Men's Basketball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
Bringing a proven track record to Mizzou that includes Division I head coaching experience and stops as an assistant coach in three different power conferences, Tavaras Hardy is in his first season as an assistant coach with the Tigers.
At Mizzou, Hardy is set to serve as the team’s offensive coordinator, while working directly with the team’s post players.
Hardy joins the Tigers after a six-year run leading Loyola University Maryland from 2018 to 2024. During his time with the Greyhounds, Hardy led the team to the Patriot League Championship Game for the first time in its history during the 2021 tournament, while coaching numerous players to individual accolades.
Highlighting his tenure at Loyola was mentoring two NBA Draft selections. Under Hardy’s guidance, Santi Aldama earned first-team All-Patriot League accolades in 2021 after averaging 21.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game – one of just two players nationally to average 20 and 10 during the season. He then became the first player in Loyola history – and just the third from a Patriot League school – to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft when he was picked No. 30 by the Memphis Grizzlies.
Hardy also coached Cam Spencer for three seasons at Loyola from 2019 to 2022. Spencer led the Patriot League in scoring in 2021-22 and was a first-team all-conference selection before being picked in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons.
Overall, Hardy coached the Patriot League’s leading scorer in four of his six seasons at Loyola (Andrew Kostecka in 2019 and 2020, Spencer in 2022 and Deon Perry in 2024). He also helped mentor a total of five all-conference honorees – including four first-team selections – two all-defensive team honorees and five all-rookie selections.
Prior to his time at Loyola, Hardy served as an assistant coach at Georgia Tech (2016-18), Georgetown (2013-16) and at his alma mater, Northwestern (2007-13), gaining experience in three different power conferences.
At Georgia Tech, Hardy worked with three players that played professionally in the NBA, most notably Josh Okogie. An ACC All-Freshman Team honoree in 2017 and a second-team all-conference pick in 2018, Okogie was selected in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft by Minnesota. Georgia Tech, which advanced to the championship game of the NIT in 2017, also featured future NBA players Jose Alvarado and Moses Wright in Hardy’s final season on campus.
Prior to joining the Yellow Jackets staff, Hardy was an assistant coach for three years at Georgetown from 2013 to 2016. In the nation’s capital, Hardy worked primarily with the Hoyas’ wings and post players and he helped bring in two recruiting classes that were ranked among the nation’s top 20. Hardy coached three Big East All-Freshman Team honorees, while working directly with future NBA player Marcus Dickerson in 2015-16.
Hardy joined the Georgetown staff after spending six seasons on the sidelines at his alma mater from 2007 to 2013. He helped the Wildcats earn four-consecutive postseason bids and record consecutive 20-win seasons in 2009-10 and 2010-11, a first-time feat in Northwestern history. Hardy was Northwestern’s associate head coach his last two years.
The Wildcats owned one of the nation’s most efficient offenses with Hardy on staff – ranking in the top 50 nationally in four-straight seasons from 2009 to 2012 and peaking at No. 15 during the 2010-11 campaign.
Hardy was also key in the development of Northwestern’s John Shurna during his record-breaking career for the Wildcats. Shurna was a three-time All-Big Ten honoree, earning first-team recognition as a senior in 2011-12 when he led the conference in scoring and became Northwestern’s all-time leader in points. Additionally, Drew Crawford was the 2010 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and a two-time All-Big Ten selection, while Reggie Hearn played for the Detroit Pistons after graduating from Northwestern in 2013.
The Joliet, Illinois, native was a standout high school player at Providence Catholic High School where he was inducted to the school’s hall of fame in 2014. Hardy then became a four-year letterwinner and three-time Most Valuable Player at Northwestern from 1998 to 2002. He was an All-Big Ten honoree as a senior, tallying 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.
Hardy, who earned his bachelor’s in political science from Northwestern in 2022, led the Wildcats in blocked shots and rebounding for three-straight seasons and field-goal percentage his last two years. After concluding his career at Northwestern, Hardy played professionally for Namika Lahti in Finland.
Hardy and his wife, Billée, have four children – Mariah, Jasmine, TJ and Noah.
