Derrick C. Bails ... Born Dec. 9, 1987 in Ripley, Mississippi. Son of Dwight and Grenatie Bails ... Has one brother, Isaac, and one sister, Dewana ... Played AAU ball for the Lighthouse All-Stars in Corinth, Miss., helping them to two-straight berths in the AAU National Tournament.
Two-time All-County Player of the Year at Ripley High School ... Ranked 18th in Mississippi's Class of 2006 by HoopScoop Online and 16th by MagnoliaPreps ... Three-time All-Area selection by the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal ... Averaged a double-double in his sophomore and junior seasons ... Twice named All-Division I-3A ... Averaged 14.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game as a senior to lead the Tigers to a spot in the Class 3A State semifinals and earn a spot on the Daily Journal's All-Area First Team ... Led Ripley to a 26-9 record and a berth in the 3A MHSAA State Tournament as a junior by averaging 14.1 points, 10.3 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game ... His efforts earned him All-State honors from the MHSAA and the Mississippi Association of Coaches, as well as honorable mention All-State accolades from the Clarion Ledger and Second Team All-Area honors from the Daily Journal ... Named to the 3A MHSAA All-State Tournament team as a junior and participated in the MAC North-South All-Star Game, where he recorded an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double ... Averaged 15.6 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game as a sophomore to help the Tigers to a 22-10 record ... Named All-County Player of the Year, All-Division I-3A and First Team All-Area following his sophomore campaign ... Played under head coach Harvey Childers ... Also played football as a freshman at Ripley.
After high school received a scholarship to play basketball at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. During his freshman year the 2007-08 Trojans jumped out to a 9-1 start on the way to the program’s first 20-win season since the 1995-96 campaign. UALR, which ended the year with a 20-11 overall record, won its last four games of the regular season to finish with an 11-7 conference record and tie Louisiana-Lafayette for a share of the West Division championship.
As a sophomore helped the Trojans win the west for the second-straight season by going a perfect 11-0 against West Division teams on the way to a school-record 15-3 conference mark, the 2008-09 Trojans were one of just 18 teams in the nation to win 12-or-more games away from home (away and neutral contests) – a list which included North Carolina, Michigan State, Oklahoma and Memphis. UALR was one of just seven teams in the country with 11 or more true road wins (games on an opponent’s home floor) that season and ended the year with the highest RPI rating in the state of Arkansas (No. 93). UALR advanced to the semifinals of the Sun Belt Tournament for the second-straight year after downing Denver, 58-55, in quarterfinal action, and ended the year with the program’s highest win total (23) since the Derek Fisher-led 1995-96 squad.
During his junior campaign after losing loss of four starters from the previous 23-8 team, the Trojans combined with a challenging non-conference schedule (ranked the 14th toughest in the nation). UALR went 8-22 on the year, with five of its losses decided by five points-or-less.
In his final year of collegiate athletics the Trojans took a different route to make history in 2010-11, winning four games over higher-seeded teams in four days to capture the program’s first-ever SBC Tournament title after ending the regular season with a sub-.500 record. UALR dropped three-straight games to close out the 2010-11 regular season and entered the SBC Tournament with a 15-16 overall record, but the Trojans prevailed at Summit Arena behind a dominant defensive performance. In UALR’s four victories at the SBC Tournament, the Trojans held opposing teams to a combined .389 fielding goal percentage and 59.8 points per game, with a +5.0 turnover margin after averaging just 9.5 turnovers per game.
In the Sun Belt Championship game, the Trojans defeated North Texas 64-63 giving UALR its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance. Making the school’s first NCAA Tournament appearance in 21 years, the Trojans headed to Dayton, Ohio, to take on UNC Asheville in the first round. The Trojans led UNC Asheville for the entire second half until Matt Dickey delivered a three pointer with 10.5 seconds left in regulation to tie things up, and the Bulldogs prevailed in overtime, 81-77, after two of UALR’s starters fouled out.
After college he had a short stint of professional basketball in Europe. His first taste of coaching came in 2012 where he was assistant coach for Boys’ and Girls’ basketball at his alma mater, Ripley High School in Ripley, MS.
