INDIANAPOLIS---John W. Adams has been named NCAA National Coordinator of Men’s Basketball Officiating, the NCAA announced today. Adams will replace Hank Nichols, who in August announced his retirement effective at the conclusion of the 2007-08 season.

Adams, who has evaluated officials for the Division I Men’s Basketball Championship since 2000, is the coordinator of men’s basketball officiating for the Horizon League, a role he has held since 1999. He also has coordinated men’s basketball officials for the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference since 2002, and the Great Lakes Valley Conference since 2004. All three leagues are based in Indianapolis and encompass each of the NCAA’s three divisions.

As coordinator of the NCAA’s men’s basketball officiating program, Adams will assist the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee with the selection and evaluation of officials for the Division I championship. He will also work with officials, as well as conference coordinators and regional advisors of officiating, coaches and the NCAA, to help provide clear and consistent interpretations of NCAA men’s basketball rules and officiating mechanics.

"After an extensive search and a lengthy process that involved several quality candidates, we identified John as the person whose experience and professionalism fit the needs of the future of men’s basketball officiating,” said Tom O’Connor, the director of athletics at George Mason University and the chair of the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee. "His vision for officiating is consistent with that of key stakeholders in the game, including the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee, conference commissioners and head coaches. John is sure to continue to elevate men’s basketball officiating with heightened use of technology that will allow timely review of game footage for evaluation, training and growth of the game.”

Adams has 15 years of experience as an official at the NCAA Division I, II and III levels, as well as for the Indiana High School Athletic Association. In addition to the seven years he has spent as an evaluator for the NCAA, he spent seven years observing officials for the IHSAA. He also served as a liaison between the NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Committee and the Conference Commissioners Association’s officiating coordinators.

"It is an honor to follow in the footsteps of Hank Nichols, who made so many valuable contributions to the game of basketball and specifically to officiating for so many years,” Adams said. “I am excited to work with all of the various groups involved with men’s basketball. The coaches and student-athletes, the conference administrators, the NCAA and the officials all must work together to make this great game even better. To be a part of that endeavor is truly humbling.”

Adams earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Indiana State University in 1971, served a total of six years for the New York Air National Guard and the Indiana Army National Guard, and has been a businessman for more than 30 years.

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