Seton Hall coach Shaheen Holloway cuts down net after winning NIT
Seton Hall basketball coach Shaheen Holloway cuts down the net after winning the NIT
Taking advantage of recently revised NCAA rules that allow more assistant basketball coaches, Shaheen Holloway is adding an experienced hand to Seton Hall’s staff.
Andrew Francis has joined the Hall’s staff as the 2024-25 school year gets underway, the program announced Friday. He’s the Pirates’ fourth assistant coach, joining Ryan Whalen, Rasheen Davis and Corey Lowery. The NCAA now allows up to five assistant coaches, although only three can be on the road recruiting at any one time.
Here are three things to know about Francis.
1. He’s a Brooklyn native
Francis graduated from Lincoln High School in 1992 and played college ball at Division 2 LIU-Southampton. He broke into Division 1 coaching as an administrative assistant and video coordinator under Jay Wright at Villanova in 2005.
2. He made a name at Iowa
Francis was Fran McCaffery’s assistant at Siena from 2007-10 as the Saints made three straight NCAA Tournament appearances. Then he made the leap with McCaffery to Iowa, serving with McCaffery for nine seasons as the Hawkeyes featured one of the Big Ten’s best offenses.
Francis became known as Iowa’s lead recruiter as the Hawkeyes routinely hit on underrated prospects who could fill it up. In 2019 he filled in as head coach when McCaffery was serving a two-game suspension for criticizing an official; Iowa lost both, including one to Rutgers.
When Francis left the program for an assistant position at Cal in 2019, standout Hawkeyes guard Jordan Bohannon posted a heartfelt message on Instagram.
“Coach Francis — man, it’s going to be tough to see you go,” Bohannon wrote. “You were one of my favorite people to be around to talk basketball, but more importantly about life. You cared about the type of individuals we would become, and that speaks volumes to the type of coach and person you were.”
3. He adds high-major experience
After spending 2019-2023 at Cal and the 2023-24 campaign at Florida Gulf Coast, Francis will have the most high-major experience (13 years) among Holloway’s assistants, by far.
It’s also worth noting that all four of them hail from New York or New Jersey.
Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. He is an Associated Press Top 25 voter. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.
