Northwestern basketball hires Northern Illinois associate head coach Shane Southwell

EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern men’s basketball moved quickly to fill the vacancy left open by Talor Battle.

The program announced Tuesday it has hired Shane Southwell as an assistant coach.

Southwell was the associate head coach at Northern Illinois for the past two seasons. Battle departed NU for Ohio State after his brother, Boo Buie, exhausted his eligibility as the Wildcats’ star point guard.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to join the Northwestern family alongside Coach Collins and his staff,” Southwell said in a statement. “A program built on the standard of excellence both on and off the court, Coach Collins has created an environment of success that has proven to thrive in the competitive landscape of the Big Ten Conference, and I’m eager to get started. There’s something special happening here in Evanston and I’m more than ready to start building with this group.”

Southwell comes to Evanston after previously coaching at Robert Morris during the 2019-20 season, and then at his alma mater Kansas State from 2020 to 2022. According to the release announcing his hiring, Southwell played a big role in recruiting All-American point guard Markquis Nowell to Kansas State.

Southwell played at KSU for four years, going to the NCAA Tournament in all four seasons he was in Manhattan. He helped the Wildcats capture the program’s first Big 12 regular season crown in 2012-13.

In addition to playing at Kansas State, Southwell will bring familiarity to the NU bench. He played for current Northwestern assistant coach Chris Lowery when Lowery was the associate head coach at Kansas State under then-head coach Bruce Weber.

“We are excited to welcome Shane Southwell to our Wildcat coaching staff,” NU men’s basketball coach Chris Collins said in a statement. “Shane brings great experience as a former player at Kansas State, under both Frank Martin and Bruce Weber, where he played a key role in a Big 12 Championship. Now he has transitioned into the coaching ranks, where he has worked with and learned under some outstanding coaches, both at the college and USA basketball levels. Shane’s strong ability to assist in player development and game planning, as well as his energy on the recruiting trail, will make a huge impact in our program.”