BOSTON, Mass. — West Virginia College head coach Darian DeVries is the recipient of the Jim Phelan award ‘Mid-Season’ honors. The award is introduced yearly to the highest head coach in division I faculty basketball.
With simply 2.8 % of its scoring from final season’s staff returning, West Virginia was picked to complete thirteenth within the Massive 12, however DeVries has the Mountaineers poised to return to the NCAA Event after a two-year hiatus.
WVU just lately broke into the rankings at No. 21 within the AP ballot, which marked its first look within the AP ballot since Dec. 26, 2022. The Mountaineers are at present ranked No. 25 within the USA At this time Coaches ballot and No. 30 within the newest NCAA NET rankings.
DeVries, who’s 5-5 in opposition to ranked groups throughout his head teaching profession, is 3-0 at WVU with wins over No. 3 Gonzaga, at No. 7 Kansas and No. 24 Arizona. The wins over Gonzaga and Kansas marked the primary time that the Mountaineers have crushed two high 10 groups in the identical season since 2005-06.
WVU has already surpassed final season’s win complete (9) and with wins at Kansas and Colorado, the Mountaineers have matched their street win complete in convention play for the final three seasons mixed (2-25).
West Virginia is ranked No. 42 within the newest KenPom rankings, together with nineteenth in defensive effectivity. Within the newest NCAA stats, WVU ranks twelfth in blocks per sport (5.6), sixteenth in fi eld objective share protection (38.2), twentieth in scoring protection (63.4) and eleventh in 3-point share protection (27.9).
“Coach DeVries has reworked West Virginia’s program with a outstanding first-half efficiency, already surpassing final season’s win complete,” mentioned James Wilhelmi senior analyst for CollegeInsider.com and longtime NCAA coach. “His means to instill confidence and execute a transparent imaginative and prescient has energized the staff. DeVries’ management has been nothing wanting spectacular, setting a robust basis for doable run in March.”
DeVries spent the final six seasons at Drake, main the Bulldogs to 6 consecutive 20-win seasons, three Missouri Valley Convention (MVC) titles (two event and one common season) and three NCAA Event appearances. His document is 150-55 (.732) in six seasons as a head coach, together with a 55-15 (.786) mark within the final two seasons. DeVries posted a 79-33 (.705) document within the MVC.
The Jim Phelan Award is known as in honor of a legendary bow-tied coach who spent his total head teaching profession at Mount Saint Mary’s College.
Phelan graduated from La Salle College in 1951 and performed one season within the NBA with the Philadelphia Warriors. After a short skilled profession, Phelan went to Mount St. Mary’s as an assistant in 1953. One 12 months later he started his historic profession as a head coach.
He led the Mountaineers to 16 Division II NCAA tournaments. 5 instances they superior to the Last 4 and he led them to the DII Nationwide Championship in 1962.
When he retired in 2003, after teaching for 49 years, he had amassed 830 wins (total document of 830-524) in all divisions. In these 49 years, 19 of his groups amassed 20 or extra wins in a season.
In 2008 he was inducted into Nationwide Collegiate Basketball Corridor of Fame.
Phelan handed away on June 15, 2021 on the age of 92 at his house in Emmitsburg, MD.
The recipient of the annual award is set by a 10-member voting committee, which consists of present and former head coaches, in addition to two senior workers members of collegeinsider.com.
The 2025 award can be introduced in San Antonio, TX, website of the boys’s Division I Basketball Championship.
