Kay Named Coach Of The Year, Seniors Honored At Small College Basketball Coaches Association Dinner
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. -- Penn State Brandywine head men's basketball coach Ben Kay was named coach of the year, while the team's four seniors were honored by the Sam Cozen Small College Basketball Coaches Association at its end-of-year dinner on Monday night.
Kay, whose team posted a 21-8 record during his first season at Brandywine, ushered one of the most remarkable turnarounds in college basketball in 2017-18. Brandywine won its first-ever Penn State University Athletic Conference title and matched the 2005-06 squad for the second-highest, single-season win total in program history one season after finishing with a 6-19 record. Prior to Kay's arrival, Brandywine had won just 20 games total during the previous four seasons.
The Lions won 13 conference games during the regular season for the first time since 2005-06 and finished second overall in the PSUAC standings.
Playing in their first conference title game in 27 years, Kay's Lions knocked off Penn State Wilkes Barre 72-63 on their home floor to capture the league crown and automatic bid to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament. Seeded fifth during the USCAA Tournament, Brandywine bested NHTI 91-86 in overtime to reach the national semifinals, becoming the first men's team from Brandywine to accomplish the feat.
Under Kay's direction, Brandywine led the conference and tied for ninth nationally in scoring at 84.0 points per game. The Lions reached 100 points on three occasions with their high mark coming in a 117-66 victory over Davis College on Nov. 30. Brandywine's 117 points were its highest total since 1970 and most ever against a four-year opponent.
Brandywine four seniors, Terrence Brown (Philadelphia, Pa./Communications Tech), James Fisher (Philadelphia, Pa./Upper Darby), Isaiah Lester (Morton, Pa./Ridley) and Donte Winfield (Philadelphia, Pa./Simon Gratz), all played a major role in helping the team win the conference title.
Brown, a First Team USCAA All-American and First Team All-PSUAC performer, led the team in scoring (18.6 ppg) and rebounding (8.2), while playing in all 28 games. Brown scored 20 points in six-straight games during the middle of the season and collected 13 overall, while also recording nine double-doubles.
One of the top shooters in the conference, Fisher added 16.1 points per outing after shooting 35 percent from beyond the arc this season. He became the sixth men's basketball player at Brandywine to reach 1,000 career points in December and finished his 84-game stint third all-time in scoring with 1,225 points.
Winfield, Brandywine's starting point guard, produced 15.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. His 32-point, 21-rebound performance, the first-ever 30-point, 20-rebound game by a Lion, against NHTI helped propel the team into the national semifinals. Winfield's 21 rebounds set a single-game school record.
Lester appeared in all 28 games for Brandywine, aveaging 3.2 points per outing. He buried six triples and netted a career-high 22 points overall in the Lions' PSUAC semifinal victory over Penn State York, helping push Brandywine into the conference title game.
