Douglass’ Garvin, Madison Central’s True among region basketball coach of the year honorees
Frederick Douglass boys basketball coach Murray Garvin and Madison Central girls coach Scott True have been selected as 2025 11th Region coaches of the year by the Kentucky Association of Basketball Coaches.
They were among the 35 region coach honorees named Friday morning in conjunction with the announcement of the KABC’s region players of the year, who are also this year’s nominees for Mr. Basketball and Miss Basketball.
This is the first KABC coach of the year honor for Garvin, who is in his first season at The Farm. The Broncos (21-3) rank as the No. 3 team in the state, according to the latest Kentucky High School Boys Basketball Media Poll and will be the top seed in next week’s 42nd District Tournament at Scott County.
Garvin, a Pikeville native who played basketball and football for the Pikeville Panthers in the early 1990s, coached at the collegiate level for two decades until taking the head coaching job for Paul Laurence Dunbar’s boys basketball team in 2021 where he spent two seasons.
After a year away from the game, Garvin signed up to coach Douglass, the five-time defending 42nd District champion who has had five different coaches in the school’s eight years of existence.
Douglass last had a KABC coach of the year in 2023 when Wes Scarberry led the Broncos to the 11th Region title and the Boys’ Sweet 16 state tournament semifinals.
Madison Central’s True has now won two KABC coach of the year awards since he arrived in Richmond in 2022.
The Indians (24-2) rank as the No. 11 team in the state in the latest media poll and are among the contenders for an 11th Region crown if they make it through the 44th District semis against Madison Southern on Monday.
True previously coached for six seasons at Lexington Catholic before being let go in 2019. He spent two seasons as a Franklin County assistant under future hall of fame coach Joey Thacker between head coaching gigs.
Boys coaches of the year
1st Region: Sawyer Donahoo, Marshall County
2nd Region: Mickey Blue, Dawson Springs
3rd Region: Travis Johnston, Grayson County
4th Region: Nick Irwin, Clinton County
5th Region: Tavon Johnson, Central Hardin
6th Region: Kevin Geary, Butler
7th Region: Greg Willis, Ballard
8th Region: David Levitch, North Oldham
9th Region: Tim Sullivan, Cooper; Scott Code, Dixie Heights
10th Region: Josh Cook George Rogers Clark
11th Region: Murray Garvin, Frederick Douglass
12th Region: Kasey McRay, Garrard County
13th Region: Brad Sizemore Bell County
14th Region: Al Holland, Hazard
15th Region: Mike Howard, Betsy Layne
16th Region: Greg Adkins, Elliott County
Girls coaches of the year
1st Region: Lyndon Dunning, Graves County
2nd Region: Shannon Hodge, Crittenden County
3rd Region: Jody Booth, Edmonson County
4th Region: Kristen Anderson, Cumberland County
5th Region: Matthew Turner, Taylor County
6th Region: Dennis Williams, Valley; David Meadows, Moore
7th Region: Deshawn Pendleton, Central
8th Region: John Howie, Spencer County
9th Region: Joel Steczynski, Dixie Heights
10th Region: Steve Brown, Bishop Brossart; Robbie Graham, George Rogers Clark
11th Region: Scott True, Madison Central
12th Region: Matt Hilikens, West Jessamine
13th Region: Eddie Mahan North Laurel
14th Region: Todd Howard, Hazard
15th Region: Tyler Little, Floyd Central
16th Region: Mandy Layne, Russell
