Tigers' associate head coach Billy Donlon departs for Eastern Michigan University's top spot just as Clemson eyes NCAA Tournament success.
Clemson earned the No. 8 seed in the South Region for the NCAA Tournament and will start the Big Dance by playing No. 9 seed Iowa on Friday at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida.
Despite losing big man Carter Welling to a season-ending ACL injury against Wake Forest last week, the Tigers won two ACC Tournament games, including a win over North Carolina before falling 73-61 to Duke in the semifinal.
Clemson head coach Brad Brownell has gotten great effort out of a team that wasn't expected to make it this far. His coaching staff has been key to getting the Tigers into the tournament.
On Tuesday, Eastern Michigan announced it was hiring Clemson associate head coach Billy Donlon to become the next head coach of the Eagles.
"Billy quickly separated himself," said EMU athletic director Scott Wetherbee in the news release. "He has won at every level, developed high-level talent, and led teams to postseason success on the national stage.
"His experience in elite conferences, along with his ability to build a strong culture and connect with student-athletes, made him the clear choice to lead our program. We are excited for the future of Eastern Michigan basketball under his leadership."
Donlon has experience coaching at Wright State and Kansas City. He's 155-133 as a head coach and led Wright State to the CBI semifinal in 2013 and the second round of the CIT in 2014.
Donlon wants to build a team of character, prioritizing "the transformational over the transactional."
"We're committed to developing young men of character, fostering a family atmosphere, and creating an environment where players grow on and off the court," Donlon said.
"Our community and alumni will be proud of the product we put on the floor: tough, disciplined, unselfish, and relentless in pursuit of excellence."
Eastern Michigan finished the 2024-25 campaign with a 16-16 overall record and went 9-9 in MAC play.
On March 8, Stan Heath and EMU mutually parted ways after the head coach amassed a 57-99 record in his five seasons with the program.
Eastern Michigan made one Final Four appearance in 1972. The school has five NCAA Tournament appearances, with the last one coming in 1998.