The University of Mississippi Athletics
Kermit Davis Named Jim Phelan Award Finalist
3/15/2019 | Men's Basketball
Award Presented Annually to Top Coach in Division I Basketball
BOSTON – Ole Miss men's basketball coach Kermit Davis, the SEC Coach of the Year, has been named a finalist for the Jim Phelan Award. Announced Friday afternoon, the award is presented annually to the top coach in Division I men's basketball.
Not even a full year into his tenure in Oxford, Davis has Ole Miss knocking on the door of its first NCAA Tournament appearance in four seasons and just the third in the past 17 years. The Leakesville, Mississippi, native has led one of the biggest turnarounds in the country, as the Rebels improved from 12-20 (5-13 SEC) a season ago to 20-12 (10-8 SEC) with March Madness on the horizon. The eight-win improvement is ranked 11th in the nation as well as the best among Power 5 schools.
With 20 wins already, Davis became just the third active SEC head coach to win at least 20 games in his first season in the conference (John Calipari – Kentucky, Mike White – Florida). While Ole Miss was projected to finish last in the SEC, Davis got the Rebels off to a hot start. Ole Miss began conference play 3-0, helping Davis become the first Rebel head coach to win his first three SEC games. He was the second coach to win 13 of his first 15 games as well as the third coach in program history to win 20 games in his first season.
Earlier this week, Davis became the sixth Ole Miss men's basketball coach to earn SEC Coach of the Year honors. He joined the winningest coach in program history, Andy Kennedy, as the only two coaches to be named SEC Coach of the Year in his first season guiding the Rebels.
The Jim Phelan award is presented annually to the top coach in Division I men's basketball. Phelan led the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers to the 1962 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Championship. When he retired in 2003, after coaching for 49 years, he had amassed 830 wins (overall record of 830-524) in all divisions. In those 49 years, 19 of his teams amassed 20 or more wins in a season.
The recipient of the 2019 Jim Phelan Award will be announced on April 5 at the College Insider Awards Event, in Minneapolis, site of the 2019 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship.
For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.
THE 2019 JIM PHELAN AWARD FINALISTS
Rick Barnes, Tennessee
Chris Beard, Texas Tech
John Beilein, Michigan
Tony Bennett, Virginia
John Calipari, Kentucky
Kermit Davis, Ole Miss
Darian DeVries, Drake
Mark Few, Gonzaga
Jason Hooten, Sam Houston State
Justin Hutson, Fresno State
Tom Izzo, Michigan State
Dustin Kerns, Presbyterian
Chris Mack, Louisville
Ritchie McKay, Liberty
Eric Musselman, Nevada
Nate Oats, Buffalo
Matt Painter, Purdue
Mike Rhoades, VCU
Kelvin Sampson, Houston
Byron Smith, Prairie View A&M
Craig Smith, Utah State
Bruce Weber, Kansas State
Roy Williams, North Carolina
Steve Wojciechowski, Marquette
Mike Young, Wofford
Not even a full year into his tenure in Oxford, Davis has Ole Miss knocking on the door of its first NCAA Tournament appearance in four seasons and just the third in the past 17 years. The Leakesville, Mississippi, native has led one of the biggest turnarounds in the country, as the Rebels improved from 12-20 (5-13 SEC) a season ago to 20-12 (10-8 SEC) with March Madness on the horizon. The eight-win improvement is ranked 11th in the nation as well as the best among Power 5 schools.
With 20 wins already, Davis became just the third active SEC head coach to win at least 20 games in his first season in the conference (John Calipari – Kentucky, Mike White – Florida). While Ole Miss was projected to finish last in the SEC, Davis got the Rebels off to a hot start. Ole Miss began conference play 3-0, helping Davis become the first Rebel head coach to win his first three SEC games. He was the second coach to win 13 of his first 15 games as well as the third coach in program history to win 20 games in his first season.
Earlier this week, Davis became the sixth Ole Miss men's basketball coach to earn SEC Coach of the Year honors. He joined the winningest coach in program history, Andy Kennedy, as the only two coaches to be named SEC Coach of the Year in his first season guiding the Rebels.
The Jim Phelan award is presented annually to the top coach in Division I men's basketball. Phelan led the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers to the 1962 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Championship. When he retired in 2003, after coaching for 49 years, he had amassed 830 wins (overall record of 830-524) in all divisions. In those 49 years, 19 of his teams amassed 20 or more wins in a season.
The recipient of the 2019 Jim Phelan Award will be announced on April 5 at the College Insider Awards Event, in Minneapolis, site of the 2019 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship.
For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.
THE 2019 JIM PHELAN AWARD FINALISTS
Rick Barnes, Tennessee
Chris Beard, Texas Tech
John Beilein, Michigan
Tony Bennett, Virginia
John Calipari, Kentucky
Kermit Davis, Ole Miss
Darian DeVries, Drake
Mark Few, Gonzaga
Jason Hooten, Sam Houston State
Justin Hutson, Fresno State
Tom Izzo, Michigan State
Dustin Kerns, Presbyterian
Chris Mack, Louisville
Ritchie McKay, Liberty
Eric Musselman, Nevada
Nate Oats, Buffalo
Matt Painter, Purdue
Mike Rhoades, VCU
Kelvin Sampson, Houston
Byron Smith, Prairie View A&M
Craig Smith, Utah State
Bruce Weber, Kansas State
Roy Williams, North Carolina
Steve Wojciechowski, Marquette
Mike Young, Wofford
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