Boston College Basketball: Jim Christian Named Head Basketball Coach

The school has issued a release on the Jim Christian hire, which officially means the search for the next men's basketball coach has stopped concluded.

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - Jim Christian, the Mid-American Conference all-time leader in winning percentage, has been named the 12th head basketball coach at Boston College, Director of Athletics Brad Bates has announced.

"Jim Christian brings three remarkable traits to Boston College basketball," Bates said. "First, he sincerely cares about his student-athletes and will be a catalyst for their development as basketball players, scholars, servers and leaders, while creating a family culture that brings pride to the BC community. Second, his energy is contagious and his passion inspiring, which will resonate throughout our program. Finally, he is a proven winner with an outstanding winning percentage and three conference championships. We are very excited to have Jim Christian leading Boston College basketball, and look forward to an extraordinary future."

Christian has spent the last two seasons as head coach at Ohio, leading the Bobcats to a 49-22 record in that time. In his first season at the helm, Ohio went 24-10 and earned a bid to the NIT. This past year, the Bobcats went 25-12 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the College Insider Tournament. His 2012-13 Ohio squad was the regular-season MAC champions (14-2) and he was named the NABC District 14 Coach of the Year.

Christian has coached in the MAC for eight of his 12 years as a head coach. He spent six seasons with Kent State from 2002-08, compiling a record of 138-58 (.704) and leading the Golden Flashes to five postseason appearances. He earned MAC Coach of the Year accolades in 2006 and 2008, both times leading Kent State to the conference title and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Golden Flashes earned NIT berths in each of his first three seasons.

Christian holds the best winning percentage in MAC history (.700) and has reached 20 wins in all eight of his seasons in the conference.

Christian also spent four seasons as the head coach at Texas Christian. While in Fort Worth, he had a record of 56-73 (.434). In his final season, he led the Horned Frogs to an 18-15 record and an appearance in the quarterfinals of the College Basketball Invitational.

Christian served as an assistant coach for the Golden Flashes in 2001-02 when they advanced to the Elite Eight. Prior to his time in Kent, Christian was a college basketball talent evaluator at Octagon Sports Marketing and Management.

Christian served as an assistant coach at Pittsburgh from 1996-99 under Ralph Willard. He also had coaching stops at Miami (Ohio) (1995-96), Western Kentucky (1990-92, 1994-95) and St. Francis (PA) (1992-94).

A native of Bethpage, N.Y., Christian played two seasons at Boston University before transferring to Rhode Island to finish his collegiate career under coach Tom Penders. He guided the Rams to the Sweet Sixteen in the 1988 NCAA Tournament.

Christian earned his bachelor's degree in consumer affairs from the University of Rhode Island in 1988. He and his wife, Patty, have three children, MacKenzie, Zach and Jay.