UT Permian Basin Head Men’s Basketball Coach Kyle Tolin has announced the additions of Kris Johnson and Kory Mathis to his coaching staff. Johnson has been with Tolin for the past four seasons at the University of Arkansas-Monticello and helped lead the program to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances. Mathis was part of a record breaking 2017-18 season at UTPB that saw the program win 26 games, including their first ever NCAA tournament win, along with an appearance in the South Central Region Finals.
Johnson was instrumental in helping guide UAM to three winning seasons including the 2020-21 Great American Conference Regular Season Championship, GAC Tournament Championship, the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament South Central Region, and finished the 2020-21 season ranked No. 21 by the NABC national coaches’ poll.
“Kris is one of the best and brightest assistant coaches at any level,” said Tolin. “He is loyal, hardworking, and selfless. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for him. I know the basketball program, athletic department and university will all appreciate what he brings to them on a daily basis. I am excited about Kris making this journey with me and we are excited to get going.”
Johnson previously served as the main assistant at Southwestern Oklahoma State from 2013 through 2017. Johnson was also a graduate assistant for the men’s basketball program at SWOSU from 2011 to 2013 as well.
Mathis comes from Cal State San Bernardino where he had served as an assistant since 2018. He spent time on the bench at UTPB as a member of Andy Newman’s staff in 2017-18. That season the Falcons set a program record for wins in a season, deepest postseason run, and saw many individual records fall.
Prior to his time at UTPB, Mathis attended Texas Tech University and served as a student manager under hall of fame Head Coach Tubby Smith. He graduated from Texas Tech in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management. He is currently working on attaining his master’s degree in Kinesiology from UT Permian Basin.
“Kory comes highly recommended from former UTPB Head Coach Andy Newman as well as some other coaches that I really trust and value,” said Tolin. “He has been a part of two different NCAA programs that have played in the NCAA tournament. We are excited to welcome Kory into the Falcon family.”
UTPB Men’s Basketball Staff Update
