Billy Donlon was patient, waiting four years until he was able to run his own program. Now he has earned his first win as a collegiate head coach.

The former Clemson associate head coach opened his Eastern Michigan tenure with a 71-70 victory over Coastal Carolina on Monday at the HTC Center. The game included 13 lead changes and 11 ties.

Mohammad Habhab came off the bench and highlighted the opener with 34 points and 13 rebounds. He made 18 of his 21 free throws, tying Eastern Michigan’s single-game record for made free throws while accounting for nearly half of the Eagles’ offense.

The reserves outscored the starters 39-32 as the Eagles overcame 39.6 percent shooting by committing only seven turnovers and making 17 of 18 free throws after halftime.

Donlon has built much of his career around defense. Former Eastern Michigan coach John Beilein nicknamed his system “Billy Ball” during their season together at Michigan, although Beilein once joked that its early version had opponents shooting 50 percent from three and threatened to “break every record in America.” Coastal Carolina finished 7-of-24 from deep Monday, so Billy Ball survived its first official night at Eastern Michigan.

Donlon spent four seasons beside Brad Brownell at Clemson from 2022 through 2026. The Tigers reached three consecutive NCAA Tournaments during that run, highlighted by their Elite Eight appearance in 2024.