Interview w/ Kevin Carroll (Assistant Coach at Lipscomb)

09/07/20 • 54 min

Coach Kevin Carroll shares his coaching journey. He's currently an Assistant Coach at Lipscomb after spending two seasons as an AC at Virginia Military Institute. He has nearly twenty years of coaching experience, including ten seasons as a head coach at the collegiate and high school levels.

During his time at VMI, the Keydets showed marked improvement, nearly doubling their win total over a two-year span and capturing the program’s first SoCon Tournament victory in sixteen seasons in 2019. He was instrumental in the recruiting efforts of the 2019 SoCon scoring champion and 2018 Freshman of the Year Bubba Parham (ended his career at Georgia Tech as a Grad Transfer).

Prior to his arrival at VMI, Carroll served as the head coach at NCAA Division II member, Maryville University-St. Louis, from 2010-2017. His tenure began on the tail end of the program’s transition from NCAA Division III to Division II and was highlighted by setting a program record for wins in a season and being the only coach in school history to record wins against nationally ranked opponents. After rebuilding the program in his first two seasons, he led the 2012-13 team to the most wins in the 43-year history of the program and the first 20-win campaign in 34 years.

Carroll came to Maryville after serving as an AC for three seasons at the United States Air Force Academy from 2007-2010 under Jeff Reynolds. Before coaching at Air Force he served as an AC at the University of Alabama in Huntsville in 2006-07.

Before moving to the college ranks, Carroll served as the head coach of St. Pius X High School in Atlanta, Ga. In three seasons as head coach, he amassed a 49-38 record while rebuilding the program into one of the most successful in the state.

Carroll was a four-year member of the men's basketball team at Berry College (Rome, GA) where he earned his degree in math education while helping guide the Vikings to three consecutive 20-win seasons. He played for Lennie Acuff - who is now the HC at Lipscomb.

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Interview w/ Matt Graves (Assistant Coach at Mount St. Mary's)

Coach Matt Graves is an Assistant Coach at Mount St. Mary's. He's entering his 2nd season at Mount St. Mary's after serving as the Director of Basketball Operations this past season. Previously he served as an Assistant Coach at his alma mater, Belmont Abbey for six seasons. Coach Graves was a big part of their success which included a 23-8 season in 2018-19. He served under four HCs, and also served as the Head Coach of the men’s basketball program’s Developmental team. Prior to Belmont Abbey, Graves was an assistant coach at McDaniel College. A 2012 Belmont Abbey graduate, Graves played for four years under Stephen Miss - currently Belmont Abbey's Athletic Director. After graduation, Graves was awarded the prestigious Victory Scholarship from Sport Changes Life. The Victory Scholarship Program assists deserving students from the USA in obtaining a scholarship package to study at Masters level throughout Ireland. While in Ireland, Graves graduated with a Masters of Business Studies from the University of Ulster, Jordanstown, in 2013. He served as head coach for the Ulster Elks Premier League Men’s Basketball team in Northern Ireland. He was the captain of the Ulster Elks National League Basketball Team and was an E-Hoops Counselor with Sport Changes Life. Coach Graves recently got engaged to his longtime girlfriend Melissa who played at Notre Dame and is currently an Assistant Coach at Wake Forest - he discussed how they make it work long distance and both being college basketball coaches.

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Interview w/ Matt Griggs (HC at Mary Baldwin)

Coach Griggs shares his journey from playing D3 basketball at Centre College to becoming the 1st Head Coach in the history of Mary Baldwin University's Men's Basketball program. After concluding his college basketball playing career he became a Graduate Assistant under Pat Kelsey at Winthrop. After completing his term as GA he was retained as the Video Coordinator and remained there until Clay Nunley hired him as his full-time Assistant Coach at Roanoke College (D3). Coach Nunley eventually promoted him to the Associate Head Coach prior to him being hired by Mary Baldwin University to be their inaugural HC.