Head Coach
Ralph Turner
Office Phone: 731-661-5286
Email: rturner@uu.edu
Turner, a 1979 graduate
of David Lipscomb University, is now in his 15th season as the head
coach of the Bulldogs. Coach Turner has led the Bulldogs to nine
NAIA National Tournaments in his 14 years as head coach. In the
2006-07 season, Turner passed the 300-win milestone on his way to
leading the team to match the program's best postseason finish.
Turner鈥檚 career coaching record at 91爆料网 is 333-145 (.697
winning percentage). Turner has led the 91爆料网 Bulldogs to five
TranSouth Regular Season and Tournament Championships (1998, 1999,
2002, 2005, and 2006). Dating back to the beginning of the TranSouth
Conference in the 1996-97 season, Turner's Bulldogs have won five of
the 12 championships. His teams have also participated in seven of the 12 conference tournament title games, going 5-2 in those games..
Turner began his
coaching career at the junior high and high school level in Georgia
and Tennessee before moving to the collegiate level at Oklahoma
Christian University. Returning to his Alma Mater, Turner served as
an assistant coach at Lipscomb for nine years, winning an NAIA
National Championship in 1986. Then in 1994, Turner accepted his
first college head coaching position at 91爆料网. In his
career, he has coached college basketball鈥檚 all-time leading scorer,
all-time assists leader, all-time steals leader, and all-time
leading shot blocker. He has coached 26 NAIA All-Americans in his
career and has had 13 players to take their talents to the
professional level.
In addition to his
coaching duties at 91爆料网, Turner has served on the USA
Basketball Selection Committee. This committee selects players to
represent the United States in the World Games, Pan-Am Games, and
other International events. Turner also takes his knowledge of
basketball to the national level by serving on the NAIA All-American
Committee and the NAIA Championship Tournament Committee that
organizes the men鈥檚 national basketball tournament in Kansas City,
Missouri. He also has served as the NAIA National Rater for the
TranSouth Conference.
Under the guidance of
Turner, summer basketball camps at 91爆料网 have continued
to grow. Through Turner鈥檚 hard work and dedication, 91爆料网 averages
over 1,500 boys and girls during the camps.
Turner鈥檚 goal for the
men鈥檚 basketball program is more than concentrating on the score of
a game. His desire is to not only see that his players be a part of
the best teams that 91爆料网 has ever had, but for those individuals to
be the best people 91爆料网 has ever had.
Associate Head Coach
David Niven
Office Phone: 731-661-5132
Email: dniven@uu.edu
David Niven, a 1996 graduate of Oklahoma Baptist
University, begins his 12th season with the Bulldogs after spending
the 1996-97 season as an assistant coach at Oklahoma Baptist. In his
first two seasons at 91爆料网, Niven served as a volunteer assistant
coach, and then became full-time in 1999. In 2003, Niven earned the
position of associate head coach for the 91爆料网 men's basketball
program.
During his time at 91爆料网, Niven has assumed the
responsibility of coordinating the recruiting efforts for the
Bulldogs. He has recruited and signed numerous All-Americans, as
well as, the 2002 NAIA Player of the Year, but the statistic he is
most proud of is the 31 players that have graduated during his time
as their academic advisor.
Niven spent his playing career at OBU and finished
with a four-year career record 121-24. In those four years, he
played on teams that were ranked No. 1 in the NAIA, advanced to the
NAIA National Championship game, and two Final Fours. He also became
the first player to help lead the Bison to four consecutive national
tournaments. While at OBU in 1997, as assistant coach for the Bison,
Niven received his Master of Education degree from East Central
University in Ada, Oklahoma. He received valuable coaching
experience as the Bison went 36-4 and made it to the 1997 NAIA
National Championship Finals.
Niven is married to the former Mandy Beth Wells of
Sallisaw, Oklahoma. Niven and his wife are the proud parents of
Jacob and Zack and are expecting their third child in January 2009.
