Hampton: Hampton AD Lonza Hardy announced that head coach Walter Mebane’s contract would not be renewed and named David Six Interim head coach.  When asked about the Interim tag, Hardy said, “Our hope is this evolves into a permanent position…after next season.”

Oregon:  Sources are telling BasketballScoop that Ernie Kent will be allowed another year; although at least one change is expected on his staff.

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SEMO:  Former Kansas player and GA Jeremy Case has been hired as an assistant to new head coach Dickey Nutt.

UVA:  We hear that Liberty’s Ritchie McKay is leaving to join Tony Bennett’s staff as Associate head coach.

Hampton:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that head coach Kevin Nickelberry has resigned.

Oregon:  We hear that Ernie Kent has hired Arizona’s Mike Dunlap (CoY candidate) as Associate head coach.  To make room for him, we hear that Mark Hudson has been let go.

Union University:  Union has announced that assistant David Niven will be promoted to head coach following the resignation of Ralph Turner.

Hawaii:  Head coach Bob Nash has been given a one year extension through the 2010-2011 season.

Toledo:  Head coach Tricia Cullop and the university have agreed on a two year extension to her contract which now runs through the 2014-2015 season.  AD Mike O’Brien called Cullop “the perfect fit for our program”.

Appalachian St.:  We hear the job has been offered to former head coach Buzz Peterson.

Memphis: Sources are telling BasketballScoop that some of the larger boosters are trying to convince Tennessee’s Bruce Pearl to move about 400 miles West.

Hofstra:  Head coach Tom Pecora’s contract has been extended through the 2013-2014 season.

Arizona:  USC’s head coach Tim Floyd was offered the job, and declined. 

Georgia:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that UGA has hired Nevada’s Mark Fox as their new head coach.  Fox has been the head coach at Nevada for the past 5 seasons, amassing a 123 - 43 record. 

Tennessee:  Bruce Pearl has been given a new six year contract.

Butler:  Head coach Brad Stevens was given a new contract, which effectively was a one year extension through the 2015-2016 season.  Terms were not released.

Ashland:  Ashland has hired John Ellenwood, the head coach at Thomas More college for the past 3 seasons.

Cal Poly:  BasketballScoop has learned that Cal Poly intends to introduce Seattle U. head coach Joe Callero as their new head coach tomorrow.  In eight seasons at Seattle, Callero’s teams were 117-115 including a 13-8 record this past season as the Redhawks returned to Division 1.

Hampton:  Following head coach Kevin Nickelberry’s resignation, the school has named Edward Joyner the Interim head coach.

Final Four:  Whoever decided that it was a good idea to have coaches stay in Canada and “Shuttle” back and forth, probably should have spent a few more minutes thinking about the logistics.  BasketballScoop has been told by numerous coaches, that the time from the Cobo center to their hotel, or vice versa is anywhere between 1 and a half hours, to three hours.

North Florida:  We hear that Florida associate head coach Larry Shyatt turned down the job. 

UVA:  BasketballScoop has been told that coach Bennett will be bringing assistant Ron Sanchez with him from Washington St.

Rutgers:  Head coach Vivian Stringer announced today that assistant Clarissa Davis-Wrightsil has resigned to return to her home noting her mother’s health problems.  Stringer stated that a national search would begin immediately to replace her.

Purdue:  Assistant Jody Benner has resigned.  Benner had been on Sharon Versyp’s staffs at Maine, Indiana and Purdue for the last 9 seasons.

Southern Illinois:  As has been rumored for weeks, head coach Dana Eikenberg has resigned under pressure.  AD Mario Moccia says a search will begin immediately.

Hofstra:  Hofstra announced a three year extension for head coach Krista Kilburn-Steveskey through the 2013-2014 season.

La. Tech:  As we reported weeks ago, Louisiana Tech officially named Teresa Weatherspoon head coach. 

Penn:  Officials from Penn contacted BasketballScoop requesting that we let our audience know they are no longer seeking applicants for the head coach position.  The representative would not comment on the status of the search.

Final Four:  In St. Louis, stop by and see our friends at Stromgren Athletics in booth 206.

Nevada:  Assistant David Carter has been promoted to head coach filling the spot vacated by Mark Fox who left for the head coaching job at Georgia.  Carter’s contract is a 5 year deal, financial information was not released.

Tennessee:  BasketballScoop has learned that assistant Tony Jones does not plan to leave for the BU job.

Oklahoma:  ESPN is reporting that OU and head coach Jeff Capel are working on a revised seven year contract. 

Washington St.:  BasketballScoop has heard from multiple sources that WSU will eventually turn to Portland State’s Ken Bone; however with the process evolving the way it is, we are now hearing that the school is looking at a few other candidates.

North Florida:  AD Lee Moon has found his man.  Mathew Driscoll, assistant at Baylor, is expected to be announced as the new head coach early this week.  Driscoll assisted Scott Drew is resurecting a Baylor program that had reached all time lows.

Memphis:  Baylor head coach Scott Drew stated publicly that he no longer wishes to be considered for the open head coach spot at Memphis, saying that the process has become a significant distraction for Baylor’s staff and their recruiting efforts.

Arizona:  There is wide spread speculation that Arizona has now set it’s sights on Xavier’s Sean Miller.  If Miller rejects them, can anyone else see a “Billy Gillispie” type panic hire coming?  No not Gillispie himself, but a, “hire the hot guy quick” / “shoot from the hip” type move that worked oh so well at Kentucky.  It makes you wonder what the administration has been doing over the past  six months. 

Washington St.:  BasketballScoop is being told that UAB’s Mike Davis and former Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried both are interested in the opening at WSU.

USC:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that they expect Michael Cooper to be named head coach at USC within days.  Current head coach Mark Trakh could be on his way to Long  Beach St., his alma mater.

Boston U.:  BasketballScoop has learned that Villanova assistant Pat Chambers will be named early this week as the new head coach at BU.  Chambers has been at Nova since 2004.

Arizona:  Yahoo Sports and ESPN are both reporting that after Arizona raised their offer this morning that Xavier’s Sean Miller has now agreed to become their next head coach.

Memphis: Multiple sources have told BasketballScoop that Memphis is leaning towards FSU’s Leonard Hamilton.

High Point:  New head coach Scott Cherry has hired Wes Miller as an assistant.  Miller was an assistant this past season at Elon and played at UNC prior to that.

Utah State:  Head coach Stew Morrill announced this morning that he is no longer interested in the job at Washington St.

Washington St.:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that the interview with UAB’s Mike Davis did not go well.  We continue to hear that the job will go to Portland State’s Ken Bone.

Xavier:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Xavier will seek to keep associate head coach (and one of our Coach of the Year candidates) Chris Mack by offering him the head coach position.  Mack is a Xavier grad and has been with Miller for the past five years in Cincinnati.

Georgia Southern:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that the school has received approval from Augusta State to interview their head coach Dip Metress.  Metress took Augusta State to the D-II Final Four this past season and to the championship game the season before.  Metress is currently one of, if not the lowest paid coaches in the Peach Belt conference.

Southwestern Oklahoma St.:  Southwestern has hired Fresno St. assistant Kelsi Bond as their new head coach.  Bond, originally from Oklahoma, has been part of the staff at Fresno that has won the WAC regular season and conference tournament title each of the past two seasons.

Memphis:  BasketballScoop has learned that Memphis has decided to ask Josh Pastner to become the next head coach of the Tigers.  Pastner, who was part of John Calipari’s staff, is very well liked by the players and is known to be one of the best young recruiters in the game.  At 31, this will be Pastner’s first head coaching position.

Washington St.:  Sources have told BasketballScoop that Portland State’s Ken Bone has accepted the offer to become the head coach at WSU.

Florida St.:  To keep head coach Leonard Hamilton in Tallahassee, FSU agreed to give Hamilton a new five year agreement that will keep him at FSU through 2014.

Georgia:  We are hearing that former Alabama assistant / interim head coach Philip Pearson could wind up on Mark Fox’s staff at UGA.

Long Beach St.:  BasketballScoop has learned that the 49ers plan to announce USC assistant Jody Wynn as their new head coach later today.

Liberty:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Liberty has reached agreement with Dale Layer to become their new head coach.  Layer, who has over 15 years of head coaching experience (primarily at Colorado St.), spent this past season as an assistant at Marquette and was an assistant under former head coach Ritchie McKay at Liberty the year before.

Georgia:  Head coach Mark Fox announced this morning that he indeed has hired Philip Pearson from Alabama and is bringing Kwanza Johnson from his staff at Nevada.  As for his third assistant, Fox says he’ll take some time to evaluate all of the candidates, saying that his phone won’t stop ringing.

Sienna:  Head coach Fran McCaffery has signed a new eight year contract.

Rhode Island:  We are hearing that both Cathy Inglese (former BC head coach) and Dayna Smith (HC at Cornell, formerly at URI) are being seriously considered.

Warner Univ.:  NAIA Warner (FL) has hired Matt Murphy as their new head coach.  Murphy comes from Cascade College where he served in the same capacity.

Hawaii:  BasketballScoop has learned that head coach Jim Bolla has been let go.  No word yet on candidates.

Georgia Southern:  Sources are telling BasketballScoop that Georgia Tech assistant Charlton Young will be named the head coach at Georgia Southern, his alma mater.  Young is one of the Semi-Finalists for our assistant Coaches of the Year awards Powered by Critical Reload.

USC:  Head coach Mark Trakh has resigned.  Assistant Derek Wynn is expected to join his wife Jody at Long Beach once the school finalizes the process.  Trakh ran the program for five years after running Pepperdine’s team for 11 seasons.  AD Mike Garrett said a search will begin immediately.

Kentucky: As expected, Calipari has brought three of his staff with him from Memphis.  Joining him are assistants Orlando Antigua and John Robic and Director of Basketball Operations Rod Strickland.  Calipari has said that he plans to add one more to his staff.

Grand Canyon Univ.:  Former Arizona interim head coach Russ Pennell has been named the new head coach at D-II Grand Canyon.  In making the announcement, the school reiterated their aspiration to construct a 6,000 seat arena and to transition to D-1.

Loyola (Chicago):  Loyola has promoted Eric Simpson to head coach.  Simpson has been an assistant for the past 2 seasons and was the Director of Basketball Operations for Loyola’s Men’s program before that.

VCU:  Shaka Smart has hired Will Wade from Harvard as his first assistant coaching hire.  Wade spent two seasons at Harvard and was at Clemson prior to that.

UConn:  Head coach Jim Calhoun announced today that he plans to coach again next season.  There had been speculation that he would retire after this year’s Final Four.

Glenville St. (WV):  D-II GSU announced today that head coach Dennis Fitzpatrick has resigned.  In two seasons, Fitzpatrick’s team was 27-31.  He plans to stay at the University, accepting a job in the university’s Business and Finance department.

Penn: We hear that Penn is interested in Mike McGlaughlin (Head Coach at D-II powerhouse Holy Family), Dianne Nolan (assistant at Yale) and Amy Mallon (associate head coach at Drexel).

Appalachian St.:  We hear former head coach Buzz Peterson has turned down the school’s offer.

Eastern New Mexico:  BasketballScoop has been told that the three remaining finalists for the job are Andrew Helton (South Alabama assistant), Richard Davis (St. Joseph’s College HC) and Greg Young (Jacksonville College AD and HC).

Washington St.:  Head coach Ken Bone has decided to retain assistant Ben Johnson.

Northern Arizona:  Head coach Mike Adras has received a three year extension keeping him at the school through 2012.

UVA:  We hear American U. assistant Jason Williford has interviewed with Tony Bennett to join the staff at UVA.  Williford was  a captain of the team at UVA when he played in the early 90’s.

Cincinnati:  J. Kelly Hall, in his second year, has been let go.  Hall was lured to UC in hopes of turning a program around, and many close to the program believed that he was on the right track.  Unfortunately, the school has decided to start over.

Seattle:  We hear assistant Mitch Freeman is heading down to Cal Poly.  Names we are hearing for the head job include Cameron Dollar (assistant at UW and former UCLA player).

Appalachian St.:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Appalachian is interested in the Citadel’s head coach Ed Conroy.

Arizona:  As anticipated, Sean Miller has brought two of his assistants with him to Arizona.  Joining Miller immediately are James Whitfield and Book Richardson.  Miller remains hopeful that his good friend and long time assistant Chris Mack gets the head job at Xavier; however if he does not, look for him to join the guys in Arizona.

High Point:  Head coach Scott Cherry has hired assistant Kevin Easley away from UNC Greensboro.

Portland St.:  We hear Portland State plans to announce their new head coach early this upcoming week.  Local speculation is that it will be Ken Bone’s associate head coach Tyler Geving.

Xavier:  One name that we are hearing more and more as interested in the Xavier job is Duke’s Chris Collins.  We’ve even heard that this all came about when Coach K made a call to Xavier’s AD recommending him.  He’d have to interview awfully well to unseat Chris Mack.

N.C. State:  BasketballScoop has learned that NC State plans to hire Kellie Harper as their new head coach.  We expect an announcement early this week.  Harper has been the head coach at Western Carolina for the past 5 seasons, accumulating a 97-65 record over that time.  Harper was the point guard at Tennessee during their unprecetented run of three consecutive national championships in 96-98 (known then as Kellie Jolly).  During her tenure at Western Carolina, her teams have shown constant improvement and have made the NCAA tournament twice.  This past season they won their conference tournament for the second time in school history (both under her watch).

Portland St.:  BasketballScoop has learned that Portland St. will announce Tyler Geving as their new head coach later today.  Geving was Ken Bone’s associate head coach for the past two seasons and has been at the school since 2005.

Coaches of the Year:  Voting is open for our Coaches of the Year awards through Wednesday.  If you haven’t already, please vote now.

Rhode Island:  Sources are telling BasketballScoop that URI plans to announce former BC head coach Cathy Inglese as their new head coach this week.

Coaches of the Year:  Voting is open through Wednesday.  If you haven’t already cast a vote, please vote now.

Purdue: Head coach Sharon Versyp announced this morning that she has hired Ukari Figgs as an assistant.  Figgs was the point guard on Purdue’s 1999 team that won the National Championship.  Figgs was named the Final Four’s M.O.P. that year.  Figgs has been working for the last five years as an engineer for Toyota.

Florida International:  We hear that head coach Sergio Rouco has been “reassigned” within the athletic department.  No word yet as to who will become the new head coach.

Boston U.:  Head coach Pat Chambers has retained associate head coach Orlando Vandross.

Memphis:  We hear that Baylor assistant Jerome Tang has decided not to accept Josh Pastner’s offer to come to Memphis.  We are also hearing that he is interested in bringing an assistant up from the Miami area.

Nevada:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Nevada head coach David Carter has promoted Doug Novsek to associate head coach.

Colorado St.:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that CSU has an opening for an assistant and is looking to fill it quickly.  It is believed that assistant Tia Davis has resigned.

Florida International: Both ESPN and Fox Sports are reporting that their sources are telling them that Isiah Thomas is working on an agreement to become the next head coach at FIU.  Wow.

Indiana:  We hear that assistant Marc Wilson’s contract was not renewed and he is leaving the program.

Nevada:  Head coach David Carter has hired Keith Brown as an assistant.  Brown spent the past two seasons at Seattle U. and was at Portland before that.

FIU:  We hear Isiah has accepted the job.  Don’t know what else to say.

Xavier:  BasketballScoop has learned that Xavier will indeed name Chris Mack their head coach.  Mack has deep roots at Xavier having played at the school, serving as Dir. Basketball Ops initially, then an assistant under Sean Miller for the last five seasons.  Mack is one of our “Rising Star” semi-finalists for our Coaches of the Year awards powered by Critical Reload.

Rhode Island: As we first reported, URI has hired Cathy Inglese as their head coach.

USA Basketball:  A press conference has been announced for tomorrow at which Geno Auriemma will be named the head coach of the US Women’s team through the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

New poll is up on the home page.  Last week’s results:  Our viewers were decidedly negative on Detroit as a host city for the Final Four.

New poll is up on the home page.  Last week’s results:  Our viewers seemed to think that St. Louis performed quite well as a Final Four host city.

Oregon:  Head coach Paul Westhead has hired two assistants.  Keila Whittington spent the last two years at Marist as an assistant.  In those two years, the Red Hawks went 61-7.  Whittington is expected to coach the Posts as well as serve as the recruiting coordinator.  Kai Felton comes up from USC and will primarily work with the Ducks’ Guards.

Nazareth College:  SUNY Oswego’s head coach has left to accept the same position at Nazareth.  Kevin Broderick, a Nazareth alum, leaves Oswego after 13 years to return to his alma mater.  In 13 seasons, Broderick’s teams were 209-150 including eight consecutive winnings seasons.

VCU: We hear that VCU has an assistant spot open.  More to come on this…

Virginia St.:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Virginia St. has hired George White as it’s new head coach.  White comes from Stanford where he has served as the Director of External Relations for the basketball team.  White was previously the head coach at Ursinus College.

Seattle U.:  Sources have told BasketballScoop that Washington assistant Cameron Dollar will become the new head coach at Seattle U.  An announcement is expected before the end of the week.

Manhattan:  Manhattan has hired John Olenowski as their new head coach.  This past season Olenowski was on the staff at Long Island U.; however he is better known for his years at Morris Catholic high school in NJ where he won three state championships.

VCU:  Head coach Shaka Smart has filled out his staff.  Smart has added Mike Rhoades (HC at Randolph-Macon), Bill Courtney (assistant at UVA under Dave Leitao) and Kyle Getter (assistant at Liberty).  Combined with Will Wade who Smart brought down from Harvard, this makes for a young and energetic staff (at 38, Courtney is the oldest guy on the staff).  Getter will serve as the DoBO.

Scoop:  Have Scoop?  Let us know what you are hearing.  Email us at mail@basketballscoop.com

Arizona:  Head coach Sean Miller has hired his brother Archie who comes down from Ohio St.

Ohio St.: We hear that Ohio St. has offered the open position to Jeff Boals, asssociate head coach at Akron.

UVA:  Tony Bennett’s staff is complete.  Jason Williford did get the open spot.  So the assistants are Ron Sanchez who came with Bennett from WSU, Williford and Ritchie McKay who has the associate head coach title.  Brad Soucie who has worked with McKay for over 10 years has joined as the DoBO.

Memphis:  Anyone else hearing the rumor that Illinois assistant Jerrance Howard heading to Memphis?  Well, our sources tell us it’s not going to happen.

Midwestern St. (TX):  Midwestern has hired Grant McCasland as their new head coach.  McCasland has been the head coach Midland College for the past 5 seasons, leading them to the JUCO National Championship two years ago.  We hear the other finalists were Jason Hooten (Sam Houston assistant) and Steve Lutz (SMU assistant).

NC State:  NC State today announced what we told our viewers on Sunday, that they have hired Kellie Harper to be the next head coach at the university.

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Penn:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Penn has selected Mike McLaughlin as their new head coach.  McLaughlin comes from D-II Holy Family.

Memphis:  BasketballScoop has learned that head coach Josh Pastner has hired former Rice head coach Willis Wilson and former Kentucky assistant Glynn Cyprien.

South Florida:  We hear that USF assistant Byron Samuels is no longer part of the staff.  Samuels came to USF 2 years ago after being head coach at Radford.

Liberty:  Sources tell us that new Liberty head coach has decided (as expected) to retain assistant Jason Eaker who he coached with in 2007.

Highland Community College:  We hear Highland has hired Jerre Cole from Lamar St. College where he held the same position.

Florida:  We are hearing that Richard Pitino (Rick’s son) will be leaving Louisville to join Billy Donovan’s staff at Florida.

Macalester:  Macalester has named Tim Whittle head coach.  Whittle comes from Washington U. (St. Louis) where he served as the top assistant and recruiting coordinator.  While at Wash U. the Bears went to three consecutive D-III Final Fours and won the national championship in each of the last two years.

Ouachita Baptist:  Mark Price has been hired as head coach, replacing Charlie Schaef who left to take the head job at Southwestern Oklahoma.  Price comes from Furman where he has been an assistant for the past 3 seasons.

Auburn:  Head coach Nell Fortner has received a contract extension that will pay her a minimum of $570,000 for each of the next six seasons.  Her base will be slightly less than $230,000 with the remainder comprised of endorsement, radio and TV money.  The extension includes incentives tied to advancement in the NCAA tournament as well.

University of the Ozarks:  Doug Boxell has been hired as head coach.  Boxell comes from Ponder high school in Texas where he has won the last two state championships.

Tulsa 66ers:  D-League Tulsa 66ers have parted ways with their coach Paul Woolpert.  The 66ers finished the season 15-35 in Woolpert’s first year as head coach.

Idaho St.:  Head coach Joe O’Brien has been given a three year extension.  His current contract had expired.  The extension is through the 2011-2012 season.

Western Michigan:  Head coach Steve Hawkins has rehired former assistant Clayton Banks.  Banks coached at WMU for 8 seasons until last year when he left to work in private business.  Banks replaces Andy Hipsher who is no longer with the program.

Coaches of the Year:  The Finalists have been named.  See them here.

Xavier:  Assistant Amber Whitford will be joining her husband James as they move down to Arizona (James is an assistant on Sean Miller’s staff at UA).  This creates an opening at Xavier under coach Kevin McGuff.  We hear there is a lot of interest.

Coaches of the Year:  The Finalists have been named.  See them here.

Columbus St. (GA): Sources tell BasketballScoop that Columbus St. has hired Jonathan Norton away from Berry College as it’s new head coach.  Norton attended Columbus St. and previously coached their as an assistant.

Southern Utah: J.R. Payne has been named head coach at Southern Utah.  Payne comes from Santa Clara where she was an assistant this past season.  Prior to that she spent three years at Boise St. and five before that at Gonzaga.

Oregon:  Sources are telling BasketballScoop that Oregon has hired Dan Muscatell away from Sacramento St. where he was the head coach.  Muscatell returns to Oregon where he coached from 1999-2003.  This would complete head coach Paul Westhead’s staff.

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Xavier:  Head coach Chris Mack is filling out his staff.  Mack has elevated Dir. Basketball Ops Travis Steele to an assistant and he has retained Mario Mercurio (Dir. Baskeball Admin).  Mack has also hired Bino Ranson from James Madison who had been with JMU head coach Matt Brady for the past 4 seasons at JMU and Marist.  We also hear that he has brought former player Brian Thornton in to take over the role of DBO.

Washington St.:  Head coach Ken Bone has hired Curtis Allen as an assistant. Allen coached with Bone at Portland St. for the past four seasons.

Univ. of Washington:  Raphael Chillious has been added to the staff replacing Cameron Dollar who left to become head coach at Seattle.  Chillious is the former coach at South Kent school in Connecticut.

Florida: As we discussed last week, Florida has hired Richard Pitino as an assistant.

Fayetteville St.:  Head coach Eric Tucker has decdied to retire.  No word yet on a successor.  Tucker has been head coach since 1992 and his team reached the D-II Tournament this season.

Emory & Henry:  E&H’s head coach Joy Scruggs announced yesterday that she is stepping down after 28 years at the helm.

Univ. of Colorado - Colorado Springs:  AD Steve Kirkham announced that he will coach the Women’s basketball team this season instead of hiring a full-time coach.  Kirkham said that the move would allow the university to save some money and would provide him with more time to find the right long term solution.

Huntingdon College (AL):  Assistant Tara Osborne has been named head coach at Huntingdon.  She was an assistant for one season and coached at the high school level prior to that.

Indiana:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Indiana head coach Felicia Legette-Jack has hired Amaka Agugua from VCU.  Agugua played for Legette-Jack at Hofstra.

Centenary:  Head coach Steve Curtis has been released after going 14-75 overall in the past 3 seasons.

Trinity Valley CC:  Bill Damuth has been promoted to head coach at TVCC.

Finalist - 2009 Coaches of the Year powered by Critical Reload

Dr. Ron Bradley concluded his sixth year as the associate head coach with the Tiger men’s basketball program in 2008-09. He also serves as the team’s recruiting coordinator. Prior to his hire at Clemson in the summer of 2003, he served as the associate head coach at James Madison University for one season.

Bradley has had a positive impact on Clemson defensively during his six years with the school. He is credited with helping implement Clemson’s patented pressure defense.

Bradley served as a head coach for 16 years, five at Eastern Nazarene (1976-81) and 11 at Radford (1991-2002). He compiled a 289-175 record at those institutions, a .623 winning percentage. During his 16 years as a head coach, Bradley’s teams posted winning records 15 times, and won 20 or more games six times. In 10 different seasons his teams won at least 18 games.

Prior to his season at James Madison, Bradley coached at Radford University in Virginia for 12 seasons, including 11 as the head coach. He succeeded Oliver Purnell as the Radford head coach in 1991-92. During his 11 years as head coach, Bradley compiled a 193-124 (.609) record. He won four conference titles, and led the Highlanders to their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 1997-98. That season, Radford posted a 20-10 overall record, including a 10-2 mark in conference play, along with the Big South Conference Championship.
A native of Quincy, MA, Bradley played basketball at Eastern Nazarene under his father, Carroll. He was a three-time NAIA honorable mention All-America choice. He ranked sixth in the nation in scoring his sophomore year, and 15th as a junior.

Bradley was selected by the New York Nets in the American Basketball Association (ABA) draft in 1972 as a junior eligible. He played semi-professional basketball for three seasons before beginning his coaching career at Eastern Nazarene in 1976-77.

Finalist - 2009 Coaches of the Year powered by Critical Reload

Five years ago, Cori Close, a lifelong resident of California, moved cross-country to join the staff at Florida St. after she had spent nine seasons at UC-Santa Barbara , including three years as associate head coach. A demanding, detail-oriented and offensive-minded coach, she has proved to be the perfect compliment to head coach Semrau and her staff.

The easiest correlation between Close’s arrival and Florida State’s success has come in the form of an unprecedented run of five-straight trips to the NCAA Tournament and six postseason victories during that stretch. In the 21 years prior to her arrival, Florida State had only been to the Big Dance four times and won a pair of games.

As offensive coordinator, Close is responsible for developing the offensive schemes that best suit FSU’s personnel. Her ability to prepare information and disseminate it to the players has been a perfect recipe for success.

As a player, Close was a four-year starting point guard and captained Santa Barbara’s two NCAA Tournament teams in 1992 and 1993, leading both to the second round. The Milpitas, Calif. native was an All-Big West first team selection and the MVP of the conference tournament in 1993. The first player in UC-Santa Barbara history to record more than 1,000 points and 500 assists in a career, Close ranked among the top 10 in seven Gaucho career statistical categories.

On April 30, 2005, Close was inducted into the UCSB Athletics Hall of Fame.

Alabama:  BasketballScoop has learned that Anthony Grant has hired Dan Hipsher away from USF to round out his staff.  Hipsher actually recruited Grant in high school and gave him his first coaching job years back.  Hipsher had been at USF for 2 seasons.  Hipsher joins John Brannen who came with Grant from VCU and Antoinne Pettway who Grant retained from the previous staff.

Southern Illinois: SIU is set to make an announcement later today.  The name we’re hearing is not one that had been floated around in all of the rumors.  We hear the Salukis will name Missy Tiber from Tusculum college as their new head coach.

Finalist - 2009 Coaches of the Year Awards powered by Critical Reload

Charlie Ernst is entering his 19th season in 2009-10 at The University of Findlay as an assistant men’s basketball coach and eighth as the top assistant to head coach Ron Niekamp.

Following the 2006-07 season, Ernst was designated as the associate head coach for the Oilers men’s basketball team.

Ernst is responsible for the Oilers defense and continues as the recruiting coordinator.

In addition to his in-season coaching, Ernst founded the UF Cager Club which serves as both a fundraising arm and booster club for the men’s basketball program.

Ernst graduated from The University of Findlay in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in Public Relations and Marketing. He holds a Masters degree in Education from UF as well. While at Findlay, Ernst was a varsity letter-winner in both basketball and golf.

Ernst is the only Finalist for these awards coming from a Division II school and led all Semi-Finalists in votes received.

Finalist - 2009 Coaches of the Year powered by Critical Reload

Associate head coach Chris Dailey is in her 24th season with the UConn basketball program. Dailey has been instrumental in teaming with head coach Geno Auriemma to build UConn into an unquestioned national power. She is the coordinator of Connecticut’s highly successful recruiting efforts.

Under her direction, Connecticut’s recruiting base spans the nation and the globe, with players joining the program from 27 different states, the District of Columbia and six foreign countries.

Arriving at Connecticut in the summer of 1985 along with Auriemma, Dailey served as primary assistant coach from 1985-88. In September of 1988, she was promoted to associate head coach.

2009 Undefeated National Champions!

Malone:  Malone (OH) has hired alum Tim Walker to become their new head coach.  Walker has been the head coach at Trinity Christian College for the past seven seasons.

Sacramento Kings:  The Kings have let the entire staff go.  Interim head coach Kenny Natt and assistants Rex Kalamian, Jason Hamm, Randy Brown and Bubba Burrage were all let go yesterday.

Dakota St.:  Gary Garner has been hired as the new head coach at Dakota St.  For the past two years Garner has been an assistant with the Iowa Energy in the D-League.

Grays Harbor College:  We hear Grays Harbor has hired Tyler Gaston as their new head coach.  Gaston has been coaching high school ball in Idaho for the past two seasons.

Thomas More College:  TMC has promoted assistant Jeff Rogers to head coach.

Indiana Tech:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that head coach Jeff Parish is no longer with the team.

Washington St.:  We hear that head coach Ken Bone has brought former Portland St. assistant Curtis Allen with him over to Pullman.  Also we are hearing that Seattle Pacific head coach Jeff Hironaka will come over as an assistant to Bone.

Portland St.:  New head coach Tyler Geving has retained assistant Eric Harper.

Barton Community College:  We hear that Barton CC’s head coach Jill Barclay has resigned.  Barclay resigned after one quite good season at Barton finishing third in the NJCAA national tournament and going 25-7 overall.

Greenbrier Senior High:  We hear Todd Schaefer, former associate head coach at Cincinnati and head coach at Arkansas Tech, has accepted the head coaching position at Greenbrier.

St. John Fisher College:  Interim head coach Marianne O’Conner Ermi has been named the permanent head coach.

Austin Peay: Head coach Carrie Daniels has received a three year extension.

Troy:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Troy has hired Jennifer Wasson as an assistant.  Wasson was formerly on the staff at Penn under head coach Patrick Knapp.

Morgan St.:  Head coach Todd Bozeman has signed a five year extension.  His current contract had expried.  His new annual base salary is $182,000, second highest in the MEAC.

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When Sean Miller left Xavier to accept the head coaching position at the University of Arizona, he recommended his top aide, Associate Head Coach Chris Mack, for the job he was leaving.  The AD performed thorough due diligence (including we are told reviewing our list of Rising Stars) and came back to the assessment that Miller had made, that Mack was the best person for the Xavier job.
On April 15th, Chris Mack was announced as the new head coach at Xavier.  Mack had spent the past five seasons as an assistant to Miller.

Mack, a two-time team captain as a player at Xavier, is 39 years old and a 1992 Xavier University graduate with a degree in communication arts.

Mack was XU’s Director of Basketball Operations from 1999-2001 under the late former XU head coach Skip Prosser. Mack spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Wake Forest under Prosser from 2001-04. He returned to Xavier in 2004 as an assistant coach under Miller. During his 10 years on the staffs at Xavier and Wake, Mack coached on nine teams that made postseason play, including eight teams that made the NCAA Tournament field.

Mack participated in Nike’s 2008 Villa 7 Consortium. The Villa 7 Consortium selected and invited some of the top men’s basketball assistant coaches from around the country to attend an educational symposium held on Nike’s campus in Beaverton, Ore., in May, 2008. The two-day event featured some of the greatest minds in coaching and served as a networking opportunity, as several athletic directors were on hand throughout the course of the program. The chief goal of the symposium was to provide opportunities for assistant coaches, who are considered to be the very best in college basketball.

Congratulations on the promotion Coach Mack!

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Associate Head Coach Curt Kassab joins Beth Cunningham’s staff for the 2007-08 season following a prominent high school coaching career. He is primarily responsible for team defense, as well as individual player development and recruiting.

In 13 seasons in the prep ranks, including the last eight at Atlee High School in nearby Mechanicsville, Va., Kassab established himself as one of the top coaches in the state of Virginia.

His eight seasons directing the Atlee program were marked by a 174-33 record - an .802 winning percentage – and included a 30-0 record in 2003, when he led the Raiders to the Virginia High School AAA State Championship.

His efforts netted him the Associated Press’ Virginia State Coach of the Year award following the magical 2002-03 campaign.

Head Coach Beth Cunningham tells BasketballScoop that Kassab is “a great coach, a real high energy guy that the players all enjoy learning from.”

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Wayne McClain is in his eighth year with the Fighting Illini coaching staff after a legendary prep career at Peoria Manual High School where he led the Rams to three-straight AA state championships in his first three years as coach. USA Today named his 1997 squad, led by future Illini Sergio McClain, Marcus Griffin and Frank Williams, National High School Champions, and the senior McClain was named National High School Coach of the Year.

McClain is considered by many in the game to be one of the best basketball minds on the court.  It is said that McClain often knows the other teams’ tendencies better than they do.

Assistant coach Jerrance Howard, himself a highly regarded up and coming coach, attributes a lot of his success to what he has learned from McClain saying, “He’s the reason I have been successful….He raised the whole southside of Peoria.”

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Lisa McDonald has been with Ball State for nearly a decade, with almost half of that time as Associate Head Coach.  “Lisa has an obvious passion for Ball State University and the young women within our program,” said Head Coach Kelly Packard. “She is completely committed to ensuring all efforts are focused on our players having a very positive collegiate playing career. Lisa has a dynamic, energetic, and genuine personality that is a perfect match for recruiting and for the overall promotion of our program.”  She also serves as the Recruiting Coordinator, Academic Liaison, and perimeter position coach.

McDonald, a native of Flagstaff, Ariz., was a three-year letterwinner in basketball at Upper Iowa University, where she served as the team’s captain for the 1997-98 season.

Any school looking to build a program that wants to instill a strong foundation should consider bringing in Coach McDonald.

Robert Morris:  BasketballScoop has learned that Robert Morris head coach Mike Rice has signed a 3 year extension locking him up through the 2016-2017 season.  In two seasons at the helm, Rice has guided the program to a 50-19 overall mark and their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1992.

Georgia Southern:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that new head coach Charlton Young has hired his staff.  Chris Kreider will follow Young from Ga. Tech, Steve Smith from USC Upstate and Pershin Williams from Lafayette will join the Young to form a talented and up and coming staff.

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Dave Rice joined the BYU coaching staff as an assistant in May 2005 and was promoted to Associate Head Coach in April 2008. Rice has 17 years of coaching experience, including 15 seasons at the Division I level at BYU, UNLV and Utah State. As a player, Rice was a member of UNLV’s 1989-90 National Championship and 1990-91 Final Four teams that won a school-record 45 consecutive games.

An excellent recruiter and on-the-floor coach, Rice coordinates the team’s offense and recruiting efforts. In his three seasons coordinating the Cougar offense, BYU has generated the Mountain West Conference’s top attack two years and ranked second once.

Rice has helped BYU earn three straight 20 wins seasons and a 72-26 overall record while recording back-to-back outright Mountain West Conference Championships–the program’s first back-to-back outright titles since 1979 and 1980. The Cougars have also appeared in the national top-25 polls in each of the last two seasons while making consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. The last time BYU was ranked in back-to-back season was in 1981 and 1982 and the previous BYU team to be ranked was in 1993.

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Mike Neighbors recently completed his second year as an assistant women’s basketball coach at Xavier University.  Neighbors has established himself as a defensive specialist with a heavy emphasis on opponent scouting and team preparation.  He also focuses on early evaluation of prospective recruits and player development of current team.

In Neighbors’ two seasons at XU, the Musketeers have put together a 49-16 overall record and a 24-4 mark in Atlantic 10 play.  Neighbors has helped Xavier to a pair of Atlantic 10 Championships (2008 Tournament and 2008-09 Regular Season) and NCAA Tournament berths in each of the last two seasons.

The 2008-09 campaign was one of the most successful in school history as the Musketeers tied a record with 25 regular-season wins and finished first in the nation in field goal percentage defense (35.2).  XU also finished third nationally in rebounding margin (+11.2) and ninth in scoring defense (53.8).

Following a highly successful stint as a high school head coach, Neighbors first role in the college game was at his alma mater, the University of Arkansas, as Dir. of Basketball Operations.  He joined head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller’s staff at Tulsa in 2002 and then went with her to the University of Colorado in 2005.  The next year, Neighbors had an opportunity to go back to Arkansas as an assistant.  The opportunity to coach with head coach Kevin McGuff lured him up to Xavier in 2007.

Xavier:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that head coach Chris Mack has hired Pat Kelsey from Wake Forest as Associate head coach.  Kelsey is a Xavier alum and has made quite a name for himself on the recruiting trails over the last few years at Wake.

Randolph-Macon:  BasketballScoop has learned that Randolph-Macon plans to hire Nathan Davis as their new head coach.  We also hear that assistant J.D. Byers will be retained. Davis comes from Colgate where he spent one season as an assistant after being an assistant at Bucknell for five years.  Davis was a two time captain while playing at Randolf-Macon in the mid to late 90s.

Assistants:  Let us know what you are hearing about Assistant coach openings and movement.  Email us at mail@BasktetballScoop.com

Eastern New Mexico:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Eastern will hire Andrew Helton as head coach.  Helton, an assistant at South Alabama, has never been a head coach; however he received a great reference from the one he has worked for over eight seasons Ron Arrow.  Arrow was quoted as saying, “You couldn’t have gotten a better coach and you couldn’t have gotten a better person.”

Wichita St.:  Head coach Gregg Marshall has received a one year extension through the 2015 season.

Fayetteville St.:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that Fayetteville St. has offered the head job to Grambling assistant Alphonza Kee.

DePaul:  Associate head coach Gary DeCesare and assistant Ramon Williams both resigned on Monday leaving no current assistants on the staff of head coach Jerry Wainwright.  Wainwright’s son Scott left the staff about a month ago.

Cincinnati:  Sources tell BasketballScoop that UC is down to three finalists:  Stephanie Glance (former N.C. State), Kelly Bond (Texas A&M) and Jamelle Elliott (UConn).  This is an impressive group and UC should be in good shape if they are able to land any of the three.

Southwest Baptist U.:  Dan Stander has been hired as an assistant at SBU.  Stander has been a standout high school coach for nearly 20 years.

Assistants:  Let us know what you are hearing out there about Assistant openings.  Email us at mail@BasketballScoop.com