at 11 am. tomm Joye Lee will be leaving memphis to go home to Southern Miss... she has served us well for 13 years and i wish her and USM...nothing but luck.

Go Tigers!!!
Drew

I agree, basketball at USM has really been upgraded in both the men's and women's programs. AD Richard Gianini has done himself and the University proud. Winning is right around the corner!

Joye Lee-McNelis laughs as she takes the
podium after being introduced as Southern
Mississippi's new women's basketball coach.

<span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Lee-McNelis returns to USM</span>

Ex-player named new coach of Lady Eagles

By Alan Hinton
ahinton@hattiesb.gannett.com

Saying "I was always a Lady Eagle," Joye Lee-McNelis was named the University of Southern Mississippi women's basketball coach Friday.

Lee-McNelis played at Southern Miss from 1980-84, served as an assistant coach at USM from 1986-91 and was inducted into the Southern Miss Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.

She served as the head coach at the University of Memphis the past 13 seasons, compiling a 229-156 overall record and a 110-68 conference mark. Her Memphis teams were invited to postseason tournaments eight times, including four straight to the NCAA Tournament from 1994-95 to 1997-98.

"I've pulled for Southern except for one game a year," Lee-McNelis said, meaning the game Memphis played USM. "I'm very passionate about being the head coach here."

Southern Miss officials and fans seemed passionate about hiring Lee-McNelis, too, especially if she takes the Lady Eagles to the caliber of some of her Memphis teams. USM has not been to a postseason tournament since 1999-2000, and has not been to the NCAA Tournament since the 1995-96 season.

Lee-McNelis replaces Rick Reeves, who compiled a 68-74 record in five seasons at USM. Last month, Reeves took the head coaching position at Gardner-Webb (N.C.) University. Last year, the Lady Eagles went 14-13, but were 1-13 in Conference USA action.

USM president Shelby Thames kept his comments about Lee-McNelis brief but clear.

"I said to (USM athletic director Richard Giannini), 'Go find us the finest women's basketball coach in America,'" Thames said. "He called back and said, 'I found her.'"

Lee-McNelis' six 20-game seasons while at Memphis impressed Giannini.

"That's tough," he said. "It's difficult to find a record that's more sterling.

"On top of that, she's a great person. Any time you're around anybody from Memphis, they're going to talk about Joye."

Longtime Lady Eagle fan Bud Ginn knows why people speak so highly of Lee-McNelis.

"I knew her when she was a senior at Hancock High School," Ginn said. "When she left here, you wanted her back. My greatest reason for that is her integrity as a person and coach.

"She will be a force in public relations. She is the epitome of a USM graduate. She's always got time for people, and has a fire that attaches a university to a community."

<a href='http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/news/stories/20040515/southernmissnews/425846.html' target='_blank'>HATTIESBURG AMERICAN: Lee-McNelis named Southern Miss coach</a>

I hate to lose her because she is such a good person but I understand her decision. She's home and that is worth a lot. I wish her the best.