Kennesaw State Hires Basketball Coach

new athletic director has made his first hire even before officially starting the job, hiring Penn State assistant Lewis Preston as the men’s basketball coach Wednesday.

Preston replaces in March after the Owls finished 8-23 in his 10th season.

“The hiring of Lewis Preston represents a new chapter in the elevation of our basketball program,” Kennesaw State President Daniel Papp said in a prepared statement. “This appointment builds on the momentum within KSU athletics that just keeps getting stronger.”

Preston’s hiring is the first decision for at a news conference last week. Now the associate athletic director at the University of Connecticut, Williams is due to start his job at Kennesaw on May 2.

“Lewis Preston’s leadership and drive to win is unsurpassed,” Williams said in a statement. “He has what it takes to both motivate and inspire our players and to fully leverage the top-notch basketball facilities he will have at his disposal. He is one of the best collegiate assistant basketball coaches around, and we are fortunate to have him on board.”

Williams was hired after interim Athletic Director Scott Whitlock, with Papp’s support, decided not to renew the contracts of the entire men’s basketball coaching staff.

Ingle compiled a record of 178-165 in 10 seasons along Chastain Road, won the Division II national championship with the Owls in 2004 and led the program into Division I the next year.

But Whitlock said changing coaches was about performance in the classroom, not on the court.

“We have already lost one men’s basketball scholarship, and we anticipate further NCAA action due to the continuing academic deficiencies of the program,” he said. “We know that this is a strong action, but it was made after extensive analysis of the past and present academic performance of the men’s basketball team.”  

Whitlock added that the firing sent “a strong message to all of our coaches and to our players that our athletes are students first. They are here to gain an education and a degree. While we value our sports program, and we enjoy winning, it will not be at any expense–and certainly not at the expense of students getting the education that they expect and deserve.”

The university’s announcement of Preston’s hiring noted that he “will be fully responsible for the academic achievement, retention and graduation of the team’s student athletes.”

Preston embraced the dual academic and athletic challenges in taking the Kennesaw job.

“My focus has always been on developing my student-athletes, both athletically and academically, to their fullest potential,” he said in a statement released by the university. “I can’t wait to get started on hiring our assistant coaches and recruiting the additional players that will complement our current team.”

The Owls’ top three scorers and five of the seven players who started games this past season are eligible to return next season, led by guard Markeith Cummings, who averaged 18.3 points a game as a sophomore.

“This is a tremendous opportunity, and I am thrilled and humbled to have been chosen by Kennesaw State,” Preston said. “I am happy to be coming to KSU as it kicks its athletics program into high gear.”

Preston spent the past three years as an assistant to Ed DeChellis at Penn State. Before that, he spent two years assisting Florida’s Billy Donovan, including the Gators’ 2007 national championship season.

“He is a great teacher of the game, and there is no doubt that his players will learn to play basketball the right way,” said Atlanta Hawk forward Al Horford, who played on that 2007 Florida team.

The 40-year-old Preston also was an assistant at Notre Dame for six years and Coastal Carolina for two.

“What a great fit for Lewis and Kennesaw State University,” said Mike Brey, Preston’s boss at Notre Dame. “He is truly one of the excellent teachers and communicators in our profession, the kind of guy you want your son to play for.”

DeChellis said Preston is ready to head a basketball program. He praised his assistant’s work ethic, recruiting and ability to relate to college students. “Most importantly, he is a high-character person with great morals and a strong belief in the values of family.”

Preston is a 1993 graduate of the Virginia Military Institute, where he played basketball before a four-year professional basketball career in Europe.