John Baines ’98, head coach of the Elmhurst University men’s basketball team, was named the D3hoops.com Region 8 Coach of the Year after leading the Bluejays to a single-season school-record 27 wins and the program’s first-ever trip to the Final Four in 2021-22. Elmhurst lost to Randolph-Macon College in the national championship game on March 19, 2022. John has been the Bluejays’ head coach since 2013, posting an overall record of 148-84 in nine seasons at the helm. As a player at Illinois Wesleyan, John played in four NCAA Tournaments and won a national championship in 1997.