PROVIDENCE — It’s all about fit right now for Providence College and its athletic director, Bob Driscoll.

Driscoll is 10 days into his search for a new head men’s basketball coach, and the one theme he keeps returning to is fit. What type of coach will fit in at PC, the smallest school among the six, dominant basketball conferences? Is the coach capable of dealing with the small-world politics that run a Catholic school? Can that coach garner support from students, alums and even the disgruntled season-ticket holders who long for the good old days?

These are all questions Driscoll says he’s pondering whenever he thinks about specific coaching candidates.

“I’d like a person who can coach, period,” Driscoll said, “but a person who, by nature, is a relationship builder. People who are connectors. Someone who appreciates that he’ll be one of the most high-profile people not only on our campus but in the state of Rhode Island. Everybody has to want to be on that person’s team.”

Driscoll has spent the last 10 days identifying coaches who could meet those qualities. He said he’s yet to meet with any prospect face-to-face but hopes to soon.

“I think I have the information I need now,” he said. “The next step is to try and engage these people and sit down one-on-one.”

That step will be delayed a bit because Driscoll has duties this weekend in Madison, Wis., as a member of the NCAA’s Ice Hockey Championship committee. He said the chances of PC filling its basketball job anytime before the middle of next week are “minimal.”

Driscoll would not disclose names of the coaches he wishes to speak with. Phil Martelli (Saint Joseph’s), Jim Larranaga (George Mason), Craig Robinson (Brown), Jim Christian (Kent State), Tim O’Shea (Ohio University) and Bob McKillop (Davidson) headline the list of coaches PC is known to be asking questions about. However, some coaches on that list have yet to be contacted by Driscoll.

Impressive NCAA Tournament showings by Siena coach Fran McCaffrey and Western Kentucky’s Darrin Horn (a former Marquette assistant) have opened some eyes as well. Driscoll also has extensive contacts on the West Coast from his days on the athletic staff at California-Berkley and it would not be a surprise if he unearths a candidate from that part of the country.

Filling PC’s specific fit is certainly a major challenge. Since Driscoll came to the school from Cal-Berkley, he’s had to plug several major coaching positions. His success-rate is mixed. One of his first moves was the hiring of Susan Yow as the women’s basketball coach. It was a disaster that lasted only three seasons and ended with PC winning five games in Yow’s final two years — 0-32 against Big East teams.

Driscoll replaced Yow with Phil Seymore, a former men’s assistant coach. He’s made major improvements with 25 wins over the last two seasons although the program is still last in the Big East. Driscoll hired alum Tim Army as PC’s hockey coach. He’s gone 41-56-11 in three seasons.

Driscoll says he’s learned from some mistakes and believes he now knows what works at PC.

“When I first came to Providence, I used to monitor and delegate. That didn’t work here,” he said. “If I’m not in every meeting and if I’m not in the admissions office, if I’m not [involved] 24/7, it doesn’t work in a place like this. You have to have somebody who is almost a micromanager and wants to be in charge of everything. I really believe that’s the kind of model that would fit because everything touches you.”

Driscoll says the same type of person would work best as a basketball coach. “It’s all about relationships at a place like [PC]. You have to look at our size as a positive, where a sense of family helps to get things done quickly. You have to look at the glass as half-full and not half-empty,” he said.

There is no such thing as perfect timing in a coaching search. While the current PC players, and prospective recruits, would like to know the identity of the new coach as soon as possible, taking the time to make the ‘correct’ choice is ultimately more important.

Even so, time works against schools without coaches. Next year’s PC team could clearly use a point guard and recruiting one may be one of the next coach’s priorities. The Friars were seeking New Jersey’s Dwan McMillan, one of the better unsigned guards in the East, but he committed to South Florida in the last few days.

kmcnamar@projo.com