Head men’s basketball coach Burt Paddock is pleased to announce the hiring of Blake Saunders as an assistant coach. Saunders comes to Davenport directly from Ashland University where he was an assistant for the NCAA DII program and after he spent two seasons with Michigan State University. Saunders will directly oversee the defense for a team that returns nine letterwinners from an Elite 8 squad in 2013-14.
"I am extremely excited about this opportunity and to be a part of the Davenport University family," said Saunders. "Coach Paddock and his staff have built one of the elite programs in the Midwest which is reflected in the team’s success on the basketball court and in the classroom. It is a privilege to be joining the staff and I will work relentlessly to promote the program in a way all Davenport University students, administrators, alumni and community members can be proud of."
Saunders comes to Davenport after a standout playing career and assistant coaching stint at Ashland University. He is a 2011 Ashland graduate who played basketball for the Eagles and was a team captain his senior season and he was a member of the GLIAC All-Academic Excellence Team.
After graduating from AU, Saunders went to Michigan State, where he was a graduate assistant with the men’s basketball program. Saunders was with the Spartans in 2012 when they won Big Ten regular season and tournament titles. In 2012 and 2013 the Spartans made consecutive Sweet 16 appearances.
"Blake is a basketball guy", said Paddock! "He comes from an incredible background having been a GA at Michigan State under Coach Izzo for two years and being the nephew of current NBA executive Flip Saunders. Having been a full time assistant at NCAA DII Ashland University this past season under Coach Ellenwood has made him ready to hit the ground running."
Saunders has significant experience with recruiting, conducting individual workouts and assisting in planning and directing on-floor drills. He worked at the MSU program’s summer camps and was also a camp instructor at Northwestern, Villanova and Ashland.
"Since accepting the position I have been able to speak with every current player as well as many former players and I have been blown away at the maturity level, passion and commitment to the program each player demonstrated," added Saunders. "I am truly looking forward to working with them and helping to develop each of them into the best basketball players and young men possible."
"Having worked alongside Blake for the last few weeks there is no doubt we’ve hit a home-run," added Paddock! "He is a really hard worker who is consistently thinking about how we can make our team and each individual player better. I can tell his attention to detail among other things are going to be a huge asset to our program and a coach our kids will benefit greatly from."
Davenport opens the 2014-15 campaign on November 4 when they travel across town to meet Grace Bible College.
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