Pierre Curtis Named Women’s Basketball Coach at Furman

Pierre Curtis has been named the new women’s head basketball coach at Furman University, Jason Donnelly, vice president for intercollegiate athletics, announced today.

Curtis, a 10-year member of the Paladin women’s basketball program, served as an assistant coach over his first six years before being elevated to associate head coach in 2019. He succeeds Jackie Carson, who on Thursday was named senior associate commissioner for women’s basketball with the Atlantic Coast Conference following 12 years at Furman.

Curtis becomes the eighth head coach in the program’s 49-season history.

“We are excited to have Pierre Curtis lead our women’s basketball program,” said Donnelly. “Over the past decade, coach Curtis has played a critical role in the growth of our program and in the successes of our student-athletes, on the court and off. He has earned the respect of our team, our coaches, and our administration through his leadership, commitment to athletic and academic excellence, his ability to recruit and then develop players, and his shared values with Furman Athletics. We look forward to supporting coach Curtis as we build upon the strong foundation that has been established and elevate our women’s basketball program to even greater heights.”

“I want thank Jason Donnelly and President Elizabeth Davis for trusting me with this great opportunity,” Curtis said. “I am also very grateful to Jackie Carson for all she has done for me and Furman University.  To have my first head coaching job be at a place where I have such affinity and connection to is a dream come true.  I can’t wait to begin working with our team and building towards our goals of winning a conference championship and having NCAA tournament success.”

During his decade at Furman, Curtis has been involved in all aspects of the program, most notably as recruiting coordinator.  There he has played a key role in signing and helping develop 19 All-Southern Conference performers, including at least one selection every year.  The consistency has also been reflected in the 11 SoCon All-Freshman Team selections earned by Paladins during Curtis’ tenure, as Furman has placed a representative on the squad every year over his span on staff.

The most heralded player Curtis recruited and helped develop was consensus SoCon Player of the Year forward Tierra Hodges, who paced the league in scoring and rebounding while keying the Paladins to 20 wins during the 2021-22 campaign. Others signed to Furman and/or developed on the court with Curtis’ help include two-time All-SoCon forward Brittany Hodges, two-time all-league forward Holli Wilkins, three-time all-conference guard and all-time assist leader Whitney Bunn, and career 3-point field goal shooting leader Le’Jzae Davidson.

Furman has made five post-season tournament appearances with Curtis on staff, including two trips to the WNIT, and also played in a pair of SoCon Tournament championship games.

A 2010 graduate of James Madison University where he starred as a player for the Dukes, Curtis coached women’s basketball at Harrisonburg (Virginia) High School for two seasons prior to coming to Furman, helping direct his squad to a pair of region playoff appearances.

He played professionally in Germany during the 2010-11 season before beginning his coaching career.  He also racked up extensive summer camp experience with numerous colleges and worked with the prestigious Boo Williams AAU organization.

A Chicago native who spent many of his teenage years in Denver, Colorado, he was a two-year starter at Denver East High School, where he keyed his squad to a state championship and No. 12 national ranking his junior year.  He earned all-state and Denver Player of the Year honors as a senior before enrolling at Charis Prep School in Goldsboro, N.C., where he averaged 22.0  points and 8.0 rebounds while pacing his squad to a No. 14 national ranking.

Curtis signed with James Madison and went on to register 1,237 points and complete his career as the Dukes’ all-time leader in starts, assists, and steals.

Holder of a bachelor’s degree in sports management from JMU, he has a daughter, Sydney.