June 3, 2013

SACRAMENTO - Loyola University Maryland men's basketball alumnus Mike Malone '94 has been named head coach of the Sacramento Kings, the NBA Pacific Division team confirmed on Sunday and will announce Monday at a press conference.

Malone was a four-year letterwinner at point guard for the Greyhounds from 1989-1993 when he played in 107 games and started 39.

Over the course of his four years, which coincided with Loyola's first four in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Malone twice led the Greyhounds in assists, tallying 100 as a senior in 1992-1993 and 94 in 1989-1990.

He finished his career with 279 assists, a total that ranks 11th in school history. Malone scored 370 points, posted 79 steals and averaged 18.5 minutes per game.

After graduating from Loyola in 1994, Malone began his collegiate coaching career at Oakland (Mich.) University where he served for a year before joining Pete Gillen's staffs at Providence College (1995-1998) and the University of Virginia (1998-1999). He was on the bench in 1997 when the Friars advanced to the NCAA Regional Final before falling to eventual NCAA Champion Arizona.

Malone then returned to the MAAC where he was an assistant at Manhattan College from 1999-2001 before making the leap to the NBA as a New York Knicks' assistant from 2003-2005.

He then spent five seasons (2005-2010) as an assistant coach on the Lebron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers. Malone then spent the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 seasons with the New Orleans Hornets and Golden State Warriors, respectively.

Malone brings strong bloodlines to his first head-coaching job. His father, Brendan, was the head coach at the University of Rhode Island from 1984-1986, spent several seasons as an NBA assistant and head coach.

Malone is the first Loyola alumnus to become a head coach in any of the "Big 4" (NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB) sports.