HEAD COACH MATTHEW GRAVES

On the court, his fi rst year in charge resulted in an 11-20 record with a roster that included 10 MATTHEW fi rst- or second-year players, with inexperience rearing its ugly head in the 11 times the Jags let a second-half lead slip away. However, Rubit set both school and conference records for GRAVES rebounds and became the fi rst Jaguar to earn All-Sun Belt recognition four times. Rubit fi nished in the top 10 in fi ve different individual categories and ranked third in the Head Coach league in rebounding (9.4 rpg) and sixth in scoring (17.0 ppg). • 1998 Graves’ style of play and work on the court helped Barrington Stevens III go from a 0.7 Second Season assist-turnover ratio his freshman campaign to a 2.0 as a sophomore, the best ratio by a South Alabama player since 1988-89.

From the moment he was hired in March 2013, University of South Alabama men’s bas- Graves spent the previous 10 seasons as an assistant on the staff at Butler, where his efforts ketball head coach Matthew Graves made it a top priority to “change the culture” at South helped the Bulldogs advance to back-to-back NCAA Tournament championship games and Alabama. appear in the event in six of the last seven years.

After spending 17 years at Butler University as both a student-athlete and coach, Graves set During his tenure at Butler, Graves helped the program to an overall record of 244-98 out to take the Butler philosophy and install that in the Jaguar men’s program. (71.3%), a berth in national postseason tournaments each of the last eight seasons and eight straight years with 20-plus victories. Following the 2009-10 campaign that saw the Entering his second season, Graves is laying the foundation for success. Bulldogs fi nish 33-5 after falling to Duke 61-59 in the national title contest, he was promoted to associate head coach; in his fi rst year in that role, Butler returned to the NCAA Tournament From revamping academics and a greater involvement in community service activities, to championship game after defeating , Florida and Wisconsin — the fi rst, second restructuring off-season workouts and practices to emphasize skill development, to the style and fourth seeds — in the Southeast Region while going on to post a 28-10 record. of play during games, every aspect of the program has been evaluated and fi ne-tuned to Graves’ standards. In 2012-13, the Bulldogs’ fi rst in the Atlantic 10 Conference, they went 27-9 including an 11-5 mark in league action. In addition to advancing to the third round of the NCAA Tourna- The process aims to establish ment, Butler defeated two of the four No. 1 seeds in the event — Indiana and Gonzaga THE GRAVES FILE long-term prosperity both on — during the regular season. and off the court, contending COLLEGE EXPERIENCE for championships while gradu- Graves fi rst helped lead Butler back to postseason play in 2005-06, when the school went South Alabama (second year) ating student-athletes year in, 20-13 after earning a fi rst-round win in the National Invitation Tournament. The following 2013-Present and year out. year, the Bulldogs won the NIT Season Tip-Off and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Record at USA: 11-20 Tournament before falling to eventual champion Florida en route to a fi nal record of 29-7. Career record: same Overhauling the academic Butler fi nished 30-4 after claiming the Tournament title and a fi rst-round NCAA win in 2007-08, advancing to the NCAA Tournament again the next season while ASSISTANT COACHING EXPERIENCE program resulted in the team’s Butler (10 years) highest GPA in over fi ve years, posting a 26-6 mark. 2003-13 and both seniors, Antoine Allen and Augustine Rubit earned While on the Butler staff, Graves was listed No. 2 on CollegeInsider.com’s ranking of top 25 HIGH SCHOOL ASSISTANT EXPERIENCE their degrees. mid-major assistants in 2009 while the previous year FoxSports.com recognized him as one North Central (Ind.) High School (one year) of the top 10 mid-major assistants in the country. 1998-99 Ben Davis (Ind.) High School (two years) 1999-01

ADMINISTRATIVE EXPERIENCE Butler (two years) 2001-03

PLAYING EXPERIENCE Butler (four years) 1993-98 (guard)

EDUCATION Butler B.S., Education (Chemistry), 1998 Butler M.S., Education Administration, 2003

PERSONAL Married to the former Susan Naue The Graves Family: Susan, Abby, Lily and Matthew Two daughters: Abigail (8) and Lillian (6)

24 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL / @SOUTHALAMBK HEAD COACH MATTHEW GRAVES

Graves started as an assistant coach at North Central and Ben Davis High Schools in In- dianapolis, joining the Bulldog staff as coordinator of men’s basketball operations in 2001. During his fi rst two seasons at Butler, the Bulldogs won 53 games and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the 2003 NCAA Tournament.

As a player, Graves lettered four years at Butler and was part of a program that posted a 95-54 (63.8%) mark while he was in school. He was team captain each of his fi nal two seasons, when the Bulldogs went 23-10 and 22-11, respectively, after winning the Midwestern Collegiate Conference Tournament title and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. Graves was the third-leading scorer on the team in 1996-97 when Butler made its fi rst NCAA Tournament appearance in 35 years, while as a senior he was chosen the squad’s most valu- able player and was named to the MCC all-tournament team after recording 18 points in the championship contest.

He scored 994 points during his career, and still ranks among the top 10 in school history with 175 three-point fi eld goals and an 84.6 free-throw percentage. Graves’ 42 points his senior year against Cleveland State is the fi fth-highest total in a game in Bulldog history.

Off the court, he was named to the GTE Academic All-District V team his fi nal year and was also an academic all-league selection.

Graves earned his bachelor’s degree from Butler in education (chemistry) in 1998 and his master’s degree from the school in 2003 in education administration. He and his wife Susan have two daughters, Abigail and Lillian.

THE GRAVES LEDGER Year School Overall Conference Finish Postseason Player 1993-94 Butler 16-13 6-4 T-2nd 1994-95 (redshirt) Butler 15-12 8-7 5th 1995-96 Butler 19-8 12-4 2nd 1996-97 Butler 23-10 12-4 1st NCAA First Round 1997-98 Butler 22-11 8-6 3rd NCAA First Round Director of Operations 2001-02 Butler 26-6 12-4 1st NCAA First Round 2002-03 Butler 27-6 14-2 1st NCAA Sweet 16 Assistant Coach 2003-04 Butler 16-14 8-8 6th — 2004-05 Butler 13-15 7-9 7th — 2005-06 Butler 20-13 11-5 2nd NIT Second Round 2006-07 Butler 29-7 13-3 T-1st NCAA Sweet 16 2007-08 Butler 30-4 16-2 1st NCAA Second Round 2008-09 Butler 26-6 15-3 1st NCAA First Round 2009-10 Butler 33-5 18-0 1st NCAA Runner-Up Associate Head Coach 2010-11 Butler 28-10 13-5 T-1st NCAA Runner-Up 2011-12 Butler 22-15 11-7 T-3rd CBI Semifi nals 2012-13 Butler 27-9 11-5 T-3rd NCAA Third Round Head Coach 2013-14 South Alabama 11-20 5-13 9th —

Head Coach (1) 11-20 5-13

Player (5) 95-54 46-25 3 Midwestern Collegiate Championships Director of Operations (2) 53-12 26-6 2 Horizon League Championships Assistant/Associate Head Coach (10) 244-98 123-47 8 Horizon League Championships

@SOUTHALAMBK / 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL 25 ASSISTANT COACHES

He fi nished his career as the school’s all-time leading 3-point shooter—he is currently DARNELL third—with 217, and set new school marks for free throw percentage in a season (97.3%) and a career (95.1%).

ARCHEY The free throw records were helped by his NCAA-record 85 consecutive conversions at the charity stripe, set over parts of three seasons starting on Feb. 15, 2001 and ending on Jan. Assistant Coach 18, 2003. Butler University • 2003 Butler set or tied a school record for victories in a season in each of Archey’s four years, Second Season culminating in a 27-6 campaign in 2002-03 that resulted in a Sweet 16 appearance.

Archey’s teams appeared in the postseason all four years and compiled a 4-4 record in the When new University of South Alabama men’s basketball head coach Matthew Graves need- NCAA Tournament and NIT. In the Bulldogs’ run to the Sweet 16, they earned wins over No. ed an assistant for his staff, he didn’t look far for his fi rst hire. 20 Mississippi State and No. 14 Louisville before fi nally bowing out to top seed and No. 3 Oklahoma. Darnell Archey, who served on the Butler coaching staff with Graves as coordinator of basket- ball operations, joined the men’s basketball staff in April 2013. Butler defeated Louisville thanks to Archey’s eight 3-pointers (on nine attempts) and 26 points. The eight 3s are tied for the most in school history in an NCAA Tournament game— Archey, a four-year letterwinner for Butler from 1999-03, served on the Bulldogs’ staff for and fourth-best overall—while his percentage (88.9%) against the Cardinals still stands the past four seasons. as the school NCAA mark. He additionally holds the Bulldogs’ NCAA Tournament record for 3-point percentage in a single tournament (68.8%). The New Castle, Ind. native accumulated fi ve years of coaching experience at the high school level, including three as a head coach, where he mentored two McDonald’s All-Americans and After that season, Archey participated in and won the Men’s Collegiate Three-Point Champion- future all-conference performers in the ACC and Big 10 Conference, before being hired at his ship held at the Final Four. alma mater. After his collegiate playing career was over, Archey played with the Harlem Globetrotters and Archey’s most recent work as a head coach came at Park Tudor (Ind.) High School in 2008- a touring Australian basketball club. 09. In his one season, he coached Kevin (Yogi) Ferrell, who was ranked the No. 2 point guard and No. 19 overall by Rivals.com. Ferrell was Indiana Mr. Basketball runner-up before earning Archey earned a B.S. degree in business (marketing) in 2003 from Butler and he received All-Big 10 Honorable Mention and All-Freshman Team honors at Indiana. his teaching license in 2006 from Indiana Wesleyan. He and his wife Amanda have two daughters, Allie (5) and Ava (2). Prior to his stop at Park Tudor, Archey spent two seasons as the head coach at Columbus North (Ind.) High school. THE ARCHEY FILE While at Carmel (Ind.) High School from 2004-06, he spent two seasons as varsity assistant and junior varsity head coach, helping the Greyhounds to a sectional runner-up appearance in COLLEGE EXPERIENCE 2005 and a sectional championship a year later. One of his pupils was Josh McRoberts, who South Alabama went on to star at Duke and is a six-year veteran in the NBA. Assistant Coach ______2013-PR Butler Director of Basketball Operations ______2009-13 As a player, Archey set several school records and played on three NCAA Tournament teams. HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE Park Tudor (Ind.) Head Coach ______2008-09 Columbus North (Ind.) Head Coach ______2006-08 Carmel (Ind.) Varsity Boys’ Assistant Coach ______2004-06 Junior Varsity Head Coach

PLAYING EXPERIENCE Butler 1999-03 (guard)

EDUCATION Butler B.S., Business (marketing), 2003

PERSONAL The Archey Family: Ava, Darnell, Amanda and Allie Married to the former Amanda Matthews Two daughters: Allie (5) and Ava (2)

26 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL / @SOUTHALAMBK ASSISTANT COACHES DAN On the court, the Panthers won the Horizon League in 2011 and participated in the NIT. Matic started his coaching career in 2001 with AAU team Team Takeover of City. In six years as head coach, he led the squad to a sixth-place fi nish at AAU nationals and had MATIC 16 players earn Division I scholarships, including Devin Ebanks (West /Los Angeles Lakers) and Ed Davis (/Toronto Raptors). Assistant Coach Trinity International • 2007 As a player, Matic lettered four years at Trinity International before playing professionally in Cyprus. He returned to his alma mater and joined the coaching staff in 2008. Second Season Matic has a B.S. degree in business administration, international business from Trinity Inter- national. Dan Matic, who has coaching experience at the AAU, junior college and Division I levels, is in his second season at South Alabama.

A Brooklyn, N.Y. native, Matic spent the 2012-13 season at Eastern Illinois, serving as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. One of his recruits, Alex Austin, led all Valley Conference freshmen in scoring, and the Panthers qualifi ed for the Tournament for the fi rst time in three years.

Prior to his time at EIU, Matic was an assistant at Olney Central College in Olney, Ill. In his one season at OCC, the Blue Knights won 27 games and won the Great Rivers Athletic Confer- ence championship for the fi rst time in 14 years. Matic helped guide Trivante Bloodman to player-of-the-year honors in the GRAC and the team fi nished second in the NJCAA Region 24 Tournament. The second-place fi nish was the school’s best since 1994.

Five players from that team went on to play at a NCAA Division I institution, including Blood- man, who signed with Mississippi State.

Matic worked as a video coordinator for USA Basketball in 2009, where he accompanied the team to the World University Games in Serbia. Team USA, led by Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan, took home a bronze medal. Matic moved on to Wisconsin-Milwaukee for two seasons, serving as a graduate assistant and academic mentor.

His work with UW Milwaukee helped Tony Meier receive Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association Scholar-Athlete recognition and the team improved its GPA from 2.1 to 2.9.

THE MATIC FILE

COLLEGE EXPERIENCE South Alabama Assistant Coach ______2013-PR Eastern Illinois Assistant Coach ______2012-13 Olney Central (Ill.) College Head Coach ______2011-12 Wisconsin-Milwaukee Graduate Assistant Coach ______2009-11

PLAYING EXPERIENCE Trinity International 2003-07 (guard)

EDUCATION Trinity International University B.S., Business Administration, 2007

The Matic Family: Dan and Alysha PERSONAL Married to the former Alysha Schertz

@SOUTHALAMBK / 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL 27 ASSISTANT COACHES

He spent his fi rst season at Tech as the director of basketball operations where he coordinated RUSS team travel, produced recruiting materials and coordinated fi lm exchange.

Willemsen got his start in the coaching profession as an undergrad at his alma mater, Lee WILLEMSEN (Tenn.) University. He served on the staff for two seasons as a student-assistant before mov- ing into a full-time role in 2004-05. The Flames had six players named to NAIA All-America Assistant Coach teams and advanced to the round of 16 and quarterfi nals of the NAIA National Tournament Lee University • 2004 during his fi ve seasons. Second Season Off the court he was responsible for the program’s community service projects—including public speaking engagements—and summer camps and oversaw the team’s managers as an assistant. Russ Willemsen is entering his second season as assistant coach at South Alabama after joining the staff in August 2013. A regular contributor to CollegeChalktalk.com, Willemsen also wrote the introductory article for the web site’s series on John Wooden, Pyramid Tribute: In Memory of John Wooden. He Willemsen spent the previous eight seasons at Tennessee Tech. has also written articles for BasketballHQ.com.

During Willemsen’s tenure at the Cookeville, Tenn. school, the Golden Eagles won 19 or more Willemsen has a 2004 bachelor’s degree in physical education and history education from in a season four times, including 20 in the 2010-11 campaign that ended with an appearance Lee and he earned a master’s in instructional leadership in 2007 at Tennessee Tech. He mar- in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. TTU racked up 19 wins in the following ried the former Sarah Dolle on May 8, 2010. season to earn back-to-back invites from the CIT.

His fi rst two years on staff ended with a total of 38 wins as Tennessee Tech claimed 19 victories in each of the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons and went a combined 26-14 (.650 win percentage) in Ohio Valley Conference play to fi nish third and tied for third, respectively, in the league.

While on staff he coached 12 All-OVC performers, including one NBA draft pick (Kevin Mur- phy) and two others that landed on NBA Summer League rosters. The Golden Eagles also had four named to the OVC All-Tournament Team with Murphy receiving consecutive nods.

In addition to his on-court duties, Willemsen served as camp director and oversaw the team’s academic progress. His work helped the program to the 2007 and 2008 OVC Academic Achievement Award.

THE WILLEMSEN FILE

COLLEGE EXPERIENCE South Alabama Assistant Coach ______2013-PR Tennessee Tech Assistant Coach ______2006-13 Lee Assistant Coach ______2004-05 Student Assistant Coach ______2002-04

EDUCATION Lee University B.A., Physical Education/History Education, 2004 M.S., Instructional Leadership, 2007

PERSONAL Married to the former Sarah Dolle The Willemsen Family: Sarah and Russ

28 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL / @SOUTHALAMBK ASSISTANT COACHES CHRIS COKER Director of Basketball Operations North Alabama • 1994 Eighth Season

Chris Coker is in his eighth season on the South Alabama basketball staff. In his role of director of basketball operations, he is responsible for most of the off-court activities of the players and coaches, including overseeing fi lm exchange, travel, summer camps, recruiting and public relations functions.

Prior to coming to USA, Coker spent six seasons as an assistant coach at West Alabama, and he also coached two years as an assistant at Texas A&M-Kingsville. From 2004 until his departure from UWA, he served on the NABC's Division II Assistant Coaches Committee, providing insight to from that perspective.

A 1994 graduate of North Alabama with a bachelor's degree in education, Coker began his coaching career at Baldwyn High School in Baldwyn, Miss. During his three-year stay, he served as head coach of the junior varsity and junior high teams while assisting with the varsity team. He also served as head coach of the varsity team.

Coker gained his fi rst collegiate experience in 1997 as a graduate assistant at West Alabama while he earned a master’s degree in continuing education.

Coker is married to the former Christal Compton of Clarksdale, Miss. The couple has four children: Jacob (15), Ava (7), Ana (6) and Elijah (b. Aug. 13, 2014).

THE COKER FILE

COLLEGE EXPERIENCE South Alabama Director of Basketball Operations ______2007-PR West Alabama Assistant Coach ______2001-07 Texas A&M-Kingsville Assistant Coach ______1999-01 West Alabama Graduate Assistant Coach ______1997-99

HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE Baldwyn (Miss.) High School Varsity Boys’ Assistant Coach ______1994-97 Junior Varsity and Junior High Head Coach

EDUCATION University of North Alabama B.S., Education, 1994 University of West Alabama M.S., Education, 1998

PERSONAL Married to the former Christal Compton The Coker Family: Jacob, Ava, Christal, Ana and Chris Two sons Jacob (15) and Elijah (b. Aug. 13, 2014), and two daughters Ava (7) and Ana (6)

@SOUTHALAMBK / 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL 29 SUPPORT STAFF

ASSISTANT STRENGTH & ASSISTANT ATHLETIC TRAINER CONDITIONING COACH Matthew Brown Keith Swift Indiana State ’06 Tennessee Tech ’07 Seventh season First season Matthew Brown was promoted from gradu- University of South Alabama strength and ate assistant to a full-time position on USA’s conditioning head coach Justin Schwind has an- athletic training staff during the summer of nounced that Keith Swift has been hired as an 2008 and is currently in his eighth year at assistant coach. South Alabama. He is responsible for work- ing with the school’s men’s basketball and The Tennessee Tech graduate will work primarily men’s programs. with men’s basketball and track & fi eld, and as- sist with football. Brown came to the University of South Ala- Swift comes to South Alabama from Stillman bama from Indiana State University. For two College where he created the fi rst strength and conditioning program in the school’s history. While seasons, Brown served as the athletic trainer for the team at USA before working in Tuscaloosa, his work helped produce multiple athletes of the year in the Southern Intercollegiate with the men’s basketball team. During his time at ISU he worked with all sports but spent Athletic Conference, as well as all-region and All-SIAC performers. his last year working exclusively with the men’s basketball team and assisting with the baseball team. He implemented year-round strength and conditioning programs for twelve sports at the Division II school, including the cheerleading and dance teams, and also taught an undergraduate course in Brown earned his Bachelor of Science degree in athletic training from Indiana State in May weight training. 2006. He earned his master’s degree in exercise science at South Alabama. The Tigers won several SIAC championships during his tenure from 2011-14 and a national title. In addition to his work at Indiana State, Brown spent two summers as a medical provider for Swift spent the previous two years with the Seattle Mariners organization working with the AA summer camp athletic training services at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. affi liate West Tenn Diamond Jaxx of the Southern League. During this time he also worked at the Parisi Speed School instructing clientele on nutrition, healthy living and proper exercise techniques. He is a certifi ed member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, the Southeast Athletic Trainers’ Association, and the Alabama Athletic Trainers’ Association. A four-year letterwinner on the Tennessee Tech football team, Swift earned a degree in exercise science. He served as a student assistant strength coach and worked with the football, men’s and Originally from Logansport, Ind., he and his wife Shirley reside in Mobile. women’s basketball, baseball, softball and women’s soccer programs.

The Jackson, Tenn. native is certifi ed through the National Strength and Conditioning Association as a Registered Strength Coach and a Certifi ed Strength and Conditioning Specialist. He is also a Certifi ed College Strength Coach through the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association and a Sports Performance Coach through USA Weightlifting.

MEN’S BASKETBALL SUPPORT STAFF

Casey Dyess Patrick Niland Cole Tarver Jordan Surenkamp David Potter Shari Lord Student Manager Student Manager Student Manager Graduate Assistant Academic Services Administrative Asst.

30 2014-15 SOUTH ALABAMA MEN’S BASKETBALL / @SOUTHALAMBK