NEW YORK -- Xavier interim head coach Jonas Hayes led his team to the NIT championship at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night, just a few weeks after Travis Steele was fired. Per new head coach Sean Miller on Thursday, Hayes will be retained as his new associate head coach, if he wants the job.
Hayes has reportedly been linked to openings at Georgia and other schools. Miller said he recently spoke with Hayes to make the offer.
"It makes sense," Miller told ESPN on Thursday. "It's a done deal [if he wants the job]."
Miller also said that he believes Hayes will get opportunities to be a head coach and will consider those options after the NIT title game. After Steele was fired following Xavier's win over Cleveland State in the first round of the NIT, Hayes led the team to wins over Florida, Vanderbilt and St. Bonaventure to set up Thursday's game against Texas A&M, which the Musketeers won, 73-72.
Miller's staff will be pivotal in his return to Xavier because he could serve a suspension due to potential penalties stemming from the infractions case at Arizona, where he last coached.