BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- LSU's new women's basketball coach, Nikki Caldwell, has a five-year contract that guarantees her at least $700,000 a year. The salary could top $1.2 million with bonuses tied to team performance.

The university Board of Supervisors approved the contract Friday.

Caldwell agreed in April to take the Lady Tigers' job, following Van Chancellor. She had worked as head coach at UCLA for three seasons. She won national titles as a player and as an assistant coach at Tennessee.

LSU Athletics Director Joe Alleva says Caldwell will be paid about $10,000 less than Chancellor, but among the "top tier" of SEC women's basketball coaches. The contract runs through June 2016 and includes a $170,000 payment to buy Caldwell out of her old contract.

The dollars come from self-generated athletic department funds.