KANSAS CITY – UTSA head men's basketball coach Steve Henson has been named the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) District 11 Coach of the Year, the organization announced Wednesday. District 11 encompasses Conference USA, and unlike Conference USA Coach of the Year, the district voting is limited to head coaches only.
Henson, who was also named the Conference USA Gene Bartow Coach of the Year, is the first UTSA head coach to earned the NABC district honor. In just his second season the Junction City, Kan., native has led UTSA to a complete turnaround, winning 20 games this season, including a win in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.
Henson guided UTSA to its best finish in five years as a member of Conference USA, posting an 11-7 league record and a fifth-place showing in the regular season. Just two years after taking over a program that had won five games, he has led the team to the school's first winning season since the 2011-12 campaign and the most victories since the 2010-11 season. He has also helped build a strong home court advantage for the Roadrunners, going a combined 23-3 at the Convocation Center.
The Roadrunners success this season is due largely to a number of key first-year members that Henson brought to the program. A UTSA frosh was named the Conference USA Freshman of the Week 10 times this season, with Jhivvan Jackson earning seven plaudits and Keaton Wallace three. Jackson was named C-USA Freshman of the Year and second team All-Conference after setting a new UTSA freshman scoring record, while Wallace, the team's third-leading scorer was listed on the All-Freshman squad. Additionally, junior guard transfer Deon Lyle stepped in to become the team's leading 3-point shooter and second-leading scorer en route to earning C-USA Sixth Player of the Year.
In addition to the newcomers, senior Austin Karrer has proved to be a steady and claiming presence on the floor and junior Nick Allen has transformed his game and is averaging career highs in both scoring and rebounding.
In the two seasons under Henson, UTSA's RPI has improved from 347 in 2015-15 to 264 in 2016-17 to 186 this season, while the Roadrunners' pace of play, points per game and rebounding percentages have also improved drastically.
Henson leads the Roadrunners onto the Convocation Center court on Thursday, March 22 against Sam Houston State as the program continues its pursuit of a CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament Championship.
2018 NABC ALL-DISTRICT COACHES FOR NCAA DIVISION I
District 1 – John Becker, Vermont / Kevin Baggett, Rider
District 2 – Tony Bennett, Virginia
District 3 – Mike Jones, Radford
District 4 – Dan Hurley, Rhode Island
District 5 – Chris Mack, Xavier
District 6 – Travis DeCuire, Montana
District 7 – Chris Holtmann, Ohio State
District 8 – Bill Self, Kansas
District 9 – Mark Few, Gonzaga
District 10 – Bill Coen, Northeastern
District 11 – Steve Henson, UTSA
District 12 – Scott Nagy, Wright State
District 13 – Steve Donahue, Penn
District 14 – Nate Oats, Buffalo
District 15 – Jay Joyner, North Carolina A&T
District 16 – Porter Moser, Loyola Chicago
District 17 – Eric Musselman, Nevada
District 18 – Bashir Mason, Wagner
District 19 – Matt McMahon, Murray State
District 20 – Mike Hopkins, Washington
District 21 – Rick Barnes, Tennessee
District 22 – Wes Miller, UNCG
District 23 – Donte Jackson, Grambling
District 24 – Bob Marlin, Louisiana
District 25 – Kelvin Sampson, Houston
About the National Association of Basketball Coaches
Located in Kansas City, MO, the NABC was founded in 1927 by Phog Allen, the legendary basketball coach at the University of Kansas. Allen, a student of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, organized coaches into this collective group to serve as Guardians of the Game. The NABC currently has nearly 5,000 members consisting primarily of university and college men's basketball coaches. All members of the NABC are expected to uphold the core values of being a Guardian of the Game by bringing attention to the positive aspects of the sport of basketball and the role coaches play in the academic and athletic lives of today's student-athletes. The four core values of being a Guardian of the Game are advocacy, leadership, service and education. Additional information about the NABC, its programs and membership, can be found at www.nabc.com.