This past April 20, 2026, Adam Wardenburg became the sixth head coach in the current NCAA era of the Utah Tech women's basketball program, which is poised to begin a new chapter as it set to join the Big Sky Conference for the 2026-27 season.
Wardenburg came to Utah Tech after spending last two seasons as associate head women’s basketball coach at the United States Air Force Academy. In his two seasons at Air Force, he helped lead the Falcons to two postseason WNIT appearances, and to the 2026 Mountain West Conference Tournament championship game.
Prior to his time in Colorado Springs, he served two different stints at Utah Valley University, including as the Wolverines’ associate head women’s basketball coach in 2023-24.
That season, he was credited with installing a potent zone defense that finished ninth in the NCAA Division I ranks in steals per game (11.2) and tenth in bench points (27.8) - both of which led the Western Athletic Conference. Utah Valley also led the WAC in turnovers forced per game (19.86) and finished second in scoring defense (65.5).
Wardenburg previously served as an assistant coach and offensive/recruiting coordinator for UVU from 2014-18, during which the program made two appearances in the semifinal round of the WAC Tournament.
In between both tenures at UVU, Wardenburg served as head coach for both men’s and women’s basketball programs at Southern Virginia. He headed up the Knights’ men’s program from 2019-2023, and spent one season at the helm of the women’s program in 2018-19.
During his one season with the SVU women, he led the Knights to a 21-6 overall record and was named
D3hoops.com Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year.
Then during his time as head coach of the men’s program, Wardenburg’s teams recorded two of its best finishes in the program’s NCAA Division III era. He saw several team and player records set in scoring average, shots made and assists, all while facilitating an increase in team’s overall grade point average from 2.73 to 3.45.
Wardenburg began his collegiate coaching career as a women’s assistant at the College of Southern Idaho in 2013-14, where he was part of a staff that went 29-4, won a Region 18 Tournament title, and advanced to the NJCAA National Tournament. Wardenburg also served two seasons at Utah State on staff as Director of Basketball Operations (2011-13).
Wardenburg earned a Bachelor’s degree from Utah State in 2013, and completed work on a Master’s of Business Administration from Western Governors University in 2016. He and his wife Tristan are the parents of three daughters, Blakely, Emery, Indie, and a son, Brooks.
