Casanova enters his fifth season as an assistant coach for the men's basketball program at UNG after a two-year stint as a graduate assistant at Toledo.
At UNG, Casanova has been a part of a staff that reached new heights for the men's basketball program. In 2024, he helped the Nighthawks to their first PBC Tournament Championship, first NCAA Regional Championship and the most wins in a single season in program history (28).
The year prior, Casanova was on the staff as UNG earned its first top-25 ranking in program history, its first NCAA Tournament appearance and its first NCAA Tournament win.
A Sylvania, Ohio native, Casanova played college basketball at Ohio Dominican University from 2015-19 for UNG hea coach Dan Evans. As a junior, he helped the Panthers to their first NCAA Division II tournament appearance. ODU won the 2018 Great Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament title by defeating No. 11 Findlay, 68-66, in the semifinals and Hillsdale, 71-53, in the championship game.
In high school, Casanova earned second-team all-state honors as a senior at Sylvania Southview, where he helped the Cougars post a 24-1 record and a No. 1 ranking in the state. He averaged 19.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game as a senior and was named Northern Lakes League and District Player of the Year.
Casanova graduated with magna cum laude honors from Ohio Dominican in May 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in business and finance and a minor in sport management. Casanova’s father, John, played in the National Football League with the Cincinnati Bengals (1984) and Green Bay Packers (1985) after a four-year collegiate career at Northern Michigan University.
Updated: June 2025
