Oklahoma Baptist University assistant women's basketball coach John Marcum has accepted the head women's basketball coaching job at California Baptist University, CBU announced Monday.


Marcum will be the ninth head coach in 35-year history of the Lancer program.

Marcum heads to Riverside after seven seasons as an assistant coach at OBU.

"We had some very good candidates apply for this position, and John's combination of his passion for the Lord and his work ethic made him stand out," said CBU athletic director Micah Parker. "He is a great fit for our institution, and I feel like we've added a young coach with great potential to the talented group of coaches we already have. Our mission is to ‘honor Christ through excellence in athletics,' and John will help us fulfill that mission."

Most recently, the 35-year-old Marcum spent three seasons as the lead assistant coach for the OBU women's program.

During that span, the Lady Bison went 92-14 and were 60-6 in the Sooner Athletic Conference, winning consecutive conference titles in 2009 and 2010 under head coach John McCullough. He recruited two NAIA All-Americans, including two-time All-American Taujhnae Travis.

OBU made the NAIA National Tournament in each of his three seasons, reaching the semifinals in 2009.

"First and foremost, I am extremely thankful to President Ellis, Kent Dacus (Vice President for Student and Enrollment Services) and Dr. Parker for this opportunity," said Marcum. "The direction CBU is headed both academically and athletically is something that gets me excited. There is an environment that breeds success here, and I want to pursue excellence in women's basketball just like everyone else pursues excellence in every other department on campus."