The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rodrsett@tribunemedia.net

LOOK for another Bahamian to make his mark on the NCAA basketball scene in Oklahoma, this time from the coaching sidelines.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys announced that Bahamian Lamont Evans would join the staff as an assistant under new head coach Brad Underwood.

Evans, an Eleuthera native, joins Evans after previous stints with the South Carolina Gamecocks and Kansas State Wildcats.

“I’m extremely excited to be a part of coach Underwood’s staff at Oklahoma State,” Evans said in an OSU issued press release.

“He and I developed such a strong bond in our years working together that I consider him more like a family member. From our time together at K-State and South Carolina, to what he’s done at Stephen F Austin, coach Underwood has proven to be a winner, and he’s done it the right way.

“You can’t deny what he’s done as a coach or person. He’s a family man with an incredible work ethic and values, and I’m so excited to be a part of the Cowboy family.”

Underwood was recently hired in late March after the Cowboys fired Travis Ford from the top spot. Evans was his first hire as an assistant following the pair’s history of working together at South Carolina and Kansas State.

“We’re very fortunate to have Lamont join the Cowboy family,” Underwood said in a release issued by OSU.

“I take tremendous comfort with Lamont in terms of who he is and what he stands for. His ability to work and interact with our players is second to none.

“He has established recruiting ties all over the country and I consider him one of the top recruiters in the country. There’s no doubt he’ll benefit our programme and our student athletes for years to come.”

Most recently, Evans spent four seasons with the Gamecocks, where he served as an assistant to Frank Martin and led the team to one of their best seasons.

South Carolina had a 15-0 start to the season, eventually finished with 25 wins and advanced to the second round of the NIT. Their 11 conference wins were the most at the school since 1998.

“Though young in actual experience, Lamont was preparing to coach even during his playing days,” Frank Martin said. “He is very well connected in the world of grassroots basketball and has great knowledge of the game.”

Under Martin as a member of the Wildcats staff, Kansas State averaged 24 wins per year and featured three appearances in the NCAA Tournament.

After leaving Eleuthera, Evans became a standout point guard at Hallandale High School in Hallandale, Florida. He played his first two years of college basketball at Seminole Junior College in Sanford, Florida and St Catharine College in St Catharine, Kentucky before enrolling at Drake in 1999.

Evans played two seasons at Drake and eventually played internationally in Slovenia, Germany, Finland, Belgium and Venezuela.