USTON, La. — Teresa Weatherspoon has had the interim tag removed from title as the Louisiana Tech head women's basketball coach after leading her alma mater to its first postseason berth in two seasons.

Athletic Director Derek Dooley made the position official Thursday.

Weatherspoon replaced Chris Long, who was fired in February with a 71-44 record, though the team was just 12-11 when he was let go.

Weatherspoon led the Lady Techsters to a 9-2 mark down the stretch, the 2009 Western Athletic Conference regular season title and an appearance in the WNIT — where they beat Conference USA champion Southern Methodist before losing to Illinois State.

Dooley said after watching Weatherspoon's performance, "it was clear that she is as passionate and as gifted a coach as she was a player."

Weatherspoon was hired as associate head coach last April after spending eight seasons as a player in the WNBA — seven with the New York Liberty and one with the Los Angeles Sparks. She also spent six years playing overseas in Italy and Russia.

At Tech, Weatherspoon led the program to a 118-14 mark, four NCAA Tournaments, two Final Fours (1987, 1988) and the 1988 National Championship title. She scored more than 1,000 points (1,087) and ranks No. 1 in career assists (958) and career steals (411.

Weatherspoon said she's come full circle.

"This is where my development as a player really started years ago and now I get the opportunity to share my experiences with these ladies," she said. "I'm extremely honored and grateful to the administration for having confidence in me to get the job done."