Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year

The Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year is a basketball award given to head coaches in the Northeast Conference (NEC). The award is presented to the head coach voted to be the most successful that season by the league's coaches. The award was first given following the 1982–83 season, the second year of the conference's existence, to Matt Furjanic of Robert Morris.[1]

Jim Phelan NEC Men's Basketball Coach of the Year
Awarded forthe most outstanding men's basketball head coach in the Northeast Conference
CountryUnited States
History
First award1982–83
Most recentChris Kraus, Stonehill

Howie Dickenman of Central Connecticut has won the most awards with four. Bashir Mason of Wagner has won three, and seven other coaches have won the award twice. One former NEC Coach of the Year has been inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach: Jim Phelan (inducted 2001). Due to Phelan's success, in 2003 the NEC men's basketball coach of the year award was named in his honor.[2] Also of note, the only year when the award was shared was in 1993 with Jim Phelan and Kevin Bannon as winners. The program with the most winners, both by total awards and distinct recipients, is former member Robert Morris, with six awards won by four coaches. Among current members, Wagner has the most by both criteria, with three coaches combining to win five awards. The only current NEC members without a winner are Sacred Heart, members since 1999, and Le Moyne, which plays its first NEC season in 2023–24.

Winners edit

Season Coach School Conference
Record
Conference
Standing
Overall
Record
Postseason Source(s)
1982–83 Matt Furjanic Robert Morris 12–2 1st (South Division) 23–8 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1983–84 Mark Amatucci Loyola 10–6 T-3rd 16–12 [1]
1984–85 Tom Green Fairleigh Dickinson 10–4 2nd 21–10 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1985–86 Tom Green (2) Fairleigh Dickinson 13–3 1st 22–8 [1]
1986–87 Dave Magarity Marist 15–1 1st 20–10 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1987–88 Wayne Szoke Monmouth 11–5 T-3rd 16–13 [1]
1988–89 Jarrett Durham Robert Morris 12–4 1st 21–9 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1989–90 Jarrett Durham (2) Robert Morris 12–4 1st 22–8 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1990–91 Rich Zvosec St. Francis (NY) 8–8 T-5th 15–14 [1]
1991–92 Tim Capstraw Wagner 9–7 4th 16–12 [1]
1992–93 Kevin Bannon Rider 14–4 1st 19–11 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
Jim Phelan Mount St. Mary's 10–8 T-3rd 14–16 [1]
1993–94 Kevin Bannon (2) Rider 14–4 1st 21–9 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1994–95 Dave Magarity (2) Marist 12–6 T-2nd 17–11 [1]
1995–96 Jim Phelan (2) Mount St. Mary's 16–2 1st 21–8 NIT first round [1]
1996–97 Ray Haskins Long Island 15–3 1st 21–9 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
1997–98 Ron Ganulin St. Francis (NY) 10–6 T-3rd 15–12 [1]
1998–99 Tom Sullivan UMBC 17–3 1st 19–9 [1]
1999–2000 Howie Dickenman Central Connecticut 15–3 1st 25–6 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2000–01 Dave Calloway Monmouth 15–5 2nd 21–10 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2001–02 Howie Dickenman (2) Central Connecticut 19–1 1st 26–5 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2002–03 Dereck Whittenburg Wagner 14–4 1st 21–11 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2003–04 Ron Ganulin (2) St. Francis (NY) 12–6 1st 15–3 [1]
2004–05 Jim Ferry Long Island 10–8 4th 14–15 [1]
2005–06 Howie Dickenman (3) Central Connecticut 13–5 2nd 18–11 [1]
2006–07 Howie Dickenman (4) Central Connecticut 16–2 1st 22–12 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2007–08 Mike Rice Jr. Robert Morris 15–3 1st 24–11 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2008–09 Mike Rice Jr. (2) Robert Morris 15–3 1st 23–12 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[1]
2009–10 Tom Moore Quinnipiac 15–3 1st 23–10 NIT first round [1]
2010–11 Jim Ferry (2) Long Island 16–2 1st 27–6 NEC Champions
NCAA second round
[1]
2011–12 Glenn Braica St. Francis Brooklyn 12–6 4th 15–15 [1]
2012–13 Tim O'Shea Bryant 12–6 T-2nd 19–11 CBI first round [1]
2013–14 Andrew Toole Robert Morris 14–2 1st 22–14 NIT second round [1]
2014–15 Glenn Braica (2) St. Francis Brooklyn 15–3 1st 23–12 NIT first round [3]
2015–16 Bashir Mason Wagner 13–5 1st 23–11 NIT second round [4]
2016–17 Jamion Christian Mount St. Mary's 14–4 1st 20–16 NEC Champions
NCAA first round
[5]
2017–18 Bashir Mason (2) Wagner 14–4 1st 23–10 NIT first round [6]
2018–19 Rob Krimmel Saint Francis (PA) 12–6 T-1st 18–15 NIT first round [7]
2019–20 Joe Gallo Merrimack 14–4 1st 20–11 NEC Regular-Season Champions[a] [8]
2020–21 Bashir Mason (3) Wagner 13–5 1st 13–7 [9]
2021–22 Jared Grasso Bryant 16–2 1st 22–10 NEC Champions
NCAA First Four
[10]
2022–23 Chris Kraus Stonehill 10–6 T-2nd 14–17 [b] [11]
2023–24 Patrick Sellers Central Connecticut 13–3 T-1st TBD TBD [12]

Winners by school edit

Years in this table reflect calendar years in which basketball seasons end. Since the basketball season spans two calendar years, each school's first year of membership in this table is the calendar year after its actual arrival in the conference.

School (NEC participation) Winners Years
Robert Morris (1982–2020) 6 1983, 1989, 1990, 2008, 2009, 2014
St. Francis Brooklyn (1982–2023) 5 1991, 1998, 2004, 2012, 2015
Wagner (1982–present) 5 1992, 2003, 2016, 2018, 2021
Central Connecticut (1997–present) 5 2000, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2024
LIU (1982–present)[c] 3 1997, 2005, 2011
Mount St. Mary's (1989–2022) 3 1993, 1996, 2017
Fairleigh Dickinson (1982–present) 2 1985, 1986
Marist (1981–1997) 2 1987, 1995
Monmouth (1985–2013) 2 1988, 2001
Rider (1992–1997) 2 1993, 1994
Bryant (2008–2022) 2 2013, 2022
Loyola (1981–1989) 1 1984
Merrimack (2020–present) 1 2020
Quinnipiac (1998–2013) 1 2010
Saint Francis (1982–present) 1 2019
Stonehill (2022–present) 1 2023
Le Moyne (2024–present) 0
Sacred Heart (1999–present) 0
Notes
  1. ^ Because Merrimack was in the first season of its four-year transition from NCAA Division II to Division I, it was not eligible for NCAA-sponsored postseason play (either the NCAA Tournament or NIT), and under NEC rules was also ineligible for the conference tournament. The Warriors were eligible to compete in non-NCAA postseason events, but all postseason play was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  2. ^ Because Stonehill was in the first season of its four-year transition from NCAA Division II to Division I, it was not eligible for NCAA-sponsored postseason play (either the NCAA Tournament or NIT), and under NEC rules was also ineligible for the conference tournament.
  3. ^ From 1981 to 2019, Long Island University was represented in the Northeast Conference by its Brooklyn campus, known for athletic purposes as "Long Island" through the 2012–13 season and "LIU Brooklyn" from 2013–14 forward. After the 2018–19 season, LIU merged the athletic programs of its Brooklyn and Post campuses into a single program, now competing as the LIU Sharks, that inherited the NCAA Division I and Northeast Conference memberships of the Brooklyn campus.

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah "NEC men's basketball record book 1982-2014" (PDF). northeastconference.org. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
  2. ^ "NEC Hall of Fame- Jim Phelan". northeastconference.org. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
  3. ^ "St. Francis Brooklyn's Glenn Braica Named District 18 NABC Coach of the Year". NortheastConference.org. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Bashir Mason Named 2015-16 Jim Phelan Northeast Conference Coach Of The Year; Carey & Henson Named To Second Team". wagnerathletics.com. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  5. ^ "Jamion Christian Named NEC Coach of the Year; Elijah Long Named First Team All-NEC; Junior Robinson Second Team All-NEC". mountathletics.com. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  6. ^ "Mount St. Mary's Junior Robinson Named NEC Men's Basketball Player of the Year". northeastconference.org. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  7. ^ "SFU'S Keith Braxton named NEC men's basketball player of the year" (Press release). Northeast Conference. March 5, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  8. ^ "Saint Francis U's Isaiah Blackmon Tabbed NEC Men's Basketball Player of the Year" (Press release). Northeast Conference. March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  9. ^ "NEC Men's Basketball Player of the Year Alex Morales Highlights Wagner Awards Haul" (Press release). Northeast Conference. March 5, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  10. ^ "Two-For-2: Wagner's Alex Morales Repeats As #NECMBB Player of the Year". Northeast Conference. March 1, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  11. ^ "Two of a Kind: SFU's Josh Cohen & Merrimack's Jordan Minor Share #NECMBB Player of the Year Honors". Northeast Conference. February 28, 2023. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  12. ^ "2023–24 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Award Winners" (PDF). Northeast Conference. March 5, 2024. Retrieved March 6, 2024.