Tennessee State University’s (TSU) men and women basketball teams are just week’s away from their season opener in November. For the male Tigers this will be just their second season with head Coach Brian Penny Collins and for the lady Tigers they will be entering their third season with Coach Jessica Kern. While both teams finished below .500 last season in the Ohio Valley Conference, they look to do the complete opposite as they enter this season with new identities.
Collin’s is the 18th head men’s basketball coach in the program’s history. In his first season with the Tigers the team finished 6-12 in the conference and ended the season with an overall record of 9-21. Collins is from Nashville and played college basketball for Belmont University under head coach Rick Byrd from 2002-2006.
On Nov. 5th, the men’s team will be matched up against Alabama A&M for their first game of the season in Gentry Center on TSU’s campus at seven o’clock pm. They will have a total of 14 home games.
Coach Kern is the 11th head women’s basketball coach in the program’s history. In her previous season with the Tigers they finished 5-13 in the conference and ended their season with an overall record of 5-25. Kern is a native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. After a career at Penn State she decided to play professional basketball for seven years in Australia, Germany, Switzerland, Romania and Poland.
On Nov. 1st, Kern and the lady tiger will face Virginia Lynchburg for their first game in Gentry center at six o’clock pm. They have a total of 16 home games scheduled this season. Around the beginning of March the Tigers will be looking to extend their season by advancing in the OVC tournament and competing in the NCAA tournament.
