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Thursday, August 28, 2008
Staff Bios
Jim Barnes
Head Coach - Varsity Basketball

Jim Barnes Head Coach - Varsity Basketball Veteran Coach Jim Barnes enters his fifth season as the Head Basketball Coach at Richmond Community Schools. Coach Barnes has over 17 years of coaching experience, from grade school to the collegiate level. He has spent the last 12 years as a Varsity Head Coach.

The last four years have seen a Richmond Basketball Program on the rise. This past season the Blue Devils won their third championship in four seasons, a Blue Water Area Conference Title. After being picked to finish near the bottom of the conference standings, and starting the season 1-3, this young version of the Blue Devils won six in a row and nine of their next ten games. With only three seniors on the roster, the Blue Devils relied on team chemistry to overcome their inexperience. The Devils’ season ended with a loss to Mt. Clemens in the state tournament, and finished the season at 13-8.

During the 2006-2007 season, the Blue Devils posted their third straight winning season under Coach Barnes, and their fourth straight overall. With a 12-9 record, the Blue Devils found themselves competitive in almost every game. The season ended with an exciting 2-point loss to rival Armada in the district tournament, rallying from a 17-point deficit to tie the score in the game’s closing moments.

The 2005-2006 season saw the Blue Devils enjoy their best season in twenty-five years, positing a 19-5 record and winning their second straight district championship. The back-to-back tournament titles are a first in the history of the Richmond Basketball Program. The Blue Devils lost in the regional semifinal game to state powerhouse Flint Southwestern Academy. The Blue Devils ended the season as the one of the final 32 teams playing in class B, and one of the top teams in the blue water area and Macomb County. The 2004-2005 season, Coach Barnes’ first at Richmond, saw the Blue Devils post 18 wins against 6 losses, easily their best season since 1981. The Blue Devils’ stingy defense gave up an average of 40.5 points per game, the best team defense in Macomb County and the blue water area. Richmond won an exciting match with Capac to secure the program’s first District Championship since 1965. The Blue Devils ended their season with a disappointing loss to Marine City in the regional semifinals.

Before arriving at Richmond in 2004, Coach Barnes spent four seasons at Yale HS. There, the basketball program established a reputation for their hard-nosed defense as well as their attention to the game’s fundamentals. Prior to being the Head Coach at Yale, Barnes spent four years as the Head Basketball Coach at Cousino HS in Warren, MI. During the four seasons prior to Barnes’ arrival, the Patriots had a record of 11-73. The next year, under Coach Barnes’ direction, the program enjoyed its first winning season in over a decade, and the first post-season win in over a decade, finishing with a 13-8 record. During his time at Cousino, the Patriots averaged 15 wins per season.

Coach Barnes began his career at his alma mater, Lincoln Park HS, right out of high school. He coached freshman basketball for a year before being promoted to the Junior Varsity. Coach Barnes is an active member of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and the Basketball Coaches’ Association of Michigan (BCAM).

In addition to his regular coaching duties within the Blue Devil Basketball Program, Coach Barnes runs and works basketball camps and clinics all over the state. Basketball camps at Richmond have grown each of the last four years, and are among the largest in the blue water area. Coach Barnes has also been a guest speaker at various camps and clinics over the years; opportunities to give something back to basketball that he truly enjoys. In addition to these experiences, Coach Barnes also works a bit in the off-season as an advance scout for the WNBA.

Coach Barnes teaches physical education and health in the Richmond School District. Barnes has a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Michigan University and a Master’s degree from Marygrove College. Coach Barnes currently resides in Richmond.