Lycoming News

Fran McCaffery, the new John R. Rockwell Head Coach of Men's Basketball at the University of Pennsylvania, has added Tristan Spurlock to his coaching team as an assistant coach. Spurlock joins the university after three years on McCaffery's staff at the University of Iowa, where he served as the Hawkeyes' director of player development and assistant coach. During his tenure at Iowa, Spurlock was integral in securing 55 victories and two postseason appearances for the team, including an NCAA and an NIT appearance. He also coached eight players who earned 18 All-Big Ten honors.

"Tristan worked for me for three years at Iowa, following a tremendous playing career," McCaffery stated. "He is an incredible human being in terms of the way he forms relationships with the players, and what he showed me at Iowa is that he's the total package in terms of his ability to do all aspects of the coaching profession—from skill development, to scouting, to recruiting. I think the Penn community is going to love Tristan Spurlock."

Spurlock expressed gratitude for the opportunity, saying, "First off, I want to thank Coach McCaffery for this amazing opportunity. I am excited and honored to be a part of his staff and work for such a prestigious institution. Coach McCaffery and the University of Pennsylvania have set a standard for excellence on and off the court, and I'm ready to keep that standard going. I'm excited to get to work and connect with the amazing young men in our program."

Spurlock began his professional career in basketball after nine years of playing, mostly overseas in over 10 countries. He ended his playing career with an average of 12 points and six rebounds in Uruguay. Before his international career, Spurlock joined Detroit's 2015 NBA Summer League team, averaging 10 points, three rebounds, and three assists.

Originally from Washington, D.C., Spurlock received college scholarship offers from multiple Power 5 Conference schools. He played at the University of Virginia for one season before transferring to the University of Central Florida, where he played from 2012 to 2014. While at UCF, he averaged 9.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.2 assists across 92 games.

Spurlock earned his bachelor's degree in communications from UCF in 2014 and was previously recognized as Mr. Basketball in Virginia. He lives with his two children, daughter Alaya and son Tahj.