Northern Kentucky men’s basketball head coach Darrin Horn has announced the hiring of R.J. Evans as the team’s new assistant coach for the upcoming 2024-25 campaign.
Evans joins the Norse after five years as an assistant coach at the College of Holy Cross where he was heavily involved in recruiting, on-court coaching, practice planning, opponent scouting, player development and game planning. He is also very familiar with Horn and his staff with his time spent at Texas from 2015-17.
“I could not be more excited to join the men’s basketball program at Northern Kentucky University,” Evans said. “Coach Horn’s programs have been synonymous with winning championships and developing top notch student-athletes.”
“I have always had great respect for Coach Horn and I am ecstatic to be reunited with him along with Simon, Dave and Tyler,” Evans added. “My family and I can’t wait to get going in Highland Heights. Norse Up!”
“We are thrilled to have RJ Evans join our staff,” Horn said. “He is a rising star in our business that brings excellent experience and a shared vision for developing young men and winning championships. RJ knows what high-level talent and winning looks like both as a player at the highest level and spending time on two Power 5 staffs, which included together with the rest of our staff at Texas which will make for a smooth transition.”
To go with his time at Holy Cross, Evans also had stops as an assistant coach at both North Carolina Asheville and Louisville and as a graduate assistant at Texas. The Cardinals went 22-14 overall in 2017-18 with his help and advanced to the National Invitational Tournament quarterfinals. His time with the Longhorns was also highly successfully. During the 2015-16 campaign, Texas went 20-13 overall and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
Evans began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Nichols College in 2014-15. The Bison posted a 20-6 record and won the Commonwealth Coast Conference regular season championship during his lone season on staff. There he coached the CCC Co-Player of the Year, two First Team All-CCC honorees and one Second Team All-CCC selection.
A 2012 graduate of Holy Cross with a bachelor’s degree in economics, Evans totaled 1,200 points, 477, rebounds, 214 assists and 130 steals during his career with the Crusaders. He was named the 2009 Patriot League Rookie of the Year, served as a team captain for his senior season and concluded his career ranked 28th all-time in scoring at Holy Cross.
Following graduation, Evans went on to play one post-graduate season at Connecticut in 2012-13. While there, the Huskies went 20-10 overall and posted victories over No. 4 Syracuse and No. 14 Michigan State. He then crossed the pond to play professionally in England for one year.
Evans received a master’s degree in educational psychology from Connecticut in 2013 and a master’s degree in kinesiology from Texas in 2017. He also earned a postgraduate diploma from Durham University in management. Evans will be joined in Highland Heights by his wife, Ashley and their two daughters.
