April 26, 2007

Fairfax, Va.--George Mason University's head women's basketball coach Debbie Taneyhill has announced the hiring of two assistant coaches in Mike Iuzzolino, a former NBA player, as well as the 2004 Washington Post All-Met Coach of the Year, Chrissy Kelly.

"I am thrilled to be adding two quality people to our staff here at George Mason," said Taneyhill. "Mike and Chrissy both bring great qualifications to our team, along with outstanding basketball knowledge and energy.

"I know that both Mike and Chrissy are excited about joining us here at Mason and I am looking forward to continuing to build our program with these individuals."

Iuzzolino comes to Mason after serving as an assistant coach for Duquesne's women's basketball program for two seasons. While at Duquesne, Iuzzolino was involved in recruiting and scouting, as well as coaching the guards and post players. Iuzzolino brings with him a wealth of playing experience and basketball knowledge as he played at both the collegiate and professional level.

Iuzzolino was selected by the Dallas Mavericks as the 35th overall pick in the second round of the 1991 NBA draft. He competed two seasons with Dallas where he averaged 9.0 points, 4.3 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 122 games. He ranked fourth in the NBA in 3-point pct. (.434) during the 1991-92 season. The point guard then went to the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) where he played for the Fort Wayne Fury in 1993-94 and for the Rapid City Thrillers in 1994-95. He continued his professional career overseas playing in Italy and Spain. Iuzzolino spent six seasons with the First Division Italian Pro Basketball League where he helped win the European Korac Cup, was a four-time Italian League All-Star and tabbed as the MVP of the 1997 Italian League All-Star Game. From 2001-2003, he played for the First Division Spanish Pro Basketball League.

As a collegian, the point guard was a member of the Penn State men's basketball team in 1987 & 1988 before transferring to St. Francis where he competed during the 1990 and 1991 seasons under head coach Jim Barron. While at St. Francis, Iuzzolino was a two-time All-Northeast Conference pick and was named the NEC's 1991 Player of the Year en route to leading SFU to its first and only NCAA bid. Over his collegiate career, Iuzzolino recorded 1,493 points, 318 assists and 211 rebounds in 112 games. He was named a Division I Academic All-American twice, earning the honor in 1990 and 1991. Iuzzolino graduated from St. Francis in Magna cum Laude in 1991 with a bachelor's degree in an emphasis on political science/secondary education.

Kelly served as the head coach for the varsity girls basketball team at Forest Park Senior High School since 2000. While in Woodbridge, Kelly guided her team to Virginia AAA State Champion titles in both 2004 and 2006. During each of the two championship seasons, Kelly was also named Virginia AAA State Coach of the Year. In addition, Kelly earned Cardinal District Coach of the Year honors four times (2001, 2003-05) and was also named the Northwest Region Coach of the Year on three occasions (2004-06).

Other team accomplishments for the Bruins during Kelly's tenure include: Cardinal District Champions (2003-06), Northwest Region Champions (2004-06), Northwest Region Runner-up (2003, `07), Virginia AAA State Runner-up (2005) and Virginia AAA State Birth (2003-07).

In addition to her head coaching job, Kelly was a health and physical education teacher for the ninth grade at Forest Park. Before her stint at FPHS, Kelly was an assistant coach for the varsity girls basketball team at Mount Vernon High School (Nov. 1998-March 2000) and she also taught health and physical education at Agape Christian Academy (Aug. 1999-June 2000).

Kelly graduated from Charleston Southern University in 1997 with a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education.