MBB: NESCAC

[Patrick Coleman]

Bit of NESCAC-adjacent coaching news while still waiting for the Colby process to shake out - Amherst alum Kevin Hopkins is no longer the Muhlenberg head coach ...

He did make a public statement on Facebook today but that's been on our Coaching Carousel for more than a month.

[CWM_42]

https://colbyathletics.com/news/2026/4/30/mens-basketball-mclaughlin-to-lead-colby-mens-basketball-program.aspx

[Maine Hoops]

Anyone know if Coach Strahorn has landed a coaching job?

[Stickthe3]

He has not, but he'll be running his Pine Tree Camp out of the Hyde School in Bath this year.

[nescac1]

James Lafrance ends up transferring to D2 University of Tampa.  Dylan Watson is still available in the portal, and if Conn College loses him as well, that's a brutal off-season.

Seems like a very strong (and long-expected) hire for Colby.  McLaughlin is certainly a very proven coach and has an elite resume for a D3 hire.  He will be without Civello and top recruit Nolan Ames, but there is still a fair amount of veteran talent returning at Colby and even without Ames, a solid incoming class of recruits that he will inherit. 

[el_jefe_90]

@nescac1 - I heard Watson may have D2 Nova Southeastern on his radar. They have been a D2 power over the last few years. They are in the same conference as U of Tampa. Would be fun to see those two possibly square off against each other.

[SpringSt7]

Will Davies (NE10 player of the year) from Saint Anselm is rumored to be transferring to Vermont ($100K+) and will have two years of eligibility remaining. He would have had D1 interest regardless of the upcoming transition from D2 to D3. I'm sure a handful of other players on the roster will be on the move too - with some potentially making moves to D3 schools in New England. 

Their whole rotation is already transferring to D1 schools this offseason and I don't think the transition down will affect anyone on the current roster. The entire staff will probably leave too. This will have as much effect on the NE D3 scene as Hartford did IMO

I'm curious why you think the staff will leave.  I doubt the pay scale will be much different in d3 than it was in d2, especially if they aim to be on par with top schools in New England.  I'm not saying they won't look elsewhere, but the lead assistant came from Trinity and graduated from Springfield and the other assistant is a St. A alum and definitely in the second half of his career.  What they're paying the HC might be on the higher end of d3 salaries, but I doubt it's outrageous.

They might all leave, but there's also plenty of reason to stay.

https://saintanselmhawks.com/news/2026/5/1/mens-basketball-saint-anselm-announces-leadership-transition-in-mens-basketball-program.aspx

[D3BBALL]

Will Davies (NE10 player of the year) from Saint Anselm is rumored to be transferring to Vermont ($100K+) and will have two years of eligibility remaining. He would have had D1 interest regardless of the upcoming transition from D2 to D3. I'm sure a handful of other players on the roster will be on the move too - with some potentially making moves to D3 schools in New England. 

Their whole rotation is already transferring to D1 schools this offseason and I don't think the transition down will affect anyone on the current roster. The entire staff will probably leave too. This will have as much effect on the NE D3 scene as Hartford did IMO

I'm curious why you think the staff will leave.  I doubt the pay scale will be much different in d3 than it was in d2, especially if they aim to be on par with top schools in New England.  I'm not saying they won't look elsewhere, but the lead assistant came from Trinity and graduated from Springfield and the other assistant is a St. A alum and definitely in the second half of his career.  What they're paying the HC might be on the higher end of d3 salaries, but I doubt it's outrageous.

They might all leave, but there's also plenty of reason to stay.

https://saintanselmhawks.com/news/2026/5/1/mens-basketball-saint-anselm-announces-leadership-transition-in-mens-basketball-program.aspx

I think great choice for St A's with Witter as new coach. Former D3 player, former D3 assistant coach and Witter in 2 years at Trinity helped recruit, Vetter, Lazarre, Okorougo and McDonald in his first year and then Davis and Berry in his 2nd season. Pretty darn good 6 players over 2 years.