Inoue adds assistant at UCI
UC Irvine women’s basketball head coach Tamara Inoue has added to her staff by naming Krystle Evans an assistant coach.
Evans joins assistant Cecilia Russell-Nava and director of operations Amanda Delgado as those helping Inoue guide the Anteaters in 2016-17.
Inoue is in the process of hiring her final assistant.
“Through the great mentorship that I have received, I know the most important thing to do is to hire a great staff,” Inoue said. “I believe in hiring great leaders first so that my team will always have an option to go to anyone on staff to look up to and to model themselves after.”
Evans was director of operations at UC Santa Barbara last season. She was previously an assistant coach at Los Angeles Southwest College for four seasons and View Park Preparatory High for four years.
As a player, Evans was prepped at Crenshaw High where she was a four-time first-team all-league and all-city honoree and was named all-state as a senior.
Evans earned a scholarship at UCLA, but a career-ending knee injury kept her from playing with the Bruins. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in United States government concentration and education.
Evans is currently working on her master’s in kinesiology from Fresno Pacific University.
“Krystle was one who I got numerous phone calls about when I got the job.” Inoue said. “Her knowledge of Southern California and the connections she has will make an immediate impact here at UCI. Krystle is truly a student of the game and is always going to better herself.”
Russell-Nava joins Inoue after also serving on the same New Mexico State staff with Inoue last season. She had two stints with the Aggies, the first from 2007-2011 and again from 2014-16. Russell-Nava spent three seasons at San Jose State before returning to her alma mater.
A starting guard for NMSU from 2005-07, the Aggies reached the WAC Tournament championship game her last two seasons. She ranks second in the record books in three-point field goals made in a season (78) and fifth in career three-pointers (172). She was named to the 2007 WAC All-Tournament team.
Russell-Nava graduated in 2007 from New Mexico State with a degree in business marketing and is currently pursuing a master’s degree from NM State in curriculum and instruction.
“I have had the privilege to work alongside Cece the past two years and her presence on the floor, ability to recruit and the way the community adores her is invaluable to any team’s success,” Inoue said. “She is a proven winner and her leadership is contagious.”
Inoue also brought Delgado from New Mexico State, where she was the director of player development last season. She was a four-year letterwinner at Oregon, finishing her Duck career with 452 points, 131 rebounds, 63 assists and 40 steals.
While at Oregon, Delgado played under Paul Westhead, an NBA and WNBA Champion, her first three years and Kelly Graves her senior season. Delgado graduated from the Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in digital arts.
“Working with Amanda this past year, I saw a maturity and knowledge of the game which is something you can’t teach,” Inoue said. “She has a great connection with former players and I see that continuing on here at UCI.”
— From staff reports