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Black Knight Athletics

North Davidson High School

Black Knight Athletics

North Davidson High School

Team News.

Team News

6.0 years ago @ 7:17PM

North Davidson hires Mullis as next boys basketball coach

 

 

It’s been nearly four months since the high school basketball season ended, but North Davidson has now officially hired Brandon Mullis as its new boys basketball coach, athletic director Mark Hayes announced.

Mullis will replace Brian Flynn, who vacated his position after one season with the Black Knights basketball team to become the school’s head football coach, stepping in for Mark Holcomb. Holcomb is now the head football coach at Oak Grove, which is set to open in August.

“The thing came up, we reached out and we just felt like he’s the best guy for the job after dealing with him the last couple days,” Hayes said. “I know he’s going to do a fantastic job.”

 

Mullis, who is entering his 15th season coaching basketball, coached with Matt Ridge at Davidson County Community College, and was also an assistant at Ragsdale High School.

“I just feel like this is an opportunity that I’ve been preparing for, for this specific opportunity at North Davidson for a long time,” Mullis said. “I grew up in the Triad. I went to Southern Guilford and graduated in 2001.”

Mullis, 34, played one season at Guilford College before injuring his ankle, which ended his playing career, and later graduated from N.C. State.

In becoming the head coach for the Black Knights he will face the challenge of being the third coach in the last three seasons, including Sammy Staten, and the fourth since 2012, when Kevin King, the current head coach at North Surry, resigned after four seasons.

“I do know that there’s been a lot of turnover,” Mullis said. “And one thing that I already started stressing to our players and this program is that I am committed to you and to this program.

“Our goal is to get better each and every single day.”

The Black Knights were 9-15 this past season under Flynn and finished 2-8 in the Central Piedmont 4-A Conference. In 2015-16, the Black Knights were 5-20 under Staten.

“This is not going to be an overnight type of deal,” Mullis said. “With that being said, I do believe we have some talent here. It’s some talent that we can work with.”

One of the players Mullis and the Black Knights will be counting on is rising senior Satchel Hester, who averaged 13 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last season.

“If it wasn’t a challenge then it wouldn’t be worth going through, in my opinion,” Mullis said. “It’s going to be fun and I’m looking forward to it.”

One thing that should make the transition easier is that Flynn, despite leaving the basketball program, will be close by if Mullis needs any advice.

“He’s been very helpful already,” Mullis said. “We’ve met a few times, and talked a few times. He’s already sent me some film, so I’ve already started watching film from some of their games from last season. So he’s already been an invaluable resource. He’s going to be someone that I lean on.”

The Black Knights will have to replace eight seniors who graduated.

“Each team’s different,” Hayes said. “You’re losing seniors, you’re adding freshmen, and it’s a new class every year. But any time you’re going in a positive direction from where you went last year, and knowing that it’s a new group, that’s all you can ask.”

North Davidson will have the luxury of having Mullis on campus as a teacher. He’s a physical education teacher, but North Davidson didn’t have any slots available. He will instead be an Exception Children’s teacher.

“Anytime you’re in the building, seeing those kids daily, being able to interact with them and develop relationships, discipline and accountability steps with a head coaching being in the building — that’s big,” Hayes said.

With the creation of Oak Grove, which is in Midway, North Davidson will transition from the Central Piedmont 4-A to the Central Carolina 2-A, which includes Ledford, Oak Grove, West Davidson, East Davidson, Thomasville, Lexington, Central Davidson, South Rowan and Salisbury.

“You’re going to have that more local flavor and feel to it,” Mullis said. “And so it’s going to be a great atmosphere, great environments. It’s just going to be a lot of fun to be a part of.”

 
 

jspivey@wsjournal.com 336-727-7370 @JaySpivey_WSJ

Team News

6.0 years ago @ 7:14PM

North picks Brandon Mullis as boys basketball coach

 

 

 

North Davidson, in its search for a boys basketball coach, decided on a familiar name.

Brandon Mullis, a former long-time assistant coach at Davidson County Community College, was named to coach the Black Knights, athletic director Mark Hayes announced Wednesday afternoon.

“I am super excited,” said Mullis, who met with the team Tuesday. “I am honored and privileged that (Principal) Ms. (Ann) Kiger and coach Hayes have given me this opportunity and I know North Davidson is a special place with a lot of incredible people. The community really gets involved and engaged. I’m excited about getting to know these people and getting to work.”

The school was equally excited to land Mullis.

“I think he was the best candidate for the job,” Hayes said. “He brings a wealth of experience - 15 years of coaching experience at the college level and high school level. Just think he’ll do a tremendous job. We’re very excited about it.”

The new coach sees it as a day-by-day process.

“My goal is to be better at the end of the day than we were at the beginning of the day,” Mullis said. “If we can do that, we’re making progress. The wins and losses will be what they are. What we want is progress.”

Mullis, 34, replaces Brian Flynn, who was the head coach for one year before stepping down to become the head football coach at North.

North went 8-15 under Flynn in 2016-17, a four-game improvement over the previous season. The Knights struggled at the 4-A level, with one winning season in the last decade. But they are dropping to 2-A under the latest NCHSAA realignment and will play in the Central Carolina Conference. North will still be competing as a 4-A size school since Oak Grove- which is drawing students from North and Ledford - is opening with just freshmen and sophomores for 2017-18. That could help the Knights.

“To a small degree it will,” Mullis said. “But we’re going to respect each and every opponent regardless if they’re 2-A, 4-A or not. I do think there will be interesting matchups and good rivalries.”

Mullis, who graduated from Southern Guilford and North Carolina State, was at DCCC as the Associate Head Coach on the staff of Matt Ridge from 2007-13. During that time, the Storm were 162-33 and reached the NJCAA Division III national tournament in both 2010 and 2011. Mullis has been an assistant coach at Ragsdale High School in Jamestown since leaving DCCC.

DCCC has long been known for running on offense and pressuring on defense, ingredients that have produced a highly successful program. Look for North to try to follow that script.

“That’s the hope,” Mullis said. “But it’s all predicated on personnel. My hope is to play uptempo. We want to make you uncomfortable, pressure you on defense and speed you up. By doing that we can pick up our offense with layups and open 3-pointers. That’s what we hope to do.”

 

Mike Duprez can be reached at (336) 249-3981, ext. 218 or sports@the-dispatch.com. Follow Mike on Twitter@LexDispatch_md.

 


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