CHICAGO - UIC women's basketball head coach Tasha Pointer and head strength and conditioning coach Nick Zostautas announce the additions of Gabe Derman and Evarist Akujobi as Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coaches.

Derman will work primarily with the men's basketball and women's golf teams.  Akujobi will be responsible for the women's basketball and women's tennis strength programs.  With the addition of the two full time coaches, the Strength & Conditioning department will be able to spend more time with each Flames team for individual and group instruction, and closely monitor the progress of each athlete toward his or her sport-specific goals.

Akujobi brings a wealth of international basketball performance experience to Tasha Pointer's program.  He was most recently the Sports Performance Director for the Guangzhou Longlions, a China Basketball Association franchise, with stints in the Shanxi Flame (Women's Chinese Basketball Association), Beijing Ducks, and Seoul SK Knights organizations as well.  On a collegiate level, he spent two years at Memphis as the Men's Basketball Strength and Conditioning Coach.  The Tigers won 37 games in his two seasons, including victories on consecutive days to earn a spot in the American Athletic Conference championship game in 2016.

Before arriving in Memphis, Akujobi was on the strength staffs with the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, and Memphis Grizzlies.  He has worked individually with Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady, NBA lottery pick DJ Augustin, and NCAA and NBA champion Marreese Speights.  Akujobi has additional D-I experience at Georgetown, St. John's, and Houston Baptist.  He was raised in Arlington, Texas and graduated from the University of Houston with a bachelor's degree in Exercise Science.  He received his Master's in Sport and Fitness Administration from St. John's in 2008.