The Winthrop Eagles men's basketball team represents

Winthrop University Winthrop University is a public university in Rock Hill, South Carolina. It was founded in 1886 by David Bancroft Johnson, who served as the superintendent of Columbia, South Carolina, schools. He received a grant from Robert Charles Winthrop, ...

in Rock Hill,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, United States and competes in the

Big South Conference The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I. Originally a non-football conference, the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 as part of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). Th ...

. Winthrop plays their home games in the 6,100 seat

Winthrop Coliseum Winthrop Coliseum is a 6,100-seat multi-purpose arena in Rock Hill, South Carolina. It was built in 1982 and is home to the Winthrop University Eagles basketball and volleyball teams. The facility accommodates conventions, trade shows, concerts, ...

. Winthrop has appeared in 11 NCAA Tournaments and has won 11 conference season championships, 13 conference tournament championships, and 1 conference division title. The Eagles have played 44 seasons of basketball since their inaugural 1978–79 campaign.

Team history

Rise to mid-major prominence

During the late 1990s and 2000s, Winthrop established itself as one of the most successful mid-major programs in college basketball, reaching the NCAA Tournament eight times in 10 seasons. From 1998 to 2008, the Eagles posted a 216–95 overall record and went 114–28 in Big South play. During this stretch, Winthrop defeated programs from high major conferences like the ACC ( Clemson,

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

), Big East ( Marquette,

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, Notre Dame,

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

), and SEC (

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univers ...

). Since 2009, Winthrop has defeated over 30 non-conference D1 teams including:

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

(SEC), Clemson (ACC),

East Carolina East Carolina University (ECU) is a public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina. Founded on March 8, 1907, as a teacher training school, East Carolina has grown from its orig ...

East Tennessee State East Tennessee State University (ETSU) is a Public university, public research university in Johnson City, Tennessee. Although it is part of the State University and Community College System of Tennessee, the university is governed by an instit ...

, Furman,

Georgia Southern Georgia Southern University (GS or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The flagship campus is in Statesboro, and other locations include the Armstrong Campus in Savannah and the Liberty Campus in Hin ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

(Big 10),

James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...

Manhattan College Manhattan College is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university in the Bronx, New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Christian Brothers) as an academy for day students, it was la ...

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

Saint Mary's St. Mary's, St. Marys, or St. Maries may refer to the following places: Australia * St Marys, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** St Marys railway station, Sydney ** North St Marys, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * St Marys, South Austra ...

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

UNC Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand-al ...

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, Wake Forest (ACC),

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

(PAC 12), and William & Mary. Winthrop beat the ACC, SEC, PAC 12, and Big 10 schools at the opposing school.

Neild Gordon era (1978–1986)

Winthrop's first head coach, Neild Gordon, recorded 25 wins and 10 losses in the Eagle's first season. He finished with an average win percentage of .615 and 20 wins per season during his tenure at WU. Gordon was later inducted into Winthrop University's Athletics Hall of Fame, the

Furman University Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...

Athletic Hall of Fame, the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

(NAIA) Halls of Fame, and the

South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame The South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame is an athletics hall of fame in the U.S. state of South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" ...

Steve Vacendak era (1986–1992)

Former

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

point guard and ACC Player of the Year, Steve Vacendak coached the Eagles from 1986 to 1992. In Winthrop's second season as a Division I program, he led the 4th seeded eagles to their first Big South tournament victory.

Dan Kenney era (1993–1998)

Dan Kenney was the head coach of the Eagles during the mid-1990s and finished his tenure with a record of 51-113. WU athletic director Tom Hickman reportedly said that Kenney "graduated his players, ran a clean, upstanding program and did everything first class but had to be relieved of his coaching duties because the school could no longer carry his losing record."

Gregg Marshall era (1998–2007)

Gregg Marshall Michael Gregg Marshall (born February 27, 1963) is an American college basketball coach whose most recent position was head coach at Wichita State University. Marshall has coached his teams to appearances in the NCAA Division I men's basketball ...

coached the Eagles from 1998 to 2007, engineering one of the great program turnarounds in NCAA history. In just his first season at the helm, he led the Eagles to a 21–8 record and an appearance in the

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

Men's Division 1 Tournament. This success continued as his team would go on to make the Tournament in each of the next three seasons, establishing a winning tradition that would last into the 2010s. Overall, he posted a 194–83 overall record during his nine-year tenure. Marshall led the Eagles to a 104–24 conference record, six Big South season titles, and seven Big South tournament titles. Winthrop appeared in seven NCAA Tournaments, posted six 20-win seasons, and averaged 21.5 victories per year during the Marshall Era. In April 2007, Marshall left Winthrop to become the head coach at

Wichita State Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...

Randy Peele era (2007–2012)

Randy Peele Randy Peele (born June 12, 1957) is an American college basketball coach. Peele served as the head men's basketball coach at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro from 1995 to 1999 and Winthrop University to 2007 to 2012. Biography Peele ...

posted a 77–82 overall record (48–38 Big South) as head coach from 2007 to 2012. He led the Eagles to one Big South season title and two Big South tournament titles. Winthrop appeared in two NCAA Tournaments and notched one 20-win season under Peele's leadership. Randy Peele was relieved of his coaching duties at Winthrop on March 5, 2012.

Pat Kelsey era (2012–2021)

Former Xavier and Wake Forest assistant

Pat Kelsey Patrick Kelsey (born May 15, 1975) is an American college basketball coach. He is the current head men's basketball coach at the College of Charleston. Playing career Kelsey played high school basketball at Roger Bacon High School in Cincinnati ...

was announced as Winthrop's new coach on March 29, 2012. Over nine seasons with the Eagles, Kelsey went 186–95 (.662) overall and 110–46 (.705) in the Big South and led Winthrop to three Big South season championships (2016, 2017, 2021), three Big South tournament championships (2017, 2020, 2021), and three Big South Tournament runner-up finishes (2014, 2015, 2016). In 2020–21, Kelsey's last season with the team, the Eagles went nearly undefeated, finishing 23-2, and led the Big South in assists, steals, points per game, scoring margin, offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, and rebounding offense. Winthrop Coliseum 2

Under Kelsey, the Eagles' style of play exhibited a fast-paced, high scoring offense and pack line defense. Kelsey's Eagles broke multiple school records in categories such as free throw accuracy, blocked shots, three-pointers made, offensive pace, and points scored in a single game. With the help of assistant coaches like Brian Kloman, Kelsey developed a successful local and international recruiting pipeline and signed some of the top players in WU's history. This includes Winthrop's all-time leading rebounder and shot-blocker,

Xavier Cooks Xavier Cooks (born 19 August 1995) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Sydney Kings of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Winthrop Eagles, where he was named the 2018 Big South Confe ...

, and Winthrop's all-time leading scorer, Keon Johnson. Kelsey's program signed D2 transfer

Chandler Vaudrin Chandler Reed Vaudrin (born June 26, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Motor City Cruise of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Walsh Cavaliers and the Winthrop Eagles. High school career Vaudrin atten ...

, the then college national leader in triple-doubles, Josh Corbin and Jamal King, two

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

3-star recruits, and D.J. Burns Jr., an

4-star recruit and transfer from the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

. In March 2021, Kelsey left Winthrop to become the head coach at the

College of Charleston The College of Charleston (CofC or Charleston) is a public university in Charleston, South Carolina. Founded in 1770 and chartered in 1785, it is the oldest university in South Carolina, the 13th oldest institution of higher learning in the Unit ...

Mark Prosser era (2021–present)

In April 2021,

Mark Prosser Mark Prosser is an American college basketball coach and current head coach of the Winthrop Eagles men's basketball team. Playing career Prosser played one season of basketball at Marist before injuries stopped a playing career. He continued on ...

, former Winthrop assistant and son of

Skip Prosser George Edward "Skip" Prosser (November 3, 1950 – July 26, 2007) was an American college basketball coach who was head men's basketball coach at Wake Forest University at the time of his death. He was the only coach in NCAA history to take three s ...

, returned to take the head coach position vacated by Pat Kelsey. Six games into his first season, the Eagles beat the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

to notch Prosser's first win as head coach at WU against a Power 5 conference and Winthrop's first win ever against a

PAC-12 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

team. Additionally, the 2021-2022 team went undefeated at home (13-0) and finished first in the South Division.

2007 Season: Top 25 and Round of 32

Winthrop's greatest success to date was in 2007, as it went 29–5 under Coach Marshall and finished #22 nationally in both the AP and Coaches' Final Polls. The Eagles posted a perfect 14–0 mark in conference play, winning the Big South regular season championship. Notable regular season non-conference victories included wins against

and

Old Dominion Old Dominion most commonly refers to: *The Old Dominion, a nickname for the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia ** Colony of Virginia *Old Dominion University, a public university in Norfolk, Virginia **Old Dominion Monarchs, the athletic teams represe ...

. Each of Winthrop's four regular season losses came at the hand of a Top 25 opponent, with two of the games decided by single-digit margins. They lost to the #2 program in the country (

UNC UNC is a three-letter abbreviation that may refer to: Education * University of Northern California (disambiguation), which may refer to: ** University of Northern California (Santa Rosa), in Petaluma, California, United States ** University of Nor ...

) by seven points. After winning the Big South Tournament, the Eagles were given a #11 seed in the NCAA Tournament and a First Round matchup against #6 seed Notre Dame. On March 16, 2007 (day before

St. Patrick's Day Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick ( ga, Lá Fhéile Pádraig, lit=the Day of the Festival of Patrick), is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patr ...

), Winthrop defeated the Irish by a score of 74–64, becoming the first Big South men's basketball team to win an NCAA Tournament First Round game. In the Round of 32, the Eagles lost to #3 seed

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

by a score of 75–61 to close out their season.

Postseason

NCAA tournament results

Winthrop has appeared in 11 NCAA Tournaments and has a combined record of 1–11. The Eagles advanced to the Round of 32 in 2007, the only Big South team ever to do so.

Conference Championships

*1988 Big South (tourney) – Winthrop went 17–13 overall and won the Big South Tournament. *1999 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 21–8 overall and 9–1 in Big South. *2000 Big South (tourney) – Winthrop went 21–9 overall and 11–3 in Big South. *2001 Big South (tourney) – Winthrop went 18–13 overall and 11–3 in Big South. *2002 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 19–12 overall and 10–4 in Big South. *2003 Big South (season) – Winthrop went 20–10 overall and 11–3 in Big South. *2005 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 27–6 overall and 15–1 in Big South. *2006 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 23–8 overall and 13–3 in Big South. *2007 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 29–5 overall and 14–0 in Big South. *2008 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 22–12 overall and 10–4 in Big South. *2010 Big South (tourney) – Winthrop went 19–14 overall and 12–6 in Big South. *2016 Big South (season) – Winthrop went 23–9 overall and 13–5 in Big South. *2017 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 26–6 overall and 15–3 in Big South. *2020 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 24–10 overall and 15–3 in Big South. *2021 Big South (season & tourney) – Winthrop went 23-2 overall and 17-1 in Big South. *2022 Big South (division) – Winthrop went 23-9 overall and 16-2 in Big South.

Facilities

Winthrop Coliseum (1982–present): 6,100-seat multi-purpose arena in

Rock Hill, South Carolina Rock Hill is the largest city in York County, South Carolina and the fifth-largest city in the state. It is also the fourth-largest city of the Charlotte metropolitan area, behind Charlotte, Concord, and Gastonia (all located in North Carolina, ...

Player awards

Big South Men's Basketball Player of the Year

* Fred McKinnon (1986) * Greg Lewis (2002) * Keon Johnson (2017) *

(2018) *

(2021) *D.J. Burns, Jr. (2022)

Big South Men's Basketball Freshman of the Year

* Tyson Waterman (1996) *Tyrone Walker (2001) *D.J. Burns Jr. (2020)

Big South Men's Basketball Defensive Player of the Year

* Mantoris Robinson (2009 & 2010)

Big South Men's Basketball All-Decade Team (2010-2019)

* Keon Johnson (2017) *

(2018)

Kyle Macy Freshman All-America Award

* D.J. Burns Jr. (2020)

National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) First Team (District 3)

(2021)

NCAA Season Statistical Leaders

* 2006-07 - James Shuler made 18 out of 18 free-throws in a single game to lead the nation in highest single game free-throw percentage. * 2007-08 - Michael Jenkins made 12 three-point shots in a single game to lead the nation in most three-point field goals made in a single game. *2018-19 - Winthrop averaged 12.4 made threes to lead the nation in three-point field goals per game. *2019-20 - Chase Claxton shot 81.2% to lead the nation in two-point shooting average. *2019-20 - Winthrop had 1388 rebounds to lead the nation in total rebounds. *2020-21 -

led the nation in triple-doubles at 3 in total.

NBA Summer League Players

* Pierre Wooten -

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

Charlotte Bobcats Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populous ...

, and

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* Michael Jenkins -

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The t ...

* Jimmy Gavin -

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

and

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

* Adonis Arms -

FIBA World Cup Players

Craig Bradshaw Craig Robert Bradshaw (born 28 July 1983) is a New Zealand former professional basketball player. Bradshaw played four years of college basketball at Winthrop University in the United States before playing professionally with clubs in New Zeala ...

- New Zealand (2006) *

- Australia (2019). Cooks made the

Australian Boomers The Australian men's national basketball team, known as the Boomers after the slang term for a male kangaroo, represents Australia in international basketball competition. Since the late 1980s, Australia has been placed among the world elite t ...

team but did not compete in the 2019 World Cup due to an injury.

Olympians

, power-forward and center for the Eagles from 2003 to 2007, played with New Zealand in the 2004 and 2008 Olympic games. *

was named as one of three replacement players for the

team for the

2020 Tokyo Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...

References

External links

*
Basketball Training
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winthrop Eagles Men's Basketball