Penny Hardaway hires former HBCU coach to Memphis staff
Today at 09:20 PM
The Memphis men’s basketball program announced the hiring of Mike Davis as an assistant coach for the upcoming season.
Davis joins Memphis after spending the majority of his coaching career with the Detroit Mercy men’s basketball team, where he compiled a 60-119 record as head coach. Davis was named Detroit Mercy’s head coach on June 13, 2018. His last season with the team ended with a 1-31 record, with the lone victory against IUPUI.
Davis’ career includes five regular-season titles with UAB (2011) and Texas Southern (2013, 2015-17), along with four SWAC Tournament championships in 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018.
Davis is best known for succeeding legendary coach Bobby Knight at Indiana University. He led the Hoosiers to the 2002 national championship game and a Big Ten regular-season title. During his tenure at Indiana (2000-06), Davis posted a 115-79 overall record and a 55-41 record in conference play. He became the first coach in IU history to open his career with three consecutive 20-win seasons and NCAA Tournament appearances. Under his leadership, the Hoosiers won a share of the 2002 Big Ten championship and appeared in five postseason tournaments (four NCAA and one NIT), defeating 22 ranked opponents.
Davis has earned numerous accolades throughout his career, including Conference USA Coach of the Year in 2011 at UAB and Southwestern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2013, 2015, and 2016 at Texas Southern.
In his first five seasons at Texas Southern, Davis won at least one title each year, dating back to 2012. He also played a key role in guiding five consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference Players of the Year: Omar Strong (2012-13), Aaric Murray (2013-14), Madarious Gibbs (2014-15), Derrick Griffin (2015-16), and Zach Lofton (2016-17). This feat, unprecedented in the SWAC, is the fourth-longest streak in NCAA history.
In 2014, Davis led the Tigers to a SWAC Tournament championship with a win over Prairie View A&M. They advanced to the 2014 NCAA Tournament, facing Cal Poly in the First Four. In 2015, TSU defeated Southern to claim another SWAC title, earning a No. 15 seed and a first-round matchup against Arizona in the NCAA Tournament.
Texas Southern made its third NCAA appearance under Davis in 2017, after winning another SWAC Tournament title with a victory over Alcorn State. That season, TSU also swept the SWAC titles, winning both the regular season and tournament championships.
“I am excited to have Coach Davis as part of our program,” Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway said in the announcement. “He is a veteran coach with a winning mentality and an impressive resume. Mike has won at the highest level, achieved great success, and is a proven leader. We are thrilled to have him and his family in Memphis.”
Under Hardaway's leadership, Memphis has posted a 110-52 record, five consecutive 20-win seasons, a 2021 National Invitation Tournament championship, the 2023 AAC tournament championship, and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2022 and 2023.
The Tigers will begin their 2024 season at home against North Carolina on Oct. 15.
The post Penny Hardaway hires former HBCU coach to Memphis staff appeared first on ClutchPoints.
