Justin Ray, the 10th head men's basketball coach at Thomas More University is entering his seventh season on the sidelines in Crestview Hills, Kentucky during the 2024-25 season.  He has a career record of 132-52 in his first six seasons.

During the Saints inaugural season in Division II and the G-MAC, the team finished with an overall record of 19-12 and 12-8 in conference. Ray helped lead the team to the G-MAC conference tournament finals in the Saints first season in the G-MAC. Reid Jolly was named First Team All-Conference and Nathan Dudukovich was named G-MAC Freshman of the Year.

In the 2022-2023 campaign, Ray's Saints recorded an overall record of 23-9 to go along with a conference record of 15-7. They earned an at-large bid to the NAIA National Tournament where they were selected as a #5 seed and reached the second round of the tournament. The Saints were ranked in the NAIA top 25 all season and set program history when they received the #1 ranking in December. Reid Jolly was named Mid-South Conference Player of the Year and was a First Team All-MSC selection. He also earned First Team NAIA All-American, and NABC NAIA All-American honors and was selected for the top 50 watch list of the Bevo Francis Award. Jolly moved into 3rd all time on the Thomas More scoring list with 1,865 career points. Jacob Jones, Noah Pack, and Casey George all earned Second Team All-Mid South Conference honors.

Ray led the Saints to a record breaking season in 2021-22 with a program record of 31-5 overall and a 19-2 conference record and the program's first ever Semi-finalist appearance in the NAIA National Tournament. He was named Mid-South Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year for the second time in his career as the Saints finished as the Mid-South Conference Regular Season Champions for the first time in program history and finished runners-up in the Mid-South Conference Tournament. Ryan Batte was named Mid-South Conference Player of the Year, First Team All-Conference, Five-time Mid-South Conference Player of the Week, NAIA All-Tournament Team, NAIA First Team All-American, NABC First Team All-American, and Bevo Francis Top 100 and Top 50 Watchlist. Reid Jolly was also named First Team All-Conference, while Luke Rudy earned Second Team All-Conference, and Garren Bertsch and Noah Pack were named MSC Honorable Mention. Luke Rudy broke the all-time school record for most 3-point field goals made (293) to hold every 3-point record in program history. The Saints led the country in least number of personal fouls per game (11.8), ranked third in turnovers (8.9), fifth in field goal percentage (51.3%), ninth in overall total points (1661), and 11th in rebound margin per game (9.0), and 17th in free throw percentage (75.3%). Ryan Batte led the Saints ranking fifth in the country for overall total points (730), 17th for points per game (21.5), and 52nd for ball control (250 rebounds). The Saints were ranked as high as number five in the country for the highest ranking in program history. They made a run in the NAIA National Tournament, making their way to the Semi-Finals in Kansas City for the farthest run-in program history.

In the Saints 2020-2021 season, Ray helped lead the team to a 17-10 record overall and 12-8 conference record. The Saints were ranked as high as No. 20 in the NAIA Division I Coaches' Top 25 Poll. Thomas More was runners-up in the Mid-South Conference Tournament and made an appearance in the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Tournament. Reid Jolly was named NAIA All-American Honorable Mention and Mid-South Conference First Team. Ryan Batte was also named First-Team All-Conference, and Luke Rudy was named Second Team. The Saints were ranked 5th in the nation in scoring defense per game (63.519) and 8th in total rebound defense (30.704). Luke Rudy ranked No. 12 in the nation in total 3pt field goals made (77) and No. 21 in 3-pt field goals made per game (3.208). Reid Jolly ranked 18th in the nation in total scoring (527) and 43rd in points per game (19.519). Ryan Batte was ranked 22nd in total scoring (494) and 39th in field goal percentage (0.568). 

Ray coached the Saints to a 26-7 overall record and an 11-5 record in the Mid-South Conference in 2019-20. He was named Mid-South Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year as the Saints finished third in the Mid-South standings and advanced to the championship game of the Mid-South Tournament after the team was selected to finish ninth out of nine teams in the conference preseason coaches' poll. The Saints went on an 11-game winning streak from the end of the regular season into the Mid-South Conference Tournament which featured five wins over opponents ranked in the Top 25, including a 76-73 win over previously undefeated No. 1 Georgetown, the defending NAIA national champions, on February 6. Under Ray's guidance, Thomas More was ranked as high as No. 18 in the NAIA Division I Coaches' Top 25 Poll and received an at-large bid to the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship prior to the cancellation of the tournament. His Saints finished the season with the No. 1 scoring defense in NAIA Division I, allowing only 62.8 points per game. Ryan Batte was named First Team All Mid-South Conference, and Reid Jolly was named the conference's Freshman of the Year.

Ray led the Saints to a 16-9 record his first season leading the Saints. Thomas More advanced to the American Collegiate Athletic Conference (ACAA) Conference Tournament during its last season in NCAA Division III.

Ray came to Thomas More from across-the-river rival Mount St. Joseph University where he was the assistant men's basketball coach for seven seasons.  While at Mount St. Joseph, he helped lead the Lions to three conference championships, first-ever NCAA Division III Championship Tournament appearance and first-ever national ranking.  Ray has also helped the Lions' student-athletes succeed in the classroom as the team has carried a 3.2 cumulative grade point average and 100 percent graduation rate for four-year student-athletes.

Prior to MSJ, Ray served as a graduate assistant coach at NCAA Division I Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio for two seasons where he worked under current Clemson University Head Coach Brad Brownell and current Clemson University's Associate Head Coach Billy Donlon. While at Wright State, he helped the team to their fourth straight 20-win season, a Horizon League Tournament runner-up, and a second place Horizon League regular season finish behind National Runner-up Butler University.

Prior to Wright State, Ray was an assistant men's basketball coach at his alma mater NCAA Division II Christian Brothers University for one season under Hall of Fame Coach Mike Nienaber. Christian Brothers finished the 2008-09 season with a 25-7 record, captured the program's second Gulf South Conference regular season championship and then would go on to make a historic run all the way to the Elite Eight in the D-II NCAA National Tournament.

Ray played four years of college basketball and was a three-year starter and three-time team captain for Christian Brothers. He helped lead his team to a regular season championship, tournament championship and Division II NCAA National tournament berth. Ray has a top four, single-season school mark in three-point field goals made, is sixth all-time in school history in three-point field goals made (200). Christian Brothers was ranked as high as No. 8 nationally during Ray's four-year career. He was on Christian Brothers' Dean List and was awarded the Certificate of Presidential Recognition while an undergrad.

A Cincinnati, Ohio native and graduate of Oak Hills High School, Ray earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in business marketing from Christian Brothers and received his Master of Science degree in leadership development from Wright State. Ray resides in Cincinnati with his wife Sarah and their son Lincoln and daughter Laney.