Northern Illinois University men’s basketball head coach Rashon Burno announced on Tuesday (July 23) the addition of Antoni Wyche to the Huskie men’s basketball staff as an assistant coach. Wyche joins NIU after working last season at Siena.

“I am excited to have Antoni as part of our staff here at NIU,” said Burno. “He is an excellent recruiter and teacher of the game. Antoni brings a tremendous amount of experience, has won at a high level throughout his career and I am confident that he will make a positive impact on our program.”

The 2023-24 season marked Wyche’s second stint at Siena, as he previously worked with the Saints from 2019-21. During his first stint at Siena, the program won a pair of Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) regular season crowns along with the MAAC Tournament title in 2020. Wyche served as Siena’s defensive coordinator and helped mentor back-to-back MAAC Player of the Year honorees Jalen Pickett (2019-20) and Manny Camper (2020-21).

“I’m excited to join Coach Burno and staff in their vision and passion for NIU Basketball,” said Wyche. “This is a talented and hungry group of guys, and I believe Huskie Nation is on the rise.”

In his first season at Siena, 2019-20, Wyche helped the Saints to a 20-win season, including a 10-game win streak to close the year during which Wyche’s defense allowed an average of just 59.1 points on only 38.6 percent shooting including 26 percent from three. His second season saw Siena tie a program record with 16-straight wins, including eight true road wins, in a streak that bridged the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons.

Between his two stints at Siena, Wyche spent two seasons (2021-23) as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Notre Dame. In his first year with the Fighting Irish, Notre Dame won 24 games, including wins over Rutgers and Alabama in the NCAA Tournament.

Wyche began his collegiate coaching career at Lehigh, where he spent 10 seasons (2009-19), the last eight as associate head coach. Wyche helped the Mountain Hawks to 189 victories with three postseason appearances and two NCAA Tournament trips (2010, ’12).

In 2012, Lehigh won a school record 27 games, highlighted by upsetting Duke in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, just the sixth victory by a No. 15 seed over a No. 2 seed in tournament history. Wyche and the Mountain Hawks also appeared in the College Basketball Invitational in 2013 and reached the Patriot League title game in 2016 and 2017.

Wyche helped recruit and develop two-time Patriot League Player of the Year and 10th overall selection in the 2013 NBA Draft C.J. McCollum. He also mentored two-time Patriot League Player of the Year Tim Kempton and four-time All-Patriot League honoree Kahron Ross.

As a player, Wyche played in 108 games during his career at Notre Dame, serving as a team captain as a senior in 1998-99. After graduating from Notre Dame, he played professionally all around the world, including stops in Macedonia, Mexico, Finland, Japan, Qatar and Jordan.