The Tribune

FOR the first time in 13 years, the University of The Bahamas’ men’s basketball will see a new face running the sidelines as Jay Philippe was named to lead the programme as head coach.

The Bain Town native is no stranger to the basketball community having 14 years of stellar high school coaching and coaching the national under-17 boys’ team since 2024.

Philippe is a FIBA-certified coach who has attended the USA Basketball Academy Camp in New York in 2024. He takes over for Bacchus Rolle who was in charge of the programme for the past 13 years.Philippe said he is excited and ready to hit the ground running as he looks forward to being a collegiate coach.

“I want to bring that same winning mentality that I’ve had to The University of the Bahamas. It's something that I want to come out here and be able to do at a high level,” Philippe said. 

“Credit coach Bacchus Rolle, he did an amazing job and I want to ensure that I can continue with his tradition while adding more of what I want to do as well.

“Over the years, I've been a defensive-minded head coach and I believe in playing the absolute best defence.

“Defence wins basketball games, offence will take care of itself.”

As head coach, Philippe has won two Hugh Campbell basketball tournament titles in four tries for the Sunland Baptist Stingers out of Grand Bahama. 

Philippe has also won the Grand Bahama Tip-off Classic five times and took home three Grand Bahama Secondary School Athletic Association titles.

To help him carry out his vision and plans, Philippe has brought back long-time assistant coach Lavar Johnson to be his lead assistant coach. 

Joining the coaching staff as assistant volunteer coaches are Joshua Cornish and Virley McKinney. Cornish played at Sunland Baptist Academy under coach Phillippe as guard and McKinney graduated from C R Walker High School and most recently coached at St John’s College.

The former Webber International University basketball player said he knows a few of the current Mingoes basketball players.

“I'm familiar with most of the players that play for the Mingoes,” Philippe said. “I've seen them play at the high school level and I know some of their strengths and some of their weaknesses. "I want to ensure that they can grow individually as far as individual development for basketball.

“I want to have a cohesive group that's going to work together.”

The newly-minted coach said he knows The University of The Bahamas is the premier tertiary education institution in The Bahamas and will be looking for talent across the country. “I want to make sure that every single student from a different island has an opportunity,” Philippe said. “When I say that, I mean I don't want it to be just a new Providence-based institution for men's basketball, which it hasn't been.

"But I want to ensure that kids from the Family Islands all have equal opportunities to be able to try out for the team and have a real legit chance of making that team.”

Philippe will host tryouts August 17-21 at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium with UB students who are currently registered. Those tryouts will get underway at 7:30pm nightly.