and there’s going to be Caitlin Clark or Angel Reese in an ad; you’re going to see some absolutely amazing student-athletes.

“It’s so great to see our sport being validated on this national scale, but for me personally, it’s just an incredibly validating part of my profession. It’s a lot of time and effort and it’s just great to see that play out.”

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