The No. 1 seed Duke Blue Devils open the NCAA Tournament against No. 16 seed Siena at 2:50 p.m. ET on CBS on Thursday, but when they take the court, they know they will be losing a member of the program right after the tournament ends.
ESPN’s Jeff Borzello reported on Wednesday night that Duke assistant coach Evan Bradds plans to accept the head coaching job at his alma mater Belmont.
Bradds, a former two-time AP All-American honorable mention, a two-time Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year, a two-time All-OVC first-team selection, and an All-OVC second-team selection, will replace Casey Alexander, who accepted the head coaching job at Kansas State.
“NEWS: Belmont is finalizing a deal with Duke assistant Evan Bradds to be the program’s next head coach, sources told ESPN,” Brozello tweeted. “Former Belmont star was a two-time Ohio Valley Player of the Year during his time with the Bruins.”
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The silver lining is Bradds is expected to remain with Duke for as long as it remains in the NCAA Tournament, according to Brozello.
The 31-year-old Bradds went undrafted in 2017 and immediately jumped into coaching.
He landed his first assistant coaching gig in 2018 with the Boston Celtics, where he stayed before accepting the same position with the Utah Jazz in 2022. After four years in Utah, Bradds jumped back to the college ranks to work under Scheyer with the Blue Devils the last two seasons.
Bradds has big shoes to fill.
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In seven seasons with the Bruins, the 53-year-old Alexander compiled a 166-60 record with an NCAA Tournament appearance and an NIT appearance. Belmont won 20 or more games in every season under Alexander.
The Bruins finished 26-6 this season, winning the Missouri Valley regular-season championship; however, the school announced it was denying a bid to the NIT after Alexander’s exit.
“In light of recent developments, Belmont University men’s basketball has elected not to participate in the Postseason NIT,” Belmont said in a statement. “We appreciate the meaningful dialogue and consideration postseason tournament committees have extended Belmont throughout the year.”
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