Will County Gazette

Kyle Murphy takes over as the new coach of the Providence Catholic boys basketball team with a clear agenda in mind.

“The plan is for us to be tough and hard-nosed,” Murphy told the Herald-News. “But that’s been the identity of Providence basketball, especially since it’s been in the Catholic League. We’ve got the right kids here, who are really good kids that understand the game and understand the concept of team basketball, so that’s a credit to them. That will give us a chance to compete every day, and that’s all that you can ask for.”

The 32-year-old Murphy, who replaces Tim Trendel after he left for Marist after eight seasons, feels more than prepared for his first stint as a varsity coach. He's spent the last three seasons as an assistant under Trendel.

“I started with Tim, so this isn’t a new program, we’re just going to continue what we’ve been doing,” he said. “I want to build on our culture based on togetherness and positivity, not just from the coach but from all of the players throughout the program. We want them to have fun, and don’t want them to lose sight of that.”

Murphy hinted he thinks the Celtics have just the right roster mix to play the up-tempo, but efficient, style he envisions.

“We’ll have a lot of depth this season, which is a great problem to have,” he told the Herald-News. “And it tells you a lot about our program, since kids want to be a part of it.”

Murphy said he jumped at the chance to be calling the shots at his alma mater. He started working with the program at the same time as Trendel as a freshmen coach.

“Coaching is always something that I’ve wanted to do,” he said. “When I played, I was short and not that quick, so I took an interest in the idea of coaching, and I wanted to go into education since I love working with kids. So when this opportunity arose, I jumped on it, and I’m glad that it’s all worked out like it did.”