Thomas Bateast joins basketball coaching staff at FSU
Special to the Outlook
Florida State women’s basketball head coach Brooke Wyckoff has announced the addition of Desma Thomas Bateast to her coaching staff, bringing in a versatile assistant coach who has great experience in several facets of the game.
“Desma brings a wealth of coaching experience, knowledge of the game and passion for the development of student-athletes to our staff,” Wyckoff said. “She has played an important role as part of successful, winning programs at every stop along her coaching journey, and as a former player at the college and professional level, she knows exactly what it takes to compete at the highest level as an athlete.
“I am excited not just for the knowledge and experience Desma brings to our program but for the excellent role model she will be for our players and the impact she will have on our fans and supporters.”
Bateast’s most recent stop was a successful one as assistant coach at Cleveland State, helping the Vikings record their second 20-win season in three years, winning the Horizon League title and making an appearance at the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. Bateast had a large oversight in recruiting, opponent scouting, game preparation and game strategy in her three years with Cleveland State.
From 2017-20, she served as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Florida Atlantic where she helped engineer the second-best turnaround for a coaching staff in a debut season at an NCAA Division I program. The Owls had their highest scoring average in several years at 70.6 points per game in that 2017-18 season. Bateast had a focus on skill development for the guards and wings at FAU, among several of her responsibilities.
She was part of a successful run at USF from 2013-17, helping the nationally-ranked Bulls make four postseason appearances and three consecutive NCAA Tournament berths. She coordinated all aspects of recruiting, served as the academic liaison, had a skill emphasis on point guard play and assisted the head coach with in-game strategies during her time in Tampa. The Bulls made three consecutive American Athletic Conference Championship appearances.
Bateast has also coached at FIU, Rhode Island and Dillard University. She brings WNBA experience as well having served as a scout for the New York Liberty in the 2005-06 season.
Bateast was a standout student-athlete at Miami, being a two-time All-BIG EAST selection and an inductee into the UM Sports Hall of Fame in 2012. She graduated as the program’s all-time leader in 3-point field goals made and attempted, racking up 1,284 total points and helping the Hurricanes to consecutive BIG EAST Conference and tournament titles.
Following her collegiate career, Bateast played professionally for five years.
