Big South Conference Hall of Fame coach and high-major coaching veteran Dr. Ron Bradley joined the Longwood men’s basketball staff as an assistant coach in July, 2016.
During his 30-plus years coaching at the Division I level, Bradley was enshrined in the Big South Hall of Fame in 2010 after leading Radford to a 193-124 record, four conference titles and one NCAA Tournament berth as head coach from 1991-2002.
Bradley will make his return to the Big South after spending his prior 14 seasons as an associate head coach at James Madison (2002-03), Clemson (2003-10) and DePaul (2010-15). The 1992 Big South Coach of the Year and a top-10 assistant coach in the nation by Basketball Scoop in 2011, Bradley also served as an assistant coach under College Basketball Hall of Famer Lefty Driesell at Maryland from 1981-86 and under Driesell’s successor, Bob Wade, from 1987-89.
Bradley has coached teams to 10 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament appearances in his career, including five trips as an assistant at Maryland (1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988), one as head coach at Radford (1998) and three as an assistant at Clemson (2008, 2009, 2010). He owns a 289-175 (.623) record all-time as a head coach, including the 96-51 (.653) record he put together as head coach of his alma mater, Eastern Nazarene, from 1976-81.
As a member of the winningest staff in Clemson basketball history from 2003-10, Bradley helped Purnell’s Tigers to a seven-year record of 138-88 and a .611 winning percentage that remains the best mark by a head coach in Clemson basketball history. The Tigers advanced to the postseason six times during that span, including NCAA Tournament appearances in Bradley’s final three years on Purnell’s staff.
At Clemson, Bradley installed a high-pressure defensive scheme that vaulted the Tigers into the NCAA’s top 15 in steals per game for six consecutive years, including a school-record 11.0 steals per game in 2005-06 that was the second-best mark in the nation. He mentored four All-ACC players at Clemson, including All-ACC Defensive selections Vernon Hamilton and Trevor Booker.
Bradley got his start in coaching as head coach of Division-III Eastern Nazarene from 1976-81. A member of the Eastern Nazarene Hall of Fame, Bradley led the Crusaders to five consecutive winning seasons following a decorated playing career in which he was a three-time NAIA All-America honorable mention selection. Bradley still holds Eastern Nazarene’s all-time scoring record, amassing 2,649 points from 1968-73 before he was drafted by the New Jersey Nets in the 1973 American Basketball Association (ABA) Draft.
Bradley holds three degrees, including his Ph.D. in kinesiological studies from the University of Maryland, his M.S. in physical education from Bridgewater State College and his B.A. in psychology from Eastern Nazarene College. He and his wife, Denise, have a son, William, and a daughter, Katlin.
