Duffy Conroy enters his seventh season as an assistant coach for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. With his assistance, LA Tech has registered six straight winning seasons, including five with 20+ victories. This past season, the Bulldogs recorded a 24-8 overall record while earning a Conference USA West Division title and a third place finish in the National Invitation Tournament. LA Tech received an at-large berth to play in the NIT for the first time since 2015 and became just the second team in program history to make the Final Four. uffy onroy The Bulldogs upset Ole Miss in the first round, defeated league foe Western Kentucky in the quarterfinals and won a 76-74 thriller over No. 1 overall seed Colorado State in the Final Four consolation game. The ‘Dogs had the highest-rated defense in C-USA, ranking 39th in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency. The team also ranked No. 1 in the league and top 30 in the country in field goal percentage defense and three-point field goal percentage defense. The 2019-20 team recorded a 22-8 overall record during the regular season, but the team did not have a chance at postseason play with the Conference USA and NCAA/NIT Tournaments being canceled due to the public health threat of COVID-19. The ‘Dogs, who had the highest NET ranking and highest KenPom ranking of any C-USA squad, had several marquee wins including a 74-67 victory against Mississippi State in Starkville to end their SEC-leading 26-game non-conference winning streak. The squad registered 20 wins in 2018-19 with eight of the 20 victories coming against teams who also produced 20-win seasons, the most in program history. One of those came in the season opener at Wichita State as the Bulldogs shocked the Shockers, handing them only their fourth loss in their last 76 games at home. The 2017-18 season was highlighted by winning the 10th annual Cancun Challenge championship in Mexico as well as the inaugural New Orleans Shootout. In 2016-17, the Bulldogs finished second in Conference USA despite being picked seventh in the preseason poll and despite being the second youngest team in the league. During the 2015-16 season, LA Tech ended up defeating eight teams who advanced to the postseason (most since 1989). Of those was a win in non-conference win play at Ohio State, the program’s first victory over a Big Ten school in 30 years. The `Dogs, led by point guard Alex Hamilton who was chosen as C-USA Player of the Year as well as an honorable mention Associated Press All-American, were picked preseason to finish fifth but ended up in a tie for third in the league to help earn the program’s fourth straight postseason appearance which came in the inaugural Vegas16 Tournament. Hamilton is one of six Bulldogs that have received postseason honors since Conroy arrived in Ruston. Kenneth Lofton, Jr. and Isaiah Crawford earned Third Team All-Conference USA accolades in 2020-21. DaQuan Bracey was a First Team All-Conference USA selection in 2019-20 and Erik McCree and Jacobi Boykins were both two-time All-Conference USA selections. Four players have also been named to the All-Freshman Team, including Lofton, Jr. and Bracey who also earned C-USA Freshman of the Year honors. Conroy spent the previous 10 seasons as an assistant coach at Milwaukee under Rob Jeter, helping the Panthers to four postseason appearances including NCAA Tournament berths in 2006 and 2014. During his stint at Milwaukee, Conroy helped develop 12 All-Horizon league players, two of which came this past season which marked the first time since 2006 the Panthers had multiple players on the league’s first or second teams. At UWM, Conroy also served as the scheduling coordinator and was part of four 20-win seasons, two Horizon League regular season titles and two tournament titles, the most recent one coming in 2014. After the Panthers had finished last the season prior and having been picked preseason to finish the same way, Milwaukee won four games in eight days to win the championship and earn the automatic berth to the NCAA Division I Tournament for just the fourth time in program history. Milwaukee’s 13-win increase from the previous season was the best year-to-year improvement in the country. The Panthers also enjoyed back-to-back postseason appearances in 2011 and 2012 in the National Invitation Tournament and CollegeInsider. com Tournament, respectively. In the 2010-11 season, UWM finished the regular season by winning nine straight league games to earn a share of the Horizon League crown. Despite losing to Butler in the conference title game, Conroy and the Panthers had frequent success against the Bulldogs. In 2009, UWM upset 21st-ranked Butler, 63-60, which was the program’s first-ever win over a nationally-ranked team during the regular season. Arguably the most memorable season at Milwaukee for Conroy came in his first season with the team in 2005-06. The Panthers posted a 22-9 overall record, won the Horizon League regular season and conference title, had a school-record three players named all-league, earned a best-ever 11-seed in the NCAA Tournament and collected an upset victory over Oklahoma in the first round. Conroy began his coaching career at Milwaukee in 2000 as an administrative assistant for Bo Ryan and moved with Ryan to the University of Wisconsin where he served as the video coordinator for two years when the Badgers claimed back-to-back Big Ten Conference regular season titles for the first time in school history and advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2003. Following his stint with the Badger program, Conroy took over head coaching and athletics director duties at his high school alma mater for the 2003-04 school year before returning to Madison for the 2004-05 campaign. He coordinated the day-to-day operational aspects of the Badger program, including travel and budgetary matters, as UW made a run to the Elite Eight. Conroy had a successful playing career at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa. A two-time all-conference performer as well as a team captain, he led St. Ambrose to three appearances in the NAIA Tournament. As a junior, he helped the Fighting Bees to a 20-win season, then led the squad to 26 victories one year later en route to honorable mention All-America honors. Born in Naperville, Ill., Conroy was an all-state football and basketball player at Davenport Assumption High School. His brother Ed is the current associate head coach at the University of Minnesota. Conroy and his wife, Nikki, have five children -- Callum, Macklin, Keeva, Bradoch and Banion.
duffy
conroy assistant COACH @D
20
C
|2021-22 BULLDOG basketball RECORD BOOK|
