Nicholls State University

HONORS/ACCOLADES
- 2024 Joe B. Hall National Coach of the Year Finalist (Top 1st-year head coach)
- 2024 Jobe National Coach of the Year Finalist (Top minority head coach)
- HoopDirt.com Division I Coach of the Week
- Most wins in program history (20) for a first-year head coach
- Most Southland wins (13) for a first-year head coach
- Led Nicholls to just its eighth and ninth 20-win seasons in school history
- Led the Colonels to their first back-to-back 20-win seasons in program history

MILESTONE VICTORIES
- 1st career/Power 5 victory -- Nov. 10, 2023 -- at LSU (68-66)
- 1st home victory -- Nov. 21, 2023 -- Blue Mountain Christian (86-56)
- 1st Southland victory -- Jan. 6, 2024 -- at HCU (98-94 OT)
- 1st Southland Tournament victory -- March 11, 2024 -- vs. East Texas A&M (72-51)


Tevon Saddler was named head coach for the Nicholls State University men’s basketball team on April 20, 2023. He is the 13th head coach in school history and is currently the youngest active Division I coach in the country.

A former Colonel and staff member, Saddler returns to Nicholls after spending a season in his home state at the University of Maryland as the director of player personnel. In his lone year with the Terps, the team won 22 games which included a victory over No. 1 Purdue and a first-round win in the NCAA Tournament over West Virginia. 

Before heading to Maryland, Saddler served as an assistant coach at Southland member McNeese State University in 2021-22. During this time, Saddler was one of the youngest Division I assistant coaches in the country. While there, he recruited SLC Freshman of the Year Johnathan Massie and the Cowboys won their first Southland Tournament game since 2014.

During his first stint at his alma mater, Nicholls, Saddler served as the director of basketball operations for two years under head coach Austin Claunch. In those two years, Nicholls had an overall 39-17 record while going 29-7 in conference play. The Colonels won the regular season championship in 2020-21.

Before returning to Nicholls, Saddler spent the 2018-19 season as a graduate assistant at the University of South Alabama under former Colonel head coach Richie Riley. While there he worked with All-Sun Belt talents Trhae Mitchell and Josh Ajeyi on a daily basis.  

Saddler started his playing career at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro, earning SoCon Freshman of the Year and clinching back-to-back All-Conference selections before transferring to play at Nicholls. In his lone season with the Colonels, he helped lead them to their first conference championship in two decades while also earning All-Southland honors.

Saddler received his bachelor's degree in Sociology from Nicholls in May 2018. Shortly after, he obtained a Master of Science in Sports Management from South Alabama in July 2019. 

COACHING RECORD AT NICHOLLS

Year	Overall	Win%	SLC	Win%	Place
2023-24	20-14	.577	13-5	.722	3rd/10
2024-25	20-12	.625	13-7	.650	3rd/12
Total	40-26	.606	26-12	.684