Last week the North Carolina high school basketball landscape was taken aback when it was announced Lake Norman Christian Head Coach Mason Padgett was stepping down as both the Head Men’s Basketball Coach and Athletics Director at the school.
This weekend the school has named Patrick McCarthy as the Interim Head Coach, to guide the team through the remainder of the season.
“Lake Norman Christian is looking to stabilize the program by supporting the players and parents and making sure we, (as a team), are competing the right way.” McCarthy stated.
McCarthy has an extensive coaching background, most notably on the travel basketball circuit as he has been the head coach for the previous 9 summers with the Flight 22 and, most recently, the PSB Elite basketball programs as he has put numerous players in college, at every level.
On the high school side McCarthy was an assistant coach at Coastal Christian and then moved to Winston Salem where he was an assistant under Billy Martin at RJ Reynolds for two and a half years.
This season Lake Norman Christian made a big splash when they brought in 5-star Mikey Williams, and Williams is expected to remain with the program despite the change up top.
“As of today, everybody is still there, ready to roll. We have had three practices, and everyone has attended and been fully engaged.”
McCarthy will not be the only new face on staff, Brian Allenspach will also be around as the Associate Head Coach. Allenspach started off his collegiate playing career at Davidson in 1997-1998 and then transferred to Western Kentucky where he finished up in 2000-2001.
“Brian has been here all season; he is huge for the continuity we are looking for in this transition and will be heavily involved as the Associate Head Coach.”
While the exact schedule is still uncertain as of today, things are coming together.
“We will finish out with anywhere from 15-20 games on the schedule. Things will change some, but we will start off Tuesday night at Victory Christian.” McCarthy went on to suggest, “as of right now we are expecting everyone to be with us for that game, and for the season.”
McCarthy is excited about this opportunity, while he knows that it is in an interim capacity for now, he knows he has a chance to leave his mark with this program.
“Lake Norman Christian, the school, is a great place for kids to learn and grow academically, spiritually and in the community. On the athletics side, we want to make sure to following along with that and grow these players as individuals and as men.”