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Coaching Staff

Everick Sullivan | Head Coach

  • Hired on April 27, 2016, Sullivan enters his sixth season as the Head Men's Basketball Coach
  • Led Bears to NCAA Tournament appearance in 2018-19
  • 2018-19 squad also advanced to the first SAC Tournament Championship game since 2005
  • Defeated two nationally-ranked programs in each of his past three seasons
  • Had Bears ranked as high as No. 17 in the nation in 2018-19

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Program Accolades

  • Beat Queens and Lincoln Memorial in the same season (2018-19) for the first time since 2009 and the 21 total wins that season were the most in a single season since 2007-08
  • Snapped LMU's 39-game winning streak and defeated the highest-ranked opponent (No. 2) in program history with an 89-83 win on January 9, 2021. Followed that with a win over No. 12 Queens to defeat those two programs in the same season for the second time in his tenure
  • Broke the single game record for most field goals (44) and field goal attempts (83) in a game against Young Harris on Nov. 9, 2018 and tied the school record for most 3-pointers made in a game (19) against Coker on Jan. 4, 2020
  • Topped Catawba 91-85 on Jan. 18, 2020 in a nationally-broadcast game on ESPN3 that was part of the NCAA Division II National Showcase
  • Darius Simmons broke the program record for best 3-point percentage in a season (56.5) and Bertrand Awana set the program mark for field goal percentage in a season (69.8) under Sullivan
  • Earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament for just the seventh time in program history and first since 2016
  • Cory Thomas set the school record for most points in an NCAA Tournament game with his 24-point performance against USC Aiken
  • Were nationally ranked for just the fourth season in program history in 2018-19

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Awards & Honors

  • Has coached seven all-conference players including R.J. Gunn who was a first team selection in 2019-20 and 2020-21
  • Cooper Fowler and Zim Fields were selected to the All-Freshman Team in 2019-20, giving LR a pair of rookies on the All-Freshman Team for the first time since 2005-06
  • Guided R.J. Gunn to an All-Region selection in 2019-20 and 2020-21
  • Coached Davion Bradford to SAC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2020-21

LinePrevious Coaching Experience

  • Served as Assistant Coach at Georgia State University under Ron Hunter for four seasons
  • During his time at GSU, Sullivan helped the program to 87 wins which is the most in any four-year stretch in program history
  • Helped the Panthers to a 25-win season in 2014-15 and a Sun Belt Regular Season and Tournament Championship. The season was highlighted by a victory over third-seed Baylor in the NCAA Tournament as the Panthers advanced to the third round for just the second time in school history
  • Also served as Associate Head Coach at Eastern Kentucky University for three seasons
  • Spent four seasons as the Head Men's Basketball Coach at Vincennes (Ind.) University while compiling an overall record of 107-26 and an .804 winning percentage
  • Began his coaching career at Wabash Valley (Ill.) College, spending both the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons with the program

LinePlay Career

  • Played collegiate basketball under Hall of Fame head coach Denny Crum at Louisville from 1988-92
  • Played in three NCAA Tournaments and is among the Cardinals all-time leaders in scoring (15th), assists (9th), 3-point percentage (10th) and dunks (10th)
  • Played eight years of professional basketball in Finland, Portugal, Slovenia, Poland, Puerto Rico, Cyprus and Lebanon
  • Won the Cyprus league championship in 1998 and was voted the teams Most Valuable Player

LinePersonal

  • Native of Simpsonville, S.C.
  • Sullivan and fiancee Michelle have a daughter, Ellery, born in Feb. 2012

 

Rock Barnes | Assistant Coach

Bio Coming Soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Riley McGillan | Assistant Coach

Coming to Hickory from Farmville, VA, Riley McGillan joins the Bears men’s basketball program as an assistant coach.

McGillan comes to LR from Longwood University where he was the men’s basketball director of operations for the Lancers. In his role, he oversaw numerous aspects of the program, including practice preparation, film, data analytics, travel operations, academic oversight and general quality control. McGillan also assisted the Longwood athletics communications office as the coordinator of social media, a role in which he aided in the department's social media outreach and the design and production of digital media elements.

A 2016 graduate of Clemson University with a bachelor’s degree in sports marketing, McGillan also earned his Master’s in Athletic Leadership in 2018 from Clemson. He began as a student manager in the Tigers’ basketball program, and was then given a spot on the roster, and then a spot on the coaching staff as a graduate assistant coach. During his six seasons with the Tigers, he was part of two 20-win teams and three postseason-bound squads, including in 2017-18 season when, as a graduate assistant coach, he helped Clemson reach the NCAA Sweet 16 for the first time in more than 20 years.

Beginning from his days as an undergraduate at Clemson in 2012, McGillan is nearing a decade of experience in college athletics in various roles.

After his two-year stint as a team manager, McGillan earned a roster spot with the Tigers and competed for three full seasons from 2014-17. During that time, Clemson posted three consecutive winning seasons and reached the 2017 National Invitational Tournament. The following year he returned to the program as a graduate assistant coach and helped lead the Tigers to a 25-10 record, a third-place finish in the ACC and a run to the NCAA Sweet 16.

McGillan collected numerous academic honors at Clemson, including a pair of Clemson All-Academic Team honors, the men's basketball program's Academic Excellence Award, and the Clemson Athletics Director's Academic Excellence Award. He was a four-time Dean's List selection in the College of Business and Behavior Sciences.