Juanma Ruiz Signing Caps Busy Offseason for NKU Men’s Basketball

With the summer workout period quickly approaching, Northern Kentucky has been active in reshaping its roster for the 2025-26 season. Head coach Darrin Horn and his staff have brought in a mix of size, athleticism, and experience—recruiting from junior colleges, Division I programs, and overseas leagues. The new additions not only address some of last season’s key deficiencies in rebounding, perimeter shooting, and free throw consistency, but also bring versatility and depth to a team looking to compete for a Horizon League Championship. Let’s take a closer look at the newest Norse and what each brings to the floor.

Addison Archer

6'9 Forward from Charlotte, NC

Archer comes from Ranger College (JUCO) where he played 2 seasons and averaged 9.0 PPG, 5.1 REB, 1.2 BLK and shot 55.6% from the field in 29 games (13 starts). Addison was mostly used as a cutter and transition player for Ranger College, where he scored at a 68% clip in those situations. Last season he only took 3 shots after driving to the basket and will rarely take an opponent off the dribble but is great at finding open space and putting himself in a good position to score.

He will join the NKU roster as a junior and looks to provide some rebounding help that the Norse missed last year. Head Coach Darrin Horn on the Darrin Horn Show Offseason Updates Edition discussed this part of his game:

“Addison Archer is a super athletic 6'9" forward who impacts the game with his athleticism and rebounding. His rebounding rate was 3.8 minutes per rebound, which is elite. He runs the floor tremendously well and grabs the ball at a high rate. He’s still developing physically, but we love his upside and think he’s only going to get better and better.”

He also showed some shooting ability by going 13-40 (32.5%) from 3 last season, while also shooting 83.6% from the free throw line. Last season NKU as a team shot 66.9% from the line and the forwards (Robinson, Wells, Itejere, and Rapolis) shot 62.8%. All four semifinals teams in the Horizon League Tournament shot 70.0% or better from the free throw line last season.

Check out Addison's Season Highlights:

Ethan Elliott

6'1 Guard from Australia

Northern Kentucky may have found a key addition to its backcourt in Ethan Elliott. The last two seasons he has played for Australia's NBL1 semi-professional basketball league for the Joondalup Wolves. Ethan does most of his offensive work as a pick and roll ball handler, transition scorer, and spot-up shooter. He has no fear taking tough shots over defenders or quickly getting downhill when the opportunity presents itself.

Northern Kentucky ranked 5th last season in the Horizon League in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.18. NKU only ranked outside of the top 5 once during Sam Vinson's 4 years with the Norse and that was 2023-24 when his season was cut short due to a knee injury. With Sam's eligibility still up in the air, the Norse might need someone to step into that role and Elliott is a great facilitator of the basketball. He posted over a 3.5 assist-to-turnover ratio last year. Darrin Horn had this to say about Elliott's abilities:

“Ethan Elliott plays with a real edge. He’s been playing against grown men in a strong league in Australia, and he’s proven himself. He steals the ball at a high rate, scores efficiently, and has over a 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.”

Check out Elliott's Season Highlights:

Donovan Oday

6'2 Guard from Arlington, Texas

Oday played two seasons at Cal State Fullerton where the junior (McNeese State transfer) played in 31 games (20 starts) last season and averaged 12.8 PPG, 5.0 REB, 1.3 AST. Oday provides a mixed bag of tools for the Norse to work with, as he shot 42.2% from the field and 31% from three but also averaged over 2 turnovers a game.

Donovan led the Titans in scoring last year and was the only player to average double figures. He was also the team's leading rebounder with 156 total despite being a 6'2 guard. For comparison that would be fourth on NKU's team last year behind Robinson, Itejere, and Wells. Coach Horn had this to say about Oday's skill set:

“Donovan Oday was a double-digit scorer in a good Division I conference at Cal State Fullerton. He brings elite athleticism—neck-on-the-rim kind of athlete in transition—and gets fouled at a really high rate.”

In regards to Oday's ability to draw fouls, he shot free throws on 20% of his driving possessions last season where he shot 76.3% from the line and led his team in free throw attempts by 74. In comparison, the closest Norse last season on free throw percentage per drive would be Dan Gherezgher (17%) and that comes with 119 fewer drive attempts than Oday.

Check out Donovan's Season Highlights:

Juanma Ruiz

6'9 Forward from Spain

The final and most recent addition to the Norse 2025-26 roster, Juanma Ruiz brings size, energy, and upside to Northern Kentucky. The 6'9 forward from Spain recently competed in the U19 League, where he averaged nearly 11 points and 8 rebounds while shooting close to 60% from the field over four games with Real Betis.

Ruiz also appeared in 19 games with Real Betis 2 in the Spain-Tercera FEB, averaging 9.9 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting 54.3% from the floor. He recorded three double-doubles and scored in double figures 11 times. Head coach Darrin Horn praised his motor and versatility:

"He has the ability to do the things in our system that help a big excel: run, finish, make plays at the rim and as a roller, handle on the perimeter, play facing the basket, and rebound on both ends."

Being able to handle the ball as a forward in NKU's offense is important. Although the 4 and 5 men might not take the ball all the way to the rim, they initiate a lot of the actions in the offense, even if it is just taking one dribble and moving the ball to the other side of the court or dribbling into a handoff.

Offseason Recap:

Shawn Nelson 6'4 G - Barton College (D2)
Kael Robinson 6'7 F - Montana State Billings (D2)
Tae Dozier 6'5 G - Georgetown (NAIA)
Addison Archer 6'9 F - Ranger (JUCO)
Ethan Elliott 6'1 G - Australia
Donovan Oday 6'2 G - Cal St Fullerton
Juanma Ruiz 6'9 F - Spain
Freshman Ryan Tolliver and JJ Apathjang

Darrin Horn Show - Offseason Updates: