SAN ANTONIO, Texas – UIW head men's basketball coach, Ken Burmeister, and his staff have announced the hiring of assistant coach, Kenyon Spears, Friday.
 
"We are really excited to have him," said Burmeister. "His experience of success in recruiting and coaching is second to none. His expertise with big men will give our young forwards the opportunity to develop."
 
Spears spent this past season as an assistant coach at LIU Brooklyn, who went 20-12 in 2016-17, and 13-5 in the Northeast Conference. Among the Blackbirds' wins was a road win over St. John's in December.
 
Spears is no stranger to the Southland Conference. He is a 2001 graduate of Lamar University, where he was team captain and led the Cardinals to a Southland Conference Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance his senior year. Spears coached at his alma mater for two seasons after graduating. Prior to his stint with LIU Brooklyn, Spears served three seasons as the top assistant and recruiting coordinator at New Orleans.

Spears spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach at LIU Brooklyn, most recently helping them to a 2nd place finish in Northeast Conference at 13-5 and a 20-12 overall record. He help mentor the NEC player of the year Jerome Frink and NEC Most Improved Player Iverson Fleming. Prior to his time at University of New Orleans, he was an assistant at Brown University under head coach Jesse Agel. Before his stint with Brown, Spears was at Wagner College, where he was a component of the Seahawks' record-setting 23-win season in 2007-08.

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