Central Michigan is hiring Kentucky assistant Tony Barbee as its next men’s basketball head coach, sources told ESPN.
Barbee replaces Keno Davis, who was fired earlier this month after nine seasons with the Chippewas.
A former head coach at UTEP and Auburn, Barbee spent the past seven years under John Calipari at Kentucky. He has played a part in landing several highly ranked recruiting classes and has helped with both X’s and O’s and player development. Barbee also spent time under Calipari as an assistant coach at Memphis.
As a head coach, Barbee went to one NCAA tournament in eight seasons. He was successful at UTEP, improving in each of his four seasons at the helm, culminating in a Conference USA championship and NCAA tournament appearance in 2010.
Barbee was then hired by Auburn, but he struggled in the SEC. The Tigers failed to make the postseason during his four-year tenure.