Spears was a varsity assistant to head coach Darnell Hoskins the past two seasons.
He is a Patterson Co-op graduate who played college basketball at Wisconsin-Milwaukee and is in his second stint with Northmont, where he was a varsity assistant, ninth grade coach and junior varsity coach from 2008-17.
Spears was the head coach at Thurgood Marshall and Ponitz before returning to Northmont in 2023.
“What attracted me to Northmont was the opportunity to lead a basketball program that at one point in my life played a key role in my development as a coach and person,” he said in a news release.
“It’s the community I’ve lived in for 20-plus years while raising my boys, and it is an opportunity to serve the youth of that community, to coach student-athletes that value their education and ultimately that want to be pushed to reach their potential.”
The Thunderbolts were 14-10 last season and finished third in a tightly contested Greater Western Ohio Conference. They were 54-43 overall in four seasons under Hoskins.
“What I’m most looking forward to is the work that we’ll put in, day to day, week to week, month to month that it requires to create a basketball culture that the faculty, staff, administration and community can be proud of,” Spears said.
Paige is a 1995 Northridge graduate who most recently coaches Mississinawa Valley to multiple 20-win seasons and back-to-back district titles.
He was named Division IV Southwest District Coach of the Year after leading the Blackhawks to 21-6 record in 2024.
They followed that up with a 21-5 mark last season when they shared the Western Ohio Athletic Conference title with Tri-Village and Arcanum.
Previously he served as the girls head coach at National Trail and Northridge after coaching at multiple levels in Vandalia for Butler and eighth grade boys at Beavercreek.
In a news release, Paige said he was drawn to Northmont by “the opportunity to be part of a thriving community that is both academically and athletically successful. A community that loves and supports their schools and is ready and waiting to see their teams achieve success at the highest levels.”
The Thunderbolts were 4-20 overall last season and finished in a tie for last place with Miamisburg with a 1-13 GWOC mark.
Northmont has finished at the bottom of the girls basketball GWOC standings four seasons in a row.
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