Central Florida hires Johnny Dawkins

Johnny Dawkins, fired by Stanford last week, will be the new coach at Central Florida, ESPN reported Tuesday night.

The Knights ousted Donny Jones after the conclusion of a 12-18 season.

Dawkins, 52, led the Cardinal to a 15-15 record this season, giving him a 156-115 mark in eight seasons at Stanford. He led the program to one NCAA Tournament.

Dawkins came to Stanford in 2008 after 10 years as an assistant at Duke. In his first season, the Cardinal won the CBI tournament, and he subsequently guided Stanford to two NIT titles in three appearances in the event.

Jones had a 79-88 record in six seasons in charge of the Knights. He began with three consecutive 20-win seasons, though all the wins in 2010-11 were later vacated due to NCAA sanctions.

Over the past three years since Central Florida moved into the American Athletic Conference, the Knights went 15-39 in the league, finishing ninth, ninth and seventh.