Taylor Barnette, who has worked with the University of Louisville men's basketball team for the past three seasons, has been named Director of Basketball Operations on UofL Head Men's Basketball Coach Chris Mack's staff.
"Taylor Barnette has earned his new position of director of operations through hard work," said Mack. "His positivity is contagious and both the staff and players connect with Taylor on and off the floor. Taylor has learned college basketball from the ground up during his three years with the program. He will be responsible for a host of administrative duties in addition to being the liaison for men's basketball for compliance and academic services. I am confident that Taylor will continue to play a key part in Louisville Basketball moving forward and we are thrilled to have him."
"I am extremely grateful for this new role and for Coach Mack giving me this incredible opportunity," said Barnette. "I am eager to serve our players, our staff, and Card Nation at this amazing university!"
Barnette served on the UofL staff over the past year as director of player development after two seasons as a program assistant for the Cardinals. His duties included assisting in opponent scouting through extensive video breakdowns, game preparation and assisting in on-campus recruiting efforts. He joined the Cardinals' staff in 2018 after working with the Tennessee Titans in suite sales and service.
A native of Lexington, Ky., Barnette played one season at Virginia (2012-13) before finishing his collegiate career at Belmont. He scored 1,085 points, including 240 three-pointers, in his college career. He averaged 11.3 points as a senior as Belmont posted a 23-7 record and helped the Bruins to a 65-28 mark in his three seasons there while starting his last 85 consecutive games.
As a sophomore, Barnette buried a game-winning three-pointer with 3.2 seconds remaining against Murray State in the championship game of the 2015 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, sending the Bruins to the NCAA Tournament. He was honored as the MVP of that tournament. The OVC Honor Roll selection scored in double figures on 54 occasions at Belmont, where he was a part of three conference regular season championships.
Barnette hit a school-record 226 career three-point goals at Lexington Christian Academy, where he finished his career ranked second in career scoring and assists with 212 assists and over 1,300 points. He was a second-team all-state selection as a senior when he averaged 20.5 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.
Barnette earned a bachelor's degree in corporate communications and a minor in Christian Leadership in 2017 from Belmont, where he earned recognition on the OVC Commissioner's Honor Roll for three years. He earned a master's degree in sport administration from UofL in 2020. Barnette and his wife Clementine were married in August of 2020 and love being a part of the Louisville Basketball family.
