Plant Basketball

Coach Willis enters his 8th coaching season with the Plant Panthers boys’ basketball program.  During his time at Plant, the Panthers have had a overall record of 122-67. Although it is his 8th year at Plant, it is his 19th year as a head coach in the county.  Coach Willis previously coached at Bloomingdale High School and prior to that at Lennard High.  At Bloomingdale, Coach Willis guided the Bulls to their first district title since the 1996 season and first regional semi-final appearance since 1994. During that season he was named the Federal Division Coach of the Year.  Prior to coaching in the high school ranks, Coach Willis spent time coaching collegiately at High Point University (2003-04), Saint Leo University (2001-03) and the University of South Florida (1996-2001). Coach Willis played one year of college basketball at Webber College (now Webber International University) and through his high school basketball experience at East Lake HS, he earned All-Pinellas County Honorable Mention his senior year.  Coach Willis earned his Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from the University of South Florida in 2000 and his graduate degree in Educational Leadership at Saint Leo University.  He lives with his wife Ellen, and daughters Maggie and Elise. 

Coach Boyd enters his 2nd year on the Plant Panthers coaching staff. Ron brings a wealth of knowledge as a former Plant student and basketball player. Ron was an accomplished basketball player. During Ron's senior year, his team went 23-6 and advanced to the regional quarterfinals. That season, Ron, was a first team all county player and led the team in points, rebounds and assists. After high school, he attended Santa Fe Community to play basketball. Currently, he owns Top Tier Movers and lives with his fiance, Kayln and son, Chosen. 

Coach Mackey has had a long and illustrious career as a basketball coach. He has been on the Panthers coaching staff for 8 years and has been an advisor and sounding board for Coach Willis for 11 seasons. From coaching at 3 different high schools to division 1 colleges, he has been at it for over 40 years.  He was most recently head coach at Newsome High School where he lead his players to the Elite Eight in 2010.  Just as he has dedicated himself to basketball, he has dedicated himself to his wife of 27 years, Cheryl and his son, Trent, who played for him at Newsome.  His son went on to play division 1 basketball at the University of Louisiana- Monroe and at the University of North Florida.  Coach Mackey grins when he shares that Trent finished 5th in the country in 3 point shooting percentage among the division 1 players and participated in a NCAA Tournament with the Ospreys.  

Coach Silk is in his second year as a Plant Panther assistant coach. Coach Silk comes to us from Florida State University where he was a student-assistant coach. He was involved in all aspects of the program. His HS playing career was at Pope John Paul II in Boca Raton, FL. 

Coach Morrison enters his 3rd season as an assistant coach with the Panthers. Matt is an integral part of the coaching staff and is in charge of all program operations.