EVANSTON — Jon Borovich has joined the Northwestern men’s basketball program as an assistant coach, Sullivan-Ubben Head Men’s Basketball Coach Chris Collins announced Thursday.
Borovich comes to the Wildcats after eight seasons (2011-19) as a member of the Northern Illinois coaching staff, four of which were as the associate head coach. Prior to his arrival in DeKalb, he spent four seasons (2007-11) as an assistant coach at Dayton and two campaigns (2005-07) as an assistant at Oakland.
“We are extremely excited to add Jon to our staff,” said Sullivan-Ubben Head Men’s Basketball Coach Chris Collins. “He is an experienced college coach with a great pedigree coaching under fantastic coaches throughout his stops along the way. He is a hard worker with great energy and a terrific teacher that will impact our program in many areas.”
“I am very grateful to Coach Collins, Dr. Phillips and the administration for the opportunity to join the Northwestern program,” said Borovich. “It’s a privilege to coach world-class student-athletes, while working with some of the best coaches and staff in the country. I can’t wait to get started.”
The recent success of Huskie basketball is the result of the building blocks set in place since Borovich’s arrival with NIU head coach Mark Montgomery in 2011.
Borovich, who was promoted to NIU associate head coach in August of 2015, played a large role in the rebuilding process at NIU that saw a program which had produced just two winning seasons in the previous 15 years grow to earn its fourth postseason appearance, and the second-most wins, in school history in 2015-16.
The Huskies posted a 21-13 record in 2015-16 and accepted an invitation to the inaugural Vegas 16 tournament. NIU’s success came despite having the second-youngest team in the MAC, a squad that saw nearly 40 percent of its scoring come from freshmen. Three Huskies earned conference postseason honors, including sophomore Marin Maric who was named to the All-MAC Third Team; Aaric Armstead was named to the MAC All-Defensive Team and Marshawn Wilson was recognized on the MAC All-Freshman Team. It marked the first time since the 2002-03 season that NIU had three all-league honorees.
More milestones were reached during the 2016-17 season as the Huskies earned 15 victories, giving the program 65 total wins over the last four seasons, the second-best four-year stretch in school history. NIU had one of its best offensive teams in 2017-18 as it averaged more points than any Huskie team since 2001-02 and scored the third-most points (2,319) in a single-season in school history. Eugene German led the MAC in scoring while earning Second Team All-MAC and First Team NABC All-District honors.
As an assistant at Dayton, Borovich helped the Flyers advance to the postseason in each of his four seasons. In his first season, 2007-08, Dayton started 14-1 and climbed to No. 14 in the Associated Press poll, the highest ranking for the program in 40 years. The next season, Dayton was again nationally-ranked and finished with a 27-8 record, including a trip to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
In 2009-10, Borovich helped UD win 25 games and win the NIT title, the first NIT crown for the program since 1968. In his final season on the Flyer staff (2010-11), Dayton finished with a 22-14 mark, reaching the championship game of the Atlantic 10 Tournament and advancing to the NIT. Borovich began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Michigan State from 2001-03. He then spent two seasons (2003-05) at Dayton as the Director of Basketball Operations.
During his two seasons at Oakland, the Golden Grizzlies won 30 games. In Borovich's second year, Oakland compiled a 19-14 mark, the most wins for the school since joining Division I in 1997. Borovich helped the Golden Grizzlies recruit class that, as juniors and seniors, went 34-2 in the Summit League and appeared in back-to-back NCAA tournaments.
A native of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Borovich assisted in video analysis as a graduate assistant at Michigan State while completing his master's degree in athletics administration.
Borovich played collegiately at Central Michigan from 1997-2001, while NIU head coach Mark Montgomery was working as an assistant coach for the Chippewas. As a senior, Borovich was a part of CMU's Mid-American Conference championship team that finished with 20 wins, the most for the school since the 1986-87 season.
He earned his bachelor's degree in sports studies from Central Michigan in 2001, with a double minor in psychology and coaching. Borovich was a team captain for the Chippewas as a junior and senior while also earning Academic All-MAC honors as a senior.
Borovich and his wife, Kara, have two sons, Bennett and William.
