Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
All-American Davis joins Lady Raider staff
6/17/2020 3:43:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Nina Davis has celebrated many memorable moments on the hardwood of Murphy Center.
The Memphis, Tenn., native hopes to create even more after being hired as an assistant coach on the Middle Tennessee women's basketball staff as announced by head coach Rick Insell Wednesday.
Davis was a heralded prep standout at Memphis Central before turning in an All-American career at Baylor University. She replaces Shalon Pillow who was recently named head coach at Florida A&M.
"I am super excited and ready to hit the ground running and help impact the players," Davis said. "I've been there and done that. I've won games and lost games. I've won championships and lost championships. I know what it takes to compete and win at a high level, and I'm ready to share that with the players."
Insell said Davis emerged as the frontrunner from a pool of outstanding applicants for the position for an array of reasons.
"Nina is a young lady who has a great passion for the game and for young people," Insell said. "We are very fortunate to bring her on board after losing Shalon Pillow. Nina will be a great addition to our staff in regard to on-floor coaching and recruiting. I'm very excited to have her joining our program."
Insell was already familiar with Davis after recruiting her to play at Middle Tennessee when she was one of the nation's top prospects at Memphis Central from 2009-13. Davis played in four TSSAA Class AAA State Tournaments during her stellar career, winning the title in 2011. She was crowned Class AAA Miss Basketball in Tennessee in 2013 when she was also named Tennessee's Gatorade Player of the Year.
"I've won a state championship on that court. I was named Miss Basketball on that court. I'm ready to create more memories on that court," Davis said. "I'm familiar with everyone on the staff. I am already familiar with the area. This is a great opportunity."
Following high school, Davis went on to produce a star-studded career at Baylor University where she scored more than 2,000 points and pulled more than 1,000 rebounds on her way to becoming one of the elite program's best players ever. Davis' Baylor jersey was retired in 2019.
The Big 12 Player of the Year in 2015, Davis was selected All Big 12 First-Team all four years at Baylor where she was also Wade Trophy and Wooden Award finalists as the best women's basketball player in the country three times. She became the first player ever to be named to the Big 12 All-Tournament team all four years and was a two-time consensus All-American. Baylor reached the Elite Eight in each of Davis' four years.
"Playing at a top-level program at Baylor exposed me to great athletes and provided me with opportunities," Davis said. "I also got to play for an outstanding coach in Kim Mulkey, and I learned so much from her. I'm ready to take all of the experiences I have been through and pass that along to the players."
The durable and accountable Davis started in 120 consecutive games at Baylor. She also played on the USA's 2015 World University Games team that claimed the gold medal in Gwanjua, South Korea. She also traveled to Brazil in 2015 as part of Baylor Sports Ministry's 44-member mission trip.
Following her career at Baylor, Davis played professionally in Vienna Austria where she won the regular season and Cup championships. A communications major, Davis worked for ESPN in 2019 where she assisted with the broadcast of the NCAA national semifinals and national championship. Davis most recently worked for FOX Sports.
Insell said Davis' championship pedigree will be a good fit for a Lady Raider program with a strong history of achieving championship status consistently.
"We are about producing quality student-athletes who are champions in the classroom and on the court at Middle Tennessee, and that's what Nina Davis is about," Insell said. "She's a winner."
The Memphis, Tenn., native hopes to create even more after being hired as an assistant coach on the Middle Tennessee women's basketball staff as announced by head coach Rick Insell Wednesday.
Davis was a heralded prep standout at Memphis Central before turning in an All-American career at Baylor University. She replaces Shalon Pillow who was recently named head coach at Florida A&M.
"I am super excited and ready to hit the ground running and help impact the players," Davis said. "I've been there and done that. I've won games and lost games. I've won championships and lost championships. I know what it takes to compete and win at a high level, and I'm ready to share that with the players."
Insell said Davis emerged as the frontrunner from a pool of outstanding applicants for the position for an array of reasons.
"Nina is a young lady who has a great passion for the game and for young people," Insell said. "We are very fortunate to bring her on board after losing Shalon Pillow. Nina will be a great addition to our staff in regard to on-floor coaching and recruiting. I'm very excited to have her joining our program."
Insell was already familiar with Davis after recruiting her to play at Middle Tennessee when she was one of the nation's top prospects at Memphis Central from 2009-13. Davis played in four TSSAA Class AAA State Tournaments during her stellar career, winning the title in 2011. She was crowned Class AAA Miss Basketball in Tennessee in 2013 when she was also named Tennessee's Gatorade Player of the Year.
"I've won a state championship on that court. I was named Miss Basketball on that court. I'm ready to create more memories on that court," Davis said. "I'm familiar with everyone on the staff. I am already familiar with the area. This is a great opportunity."
Following high school, Davis went on to produce a star-studded career at Baylor University where she scored more than 2,000 points and pulled more than 1,000 rebounds on her way to becoming one of the elite program's best players ever. Davis' Baylor jersey was retired in 2019.
The Big 12 Player of the Year in 2015, Davis was selected All Big 12 First-Team all four years at Baylor where she was also Wade Trophy and Wooden Award finalists as the best women's basketball player in the country three times. She became the first player ever to be named to the Big 12 All-Tournament team all four years and was a two-time consensus All-American. Baylor reached the Elite Eight in each of Davis' four years.
"Playing at a top-level program at Baylor exposed me to great athletes and provided me with opportunities," Davis said. "I also got to play for an outstanding coach in Kim Mulkey, and I learned so much from her. I'm ready to take all of the experiences I have been through and pass that along to the players."
The durable and accountable Davis started in 120 consecutive games at Baylor. She also played on the USA's 2015 World University Games team that claimed the gold medal in Gwanjua, South Korea. She also traveled to Brazil in 2015 as part of Baylor Sports Ministry's 44-member mission trip.
Following her career at Baylor, Davis played professionally in Vienna Austria where she won the regular season and Cup championships. A communications major, Davis worked for ESPN in 2019 where she assisted with the broadcast of the NCAA national semifinals and national championship. Davis most recently worked for FOX Sports.
Insell said Davis' championship pedigree will be a good fit for a Lady Raider program with a strong history of achieving championship status consistently.
"We are about producing quality student-athletes who are champions in the classroom and on the court at Middle Tennessee, and that's what Nina Davis is about," Insell said. "She's a winner."
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