Sam Kearns Named Men’s Basketball Assistant Coach
ADA, Okla. – East Central University men's basketball head coach Daniel Wheeler is proud to officially announce Sam Kearns as the new assistant coach for the Tigers ahead of the 2025–26 season.
"We are excited to welcome Sam, Taylor and Gia to the Tiger Family," said Wheeler. "Sam has hit the ground running for our program and is doing a great job. He embodies the values that we want in our program and is going to help us in growing successful men."
Kearns comes to ECU after two seasons as a graduate assistant at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi, where he played an integral role in player development and team success. He helped design and implement shooting-focused training programs that contributed to back-to-back 20-win seasons, working with athletes who achieved notable statistical improvements and earned All-Conference honors and national rankings. He also led marketing and operations for the Islanders' summer basketball camps.
"I am extremely blessed and grateful for the opportunity to coach for East Central and Coach Wheeler," said Kearns. "I look forward to impacting lives and contributing to wins. Go Tigers!"
Prior to TAMU-CC, Kearns served as assistant coach and skills development coordinator at The Covenant School (2021–2023), where he contributed to the program's first playoff appearance in six years. His responsibilities included practice planning, game strategy, player evaluation, and position-specific skill development.
Kearns also brings extensive experience as a personal skills trainer, providing individualized instruction in technical skill, conditioning, and mental preparation. Among his clients was WNBA star Arike Ogunbowale, whom he helped refine her shooting technique and overall performance.
As a player, Kearns was a three-year team captain at Oral Roberts University (2017–2020), leading the team to its best record in four seasons. He went on to play professionally for two years, first with the Owensboro Thoroughbreds where he was a Defensive Player of the Year nominee and helped lead the team to a first-place divisional finish, followed by a standout season with the KW Titans finishing with a league-best three-point percentage and a playoff berth.
Kearns holds a bachelor's degree in Sports Management from Oral Roberts and earned his MBA from Texas A&M–Corpus Christi in 2025.
