Three Midlands basketball programs make new coaching hires. Here is the latest
Three Midlands basketball programs are filling their head coaching openings.
Chapin and River Bluff girls and Gilbert boys have found their replacements for their openings.
Terence Jones will be the next girls basketball coach at Chapin after a successful run with the Denmark-Olar girls program. He replaces Chad Boland.
Jones announced earlier this month he was stepping down his position at Denmark-Olar.
“Thank you to the whole community of Denmark for all the love and support you have shown me over the years. You have really made me feel like this is my home and it will always be!!!” Jones said in a Facebook post. “Stay tuned to see what’s next for me as I embark on my next chapter in life.”
Jones posted Tuesday night about the new opportunity.
“I am excited for this next chapter and I am ready to do the unthinkable,” he wrote on his X (formerly Twitter page).
Jones has been at Denmark-Olar since 2018-19 and led the Vikings to three straight Class A state championship appearances from 2022-24. This season, Denmark-Olar made it to the Class A Lower State championship before losing to eventual state champion Military Magnet.
Jones went 127-42 during his tenure at Denmark-Olar. Chapin is coming off a 13-15 season and lost in the first round of the 5A Division II playoffs.
Northside Christian’s Jordan Leath will be the next River Bluff girls coach. His hire was approved at Lexington One school board meeting on Tuesday evening.
On Tuesday afternoon, Leath announced on X (formerly Twitter) he was leaving Northside.
“I am thankful and eager to begin this new chapter,” Leath wrote on his Facebook page. “Let’s get to work! Excited to see what we are going to accomplish together, Gator Nation!”
Leath replaces Candice Cobb, who has been at the school since the 2020-21 season.
This is Leath’s second head coaching job. He helped turn around the Northside program in his two seasons there. The Crusaders won 37 games over the past two years, including a school-record 23 in 2024-25. Northside made it to the second round of the SCISA 4A playoffs before losing to Northwood.
Now, Leath will try to turn around the River Bluff program. The Gators went 8-20 this year with their last winning season coming 2022-23.
Before Northside, Leath was an assistant coach at Lexington High, Ben Lippen and Oakbrook Prep.
The two hirings still leave several girls basketball openings in the Midlands — Ridge View, Spring Valley, Northside Christian, Brookland-Cayce and Irmo.
Gilbert also is getting a new boys basketball coach. John Paul Sellers will be the new Indians coach. Sellers has been the White Knoll Middle Schools Boys coach.
This story was originally published April 22, 2025 at 5:56 PM.
