I reported this earlier today as a rumor – it’s now official…
Kurt Godlevske has made his first staff announcement as the head coach of the Butler women’s basketball team by naming Damon Bailey as an assistant coach. Bailey will join the program after guiding the Bedford North Lawrence women’s basketball team to an IHSAA Class 4A State Title during the 2013-14 season.
Godlevske and Bailey worked together at Bedford North Lawrence for four seasons as the duo helped the Stars win a 2012-13 state title with Godlevske at the helm. Once Godlevske left BNL to become an assistant coach at Butler, Bailey took over the reins and guided the team to another state title.
"I am truly excited to welcome Damon Bailey to the Bulldog family," Head Coach Kurt Godlevske said. "He is a great friend, a great coach and an even better person. Our vision for the direction of this program is similar, which makes him a natural fit to the staff. Damon is a basketball icon and I am thrilled to have him as a part of our basketball family!"
Bailey began his coaching career at Bedford North Lawrence by coaching the men’s program during the 2005-06 season. He resigned in March of 2007 after just two seasons, finishing with a 23-19 overall record. Bailey later returned to his alma mater, this time to join the women’s coaching staff where he worked alongside Godlevske.
Bailey’s background as a player is well documented as the former Indiana Mr. Basketball recipient would go on to be a four-year starter under Head Coach Bob Knight at Indiana University and eventually be selected with the 44th overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers.
A household name in the state of Indiana and at Bedford North Lawrence High School, Bailey finished his high school career at BNL having appeared in three state Final Fours which featured a 1990 State Championship and a scoring record of 3,134 points.
Along with Indiana Mr. Basketball recognition, Bailey was also tabbed as a McDonald’s All-American, the 1990 consensus National Player of the Year and later would be named to the AP Indiana All-Century high school basketball team.
After graduating from Bedford North Lawrence, Bailey went on to a stellar four-year career at Indiana University where he was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 1991 and AP All-American in 1994.
Bailey’s immediate impact at IU helped the Hoosiers win 87 games during his first three seasons, a total that marked the most wins by any Big Ten team in a three-year span. Bailey finished sixth on Indiana’s all-time scoring list with 1,741 points. He averaged 13.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game for his career.
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