Former player and assistant coach David Boyden will return to WKU as an assistant coach next season, Head Coach Ray Harper announced Wednesday.

Boyden played for WKU from 2000-2003 and served as an assistant coach from 2008-2010.

“I am honored to be back on staff here at WKU, and I am grateful to Coach Harper for giving me this opportunity,” Boyden said in a statement. “It is a place that I hold near and dear to my heart. I have had the unique experience of being an undergraduate student at WKU, a graduate student, a basketball player, a basketball coach and a fan.

“Western Kentucky University is a special place, and I cannot wait to help this team get better every day and work towards another Sun Belt Conference championship.”

Boyden served as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech last season.

He fills the void left by former assistant Kip Wellman, a departure that Harper announced last week.

Andrew Theokas, who served as WKU’s Director of Basketball Operations, is also no longer with the program. That position has yet to be filled.

In six years as a WKU player or assistant coach, Boyden has been a part of 133 wins, five 20-win seasons, four conference titles and four NCAA Tournament appearances.

Boyden is engaged to WKU Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing and Ticket Sales Lindsay Thomas.

“We are really happy to have David back,” Harper said. “WKU is a place that he loves, and he wore the jersey with pride when he played. He was a big part of our successes when he was here as an assistant coach previously, and I know he is extremely excited to help us take this program to the next level.

“He brings a wealth of coaching experience back to the Hill, and he is an outstanding addition to our staff.”