Boston, MA – Wagner head men's basketball coach
Bashir Mason has been named a finalist for the 2021 Ben Jobe Award, which is presented annually to the top Division I minority coach.
This is the fourth time that Mason has been a finalist for the award after also being a finalist in 2017-18, 2016-16, and following his first year as Wagner's head coach in 2012-13.
Mason recently earned Jim Phelan Northeast Conference (NEC) Coach of the Year honors for leading Wagner to another regular season championship after being picked eighth in the preseason poll.
Mason entered elite territory, becoming just the second coach in the conference's 40-year history to win three Jim Phelan Coach of the Year honors, joining NEC Hall of Fame coach Howie Dickenman, who earned the distinction four times in his storied career at CCSU.
Earlier this season, Mason helped the Seahawks re-write the record books, as the Green and White won 10 straight games, marking the longest winning streak by an NEC team since LIU reeled off 13 straight victories during the 2010-11 campaign and longest by a Wagner team since a 16-game streak under PJ Carlesimo in 1978-79.
The Ben Job award is named after Coach Jobe an icon in the history of basketball at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He is best known as the head coach of the Southern University, a position he held for 12 seasons. He was also head coach at Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Talladega, Tuskegee and South Carolina State.
His record at Southern was 209-141 and included four NCAA Tournament appearances. He also coached the Jaguars to one NIT appearance, five SIAC championships, 11 SWAC titles and two NAIA Tournament Championships. Perhaps his most memorable moment as a coach was leading No. 15 seed Southern to a 93- 78 win over No. 2 Georgia Tech in the first round of the 1993 NCAA Tournament. It stands as one of the great upsets in the history of the event.
The recipient of the 2021 award will be announced on April 1.
Ben Jobe Award Finalists
| Mike Boynton |
Oklahoma State |
| Wayne Brent |
Jackson State |
| Kevin Broadus |
Morgan State |
| Isaac Brown |
Wichita State |
| Dana Ford |
Missouri State |
| Dennis Gates |
Cleveland State |
| Leonard Hamilton |
Florida State |
| Lew Hill |
UTRGV |
| Shaheen Holloway |
Saint Peter's |
| Juwan Howard |
Michigan |
| Stan Johnson |
Loyola Marymount |
| Terrence Johnson |
Texas State |
| Mike Jones |
Radford |
| Robert Jones |
Norfolk State |
| Will Jones |
North Carolina A&T |
| Rob Lanier |
Georgia State |
| Shantay Legans |
Eastern Washington |
| Mike Magpayo |
UC Riverside |
| Bashir Mason |
Wagner |
| Ritchie McKay |
Liberty |
| Lamont Paris |
Chattanooga |
| Richie Riley |
South Alabama |
| Kelvin Sampson |
Houston |
| Shaka Smart |
Texas |
| Byron Smith |
Prairie View A&M |
