| Oliver
Purnell
Scout.com Headlines: |
The Scoop on Chris Zellner 
Sarasota coach talks with CUTigers.com.
-by CUTigers.com
Jan 13, 2004 |
Lambert says, “It was Awesome”
Clemson verbal commitment breaks down the weekend.
-by CUTigers.com
Jan 13, 2004 |
Monday Afternoon Recruiting Notes
Some news and notes surrouding Clemson recruiting.
-by CUTigers.com
Jan 12, 2004 |
Purnell Lands One of North Carolina's Best
Clemson head coach continues to tear it up!
-by CUTigers.com
Dec 14, 2003 |
Clemson vs. Georgia News & Notes
Notes surrounding today's game against UGA in Atlanta.
-by CUTigers.com
Dec 13, 2003 |
Coach Purnell Teleconference Notes
Clemson's head coach speaks with the media about UGA.
-by CUTigers.com
Dec 12, 2003 |
Purnell Talks about the Gamecocks
Clemson head coach addresses the media Friday.
-by CUTigers.com
Dec 5, 2003 |
An Evening Diary: Purnell’s First Road Game
Scott takes in the first road game of the Purnell era.
-by CUTigers.com
Dec 4, 2003 |
Lovett Meeting with Green
New Jersey running back also sets Clemson official visit.
-by CUTigers.com
Nov 25, 2003 |
Bowden, Phillips Discuss Extension
Tommy Bowden appears to be set to stay at Clemson.
-by CUTigers.com
Nov 24, 2003 |
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| Biography: |
Head Coach Oliver Purnell
Oliver Purnell, who led Dayton to a 24-6 record and a top four seed in the NCAA Tournament in 2002-03, became Clemson's 21st head basketball coach on April 5, 2003. Purnell succeeds Larry Shyatt, who resigned March 17.
Purnell comes to Clemson with 15 years of Division I head coaching experience at Radford (1988-89 through 1990-91), Old Dominion (1991-92 through 1993-94), and Dayton (1994-95 through 2002-03). He has a career record of 256-191, including an 88-39 ledger in his most recent four years at Dayton. The 256 victories rank third in Dayton history. He led the Flyers to at least 21 wins in each of the last four years, the first time since the late 1960s that Dayton has had four straight 20-win seasons.
This past season, Dayton had a 24-6 overall record, including a 14-2 mark in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Seven of the wins were on the road, the most road wins for the Flyers in 33 years. Purnell's team then won the Atlantic 10 Tournament with a victory over Temple and Hall of Fame Head Coach John Chaney, 79-72. The most recent season also included a victory over Marquette, who is competing in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament this weekend, and a top 20 Cincinnati team.
The victory total was the most for the Dayton program since the 1966-67 team won 25 games. The season included a nine-game winning streak, the longest for the Flyer program since 1989-90 and the squad finished 16th in the final regular season poll by the Associated Press. At the conclusion of the season he was named a finalist for the Naismith Award, which is presented to the National Coach of the Year.
In addition to his experience as a Division I college coach, Purnell also has considerable experience as an assistant coach with USA Basketball. He is one of five USA Basketball coaches in the history of that competition to win four Gold Medals. He was recently selected as an assistant coach under Larry Brown on this year's USA Basketball team, the sixth time in his career he has been selected as a coach of a USA Basketball team. He would coach in the 2004 Olympics under Brown if the team qualifies.
He was the head coach of the 1999 USA World University Team and led the squad to an 8-0 record and the Gold Medal in Brisbane, Australia. He was the recipient of USA Basketball's 1999 Developmental Coach of the Year Award. In 2000, he was appointed by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and currently serves as a member of USA Basketball Men's Collegiate Committee. That committee is responsible for the selection of collegiate coaches and players for USA Basketball's teams.
Purnell was named the head coach at the University of Dayton on April 8, 1994, just the fourth head coach of that program since 1947. He inherited a program that had won just 17 games the previous four seasons combined. The team was ranked 209th in the Sagarin rankings in 1994. This year he had the program ranked in the top 20 of the AP poll much of the season.
In 1997-98 Purnell was named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year by the league's coaches and was the NABC District Coach of the year that same season. It was the third time he was named a conference coach of the year, the third different conference to honor Purnell. He had been named Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year at Old Dominion in 1993 and the Big South Conference Coach of the Year while at Radford |
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