Vol. 19, No. 37

Aug. 10, 2000

Former Duke assistant to head men's basketball program

David Henderson, former Duke University assistant coach, was introduced as the new Blue Hen men's basketball head coach at a press conference July 21 in the Bob Carpenter Center. Henderson, who turned 36 the day of the press conference, succeeds Mike Brey, who resigned to become the head coach at Notre Dame University. Henderson is the 22nd men's basketball coach as the program enters its 96th season. "I'm really excited about being here," Henderson said. "I think it is a great opportunity here at Delaware. I am looking forward to working with the student-athletes, Edgar Johnson [UD director of athletics] and President David Roselle. I am looking forward to my first head coaching opportunity and ready to get going." "Coach Henderson is highly respected in collegiate coaching circles and has been identified as a rising star," Johnson said. "He comes to us highly recommended, and it was obvious to us that he had all of the qualities and abilities needed to help our basketball program continue to grow and flourish. We are very pleased he has agreed to join us." In anticipation of Brey's resignation, Johnson said the University had developed a list of potential candidates and wanted to complete its search as quickly as possible. He thanked members of the University community for their help in recommending and identifying candidates. "We are fortunate that several of the most successful basketball coaches and athletics directors were willing to help us with our search," Roselle said. "Their good counsel and the fact that they describe our vacancy as one of the more outstanding opportunities in all of college athletics ensured that we would be successful. Even in the very strong field of candidates they recommended, David Henderson stood out as having all of the attributes needed to build upon the current strengths of the basketball program. We are very pleased to welcome him to the University of Delaware." During his first few weeks at UD, Henderson spent time meeting his players and recruiting. He also spoke at the Mike Brey Basketball Camp being conducted in the Bob Carpenter Center. Henderson is the first African-American head coach of any sport in UD's 113-year athletics history, but not the first minority head coach at the University of Delaware. Christopher Ip, an Asian American, was the men's and women's swimming head coach from 1984-1989. At Duke University, Henderson had served as an assistant coach to Mike Krzyzewski for the last three seasons (1997-2000). Brey had served as an assistant at Duke, but he was not with the Blue Devils when Henderson was a member of the coaching staff or a student-athlete there (1982-86). A native of Drewry, N.C., Henderson inherits a program that will replace six seniors from last season's 24-8 NIT team, but returns three regular contributors from last year and gains the services of three transfers and a freshman class that Brey called the best in his tenure at Delaware. The Blue Hens were 99-52 in Brey's five seasons and have earned trips to the NCAA Tournament twice and the NIT once in the last three years. On the hiring of his successor, Brey said, "I am excited for David, but I am more excited for University of Delaware basketball fans. David is a great fit and will certainly continue the UD basketball program's success." "I am very proud of David Henderson," Krzyzewski said. "I think he is absolutely perfect for Delaware and is ready to be a head coach. He did a fantastic job for me the last three years. He showed a toughness and a competitiveness that will serve him well as a head coach." Henderson, who is single, graduated from Duke in 1986 with a degree in economics. Upon his graduation, he began a 10-year professional playing career in the Continental Basketball Association before joining the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers. As a player at Duke, Henderson finished his four-year career with 1,570 points to rank 20th on the Blue Devils' all-time scoring list. He was the co-captain of Duke's 1986 Final Four team, which finished 37-3 in reaching the NCAA title game, and earned ACC All-Tournament honors that season. He was also MVP of the Big Apple Pre-season NIT Tournament that year. Duke was 84-21 during his final three seasons and earned NCAA Tournament bids each of those years (1984, 1985 and 1986) in beginning the Blue Devils' incredible 15-year run. The hiring of Henderson marks the third consecutive time a UD men's basketball coach has had ties to Duke University. Prior to Brey, Blue Hen coach Steve Steinwedel had served two seasons as an assistant at Duke under Bill Foster before going to South Carolina as an assistant coach. The Blue Hens open the 2000 season Nov. 13 in Philadelphia in the Pre-season NIT at Temple University.