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April 15, 2008
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Providence College President Reverend Brian Shanley, O.P. and Athletics Director Bob Driscoll announced today the appointment of Keno Davis as the head basketball coach of the College. Davis, who becomes the 14th head coach at Providence College, comes to PC after spending the 2007-08 season as the head coach at Drake University. Davis, a 1995 graduate of the University of Iowa, was named the 2008 National Coach of the Year by the Associated Press, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association and the Sporting News. "We are very excited to have Keno Davis leading our men's basketball program," Father Shanley said. "Over the last several weeks, we have conducted a thorough search. During this process, we talked to some of the most knowledgeable members of the college basketball community. It was our task to find a coach who would lead our student-athletes and embrace the College's mission. Keno Davis met all of our selection criteria." In his first season as a head coach, Davis led the Drake Bulldogs to a 28-5 mark, which included a 15-3 record in the Missouri Valley Conference. His team captured its first MVC regular season title since 1971 and its first ever MVC Tournament title. Drake became the first MVC school to win both the regular season and league tournament titles since 2002. For his efforts, he was named the Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year. The Bulldogs also made their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1971. Drake was defeated in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament by Western Kentucky, 101-99, in overtime. During the 2008 season, Drake was nationally ranked for a school-record eight consecutive weeks. The Bulldogs finished ranked 14th in the Associated Press Poll and 23rd in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Davis had all this success in his first season after inheriting a team that was 17-15 in 2007 and lost four starters to graduation. His 2008 squad was picked to finish ninth in the MVC. "I believe Keno Davis has the knowledge, passion, commitment and ability to bring Providence College basketball to another level," Driscoll said. "Throughout his career he has demonstrated that he is an excellent leader and teacher. From the first moment I met Keno, I was impressed with his competitive nature and his desire to return Friar basketball to national prominence. His hiring is one of the many steps we have taken to improve the Friar men's basketball program." Prior to being selected as the head coach at Drake, Davis served as an assistant under his father, Dr. Tom Davis, at Drake from 2003-07. He began his coaching career in 1995 as an assistant under Bruce Pearl at Southern Indiana. He left Southern Indiana in 1997 and took an assistant position under Gary Garner at Southeast Missouri State. He has written two books on basketball, "Pressure Defense" which was published in 1994 and "Camp Success" published in 2004. Davis is no stranger to New England. His father served as the head coach at six colleges, including Boston College where he posted a 100-47 mark from 1977-82. Davis and wife, Krista, have one son, Brady, who was born on November 12, 2007.
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