Terry Driscoll selected to New England Basketball Hall of Fame

by Tribe Athletics | October 7, 2009

William and Mary athletics director Terry Driscoll will be a 2009 inductee into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 9, at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn. Driscoll, who was a standout player at Boston College and later played in the National Basketball Association (NBA), is in his 14th year as the athletics director for the Tribe program.

Former University of Vermont Head Men's Basketball Coach Tom Brennan will serve as the Master of Ceremonies for the 2009 induction. The New England Basketball Hall of Fame has become one of the largest sports dinners in the United States with attendance at past ceremonies reaching over 1,000. Some of the past inductees into the Hall of Fame include Bob Cousy, Julius Erving, Patrick Ewing and Lenny Wilkens. For more information on the event and the Hall of Fame, visit www.internationalsports.com/basketball.

Discoll is a member of both the Boston College High School and Boston College Halls of Fame and had his jersey retired by the Eagles in 1999. Over his three-year career with Boston College, Driscoll averaged 18.5 points and 13.9 rebounds. He ranks second on the all-time BC rebounding list with 1,071 career boards. Driscoll also is 16th on the Eagles' all-time scoring list with 1,426 career points. During his senior season, Discoll averaged 23.3 points per game and earned All-America honors after leading the Eagles to the NIT championship game.

In 1969, Driscoll was the fourth overall pick in the NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons. He enjoyed a six-year NBA career while playing for the Detroit Pistons, Washington Bullets, Milwaukee Bucks and Spirits of St. Louis. Driscoll also played professionally in Italy, before later coaching Sinudyne to a pair of Italian league championships in 1979 and 1980.

At W&M, Driscoll oversees a program that is committed to balancing academic demands with athletic success. One of the department's stated goals each year is to finish among the top 100 in the annual Director's Cup rankings, which has happened in all but one of the years that Driscoll has been the director. Over the last six years, W&M has won a total of 26 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) titles. Overall, no institution in the CAA can claim more all-time league championships than the 95 William and Mary has earned.

As impressive as the athletic accomplishments have been during Driscoll's tenure, the program's academic successes have been even greater. In the NCAA's inaugural (2004) APR rankings, a measurement of academic progress based on academic eligibility, retention, and graduation of student-athletes, W&M was fourth in the nation overall and first among institutions offering athletic performance-based scholarships. In 2002, the CAA started recognizing Scholar-Athletes of the Year for each of the 22 sports it sponsors, and the College has had a conference-high 29 individuals receive the honor.

In addition to the many academic and athletic successes, Driscoll's impact on the program has been equally impressive in terms of physical and financial improvements. Since taking over as athletics director, Driscoll has overseen the construction of more than $25 million in new facilities. In addition to the physical structures, Driscoll has also worked with the Associate Athletics Director for Development, Bobby Dwyer, to increase the annual fund-raising totals for non-capital projects from $1.36 million in 1995 to the current annual total of approximately $2.7 million.

Driscoll resides in Williamsburg with his wife, Susan. The couple has two children - Keith, a 1997 graduate of Holy Cross, and Leslie, a 2001 graduate of William and Mary.