Perry Watson

Last updated
Perry Watson
Biographical details
Born (1950-04-30) April 30, 1950 (age 74)
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Playing career
1968–1970 Henry Ford CC
1970–1972 Eastern Michigan
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1979–1991 Southwestern HS
1991–1993 Michigan (assistant)
1993–2008 Detroit
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
2 Horizon League tournament (1994, 1999)
2 Horizon League regular season (1998, 1999)
Awards
Horizon League Coach of the Year (1998)

Perry Watson (born April 30, 1950) is an American college basketball coach from Detroit, Michigan. He played for Eastern Michigan University (where he was a teammate of George Gervin), graduating in 1972.

In 1977, Watson took the head coaching position at Detroit Southwestern High School where he coached, among others, future NBA players Jalen Rose, Voshon Lenard and Howard Eisley. Watson left Southwestern to take a position on Steve Fisher's staff at the University of Michigan in 1991, coinciding with the arrival of the Fab Five of which Rose was a member.

After two years as an assistant under Fisher, Watson was hired as the head coach at the University of Detroit Mercy, where he spent the next 15 seasons. He compiled a record of 258–185, second in school history behind only Bob Calihan. He led the Titans to three Horizon League titles, along with their first NCAA Tournament wins since advancing all the way to the Sweet 16 in 1977.

Watson took an indefinite medical leave of absence in January 2008. [1] He resigned on March 5, 2008. [2] Perry Watson was an important character witness in the University of Michigan basketball scandal. [3] [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Detroit Mercy</span> Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan, US

The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Roman Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catholic university in Michigan. It has four campuses where it offers more than 100 academic degree programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bo Schembechler</span> American college football player and coach, sports administrator (1929–2006)

Glenn Edward "Bo" Schembechler Jr. was an American college football player, coach, and athletic administrator. He served as the head football coach at Miami University from 1963 to 1968 and at the University of Michigan from 1969 to 1989, compiling a career record of 234 wins, 65 losses and 8 ties. Only Nick Saban, Joe Paterno and Tom Osborne have recorded 200 victories in fewer games as a coach in major college football. In his 21 seasons as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines, Schembechler's teams amassed a record of 194–48–5 and won or shared 13 Big Ten Conference titles. Though his Michigan teams never won a national championship, in all but one season they finished ranked, and 16 times they placed in the final top ten of both major polls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Detroit Mercy Titans</span> US college athletic program

The Detroit Mercy Titans are the athletic teams of University of Detroit Mercy. The university is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. The school primarily competes in the Horizon League, but competes in other conferences for fencing and lacrosse, sports not sponsored for either men or women by the Horizon League. Fencing, a co-ed sport, competes in the Midwest Fencing Conference. Men's lacrosse moved from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference to the ASUN Conference in July 2021. Women's lacrosse joined the Mid-American Conference for that league's first women's lacrosse season in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Fisher (basketball)</span> American basketball coach (born 1945)

Stephen Louis Fisher is an American former basketball coach. Fisher served as the head coach for the Michigan Wolverines, with whom he won the national championship in 1989, and was an assistant at Michigan, Western Michigan University, and the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association. From 1999 to 2017, Fisher was head coach for the San Diego State Aztecs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy King</span> American basketball player

Jimmy Hal King is an American former professional basketball player. King played in the NBA and other leagues. He is most famous for his time spent on the famed University of Michigan Wolverines Fab Five along with Ray Jackson, Juwan Howard, Chris Webber, and Jalen Rose, who reached the 1992 and 1993 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship games as freshmen and sophomores. He played all four years at Michigan and averaged 15 points per game as a senior in 1995.

Lee Hyden Rose was an American basketball coach and college athletic administrator. He served as the head men's basketball at Transylvania University, in an interim capacity in 1964–65 and on a permanent basis from 1968 to 1975; the University of North Carolina at Charlotte from 1975 to 1978; Purdue University from 1978 to 1980; and the University of South Florida from 1980 to 1986, compiling a career college basketball coach record in 388–162. Rose twice coached teams to the Final Four of the NCAA Division I basketball tournament, with Charlotte 49ers in 1977 and the Purdue Boilermakers in 1980. After leaving the college ranks, Rose was an assistant coach with several teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) between 1986 and 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jermaine Jackson (basketball)</span> American basketball player (born 1976)

Jermaine Maurice Jackson Sr. is an American former professional basketball player.

The Memphis Tigers men's basketball team represents the University of Memphis in NCAA Division I men's college basketball. The Tigers have competed in the American Athletic Conference since 2013. As of 2020, the Tigers had the 26th highest winning percentage in NCAA history. While the Tigers have an on-campus arena, Elma Roane Fieldhouse, the team has played home games off campus since the mid-1960s. The Tigers moved to the Mid-South Coliseum at the Memphis Fairgrounds in 1966, and then to downtown Memphis at The Pyramid, initially built for the team in 1991 and later home to the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies. In 2004, both teams moved to a new downtown venue, FedExForum. ESPN Stats and Information Department ranked Memphis as the 19th most successful basketball program from 1962 to 2012 in their annual 50 in 50 list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Michigan basketball scandal</span> Incident involving University of Michigan basketball team

The University of Michigan basketball scandal, or the Ed Martin scandal, concerned National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) rules violations resulting from the relationship between the University of Michigan, its men's basketball program, and booster Eddie L. "Ed" Martin. The violations principally involved payments booster Martin made to several players to launder money from an illegal gambling operation. It is one of the largest incidents involving payments to athletes in American collegiate history. An initial investigation by the school was joined by the NCAA, Big Ten Conference, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). As a result of this investigation, Michigan's basketball program was punished with sanctions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michigan Wolverines men's basketball</span> NCAA Division I Basketball Program

The Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Michigan. The school competes in the Big Ten Conference in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Wolverines play their home games at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan has won one NCAA Championship as well as two National Invitation Tournaments (NIT), 15 Big Ten Conference titles and two Big Ten tournament titles. In addition, it has won an NIT title and a Big Ten tournament that were vacated due to NCAA sanctions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fab Five (University of Michigan)</span> Mens basketball team of the University of Michigan

The Fab Five was the 1991 University of Michigan men's basketball team recruiting class that many consider one of the greatest recruiting classes of all time. The class consisted of Detroit natives Chris Webber (#4) and Jalen Rose (#5), Chicago native Juwan Howard (#25), and two recruits from Texas: Plano's Jimmy King (#24) and Austin's Ray Jackson (#21). The Fab Five were the first team in NCAA history to compete in the championship game with all-freshman starters.

Jay Steven Smith is an American college basketball coach. He currently serves in an administrative role for the men's basketball team at the University of Michigan. He was a former head coach at Grand Valley State University (1996–97) and Central Michigan University (1997–2006). He has also been an assistant coach at the University of Michigan and the University of Detroit.

Scott Perry is an American basketball executive and former coach. He served as the general manager for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 2017 to 2023. His contract expired at the end of the 2023 season, and the Knicks decided not to bring him back.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lloyd Brazil</span>

Francis Lloyd Brazil was an American athlete, coach and athletic director at the University of Detroit for 38 years. He played halfback for the University of Detroit football team from 1927 to 1929 and was selected as an All-American in 1928 and 1929. After graduating, he remained at the University of Detroit and spent his entire professional career there. He served as the head coach of the baseball and basketball teams, assistant coach of the football team, and director of athletics. He was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 1961 and the University of Detroit Titans Hall of Fame in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Southern Tigers basketball</span> University sports team in Houston

The Texas Southern Tigers basketball team is the basketball team that represents Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas, United States. The team currently competes in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Their current head coach is Johnny Jones, who took over after Mike Davis took the Detroit Mercy head coaching job on June 5, 2018. Texas Southern has appeared in the NCAA tournament 11 times, and most recently in 2023. The Tigers play their home games at the Health and Physical Education Arena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bacari Alexander</span> American basketball coach

Bacari Torrell Alexander is an American college basketball coach, formerly the men's basketball head coach at Detroit Mercy. He is a former assistant coach at Michigan, Western Michigan, Ohio, and Detroit Mercy. At Michigan, Alexander was responsible for coaching the team's post players, developing defensive strategies, scouting opponents and on-court coaching. In six seasons as an assistant coach under Michigan head coach John Beilein, Michigan advanced to the NCAA tournament each year, won Big Ten Conference regular season championships in 2012 and 2014 and appeared in the Elite 8 in 2014 and the National Championship in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1976–77 Detroit Titans men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 1976–77 Detroit Titans men's basketball team represented the University of Detroit in the 1976–77 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team played at Calihan Hall in Detroit.

Tony Jones is an American basketball coach and former player. He is currently an assistant coach for the Oakland Golden Grizzlies men's basketball program. He had most recently served as interim head coach for the Windsor Express of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL).

References

  1. "UDM Basketball Coach Watson Takes Medical Leave. He is considered one of the greatest coaches in University of Detroit Basketball History, Along with Dick Vitale". University of Detroit Mercy . January 7, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-01-10. Retrieved 2008-01-10.
  2. "Detroit coach Watson resigns after 15 seasons". ESPN . March 5, 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-10.
  3. Cnockaert, Jim (2002-03-22). "Accident's effects still felt six years later: Roberson: It changed the athletic department". MLive.com. Ann Arbor News. Archived from the original on August 27, 2002. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
  4. "Ed Martin Revealed: His long and infamous road into Michigan basketball history". The Michigan Daily . 2003-05-12. Retrieved 2008-08-13.