The 2013-14 Chattanooga Mocs men’s basketball season was one of renewed enthusiasm for the program. The promise of the campaigns to come has not gone unnoticed.
Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics David Blackburn noted as much announcing the extension of the contract for Head Coach Will Wade.
“Will really met and exceeded expectations in his first season,” Blackburn said. “We want to win in every area, and his program took great strides forward on the court and in the classroom, while continuing to build on a great reputation in the community.
“We look forward to what lies ahead.”
The extension to Wade’s pact now runs five years through the 2018-19 season.
“I appreciate the support David Blackburn and Chancellor Dr. Steve Angle, have for our program,” Wade acknowledged. “Their commitment is pivotal as we build a team that our students, alumni and fans can take pride in.
“Our student-athletes bought into what we wanted to do,” he added. “They believed in our staff and did a fantastic job of being ready to play as the season progressed.
“While I am proud of what our players did this past season, I am most thankful that our administration recognizes their growth and made a commitment to us moving forward.”
Wade’s Mocs went 18-15 in 2013-14. That included a 12-4 record in regular season Southern Conference play with a second-place finish. The 18 wins overall are the most by the program since 2008-09 and the 12 wins in league games is the highest total since 2010-11.
Wade won the Anton Foy Southern Conference Coach of the Year award for his efforts, which is the first such honor for a Mocs mentor since Mack McCarthy in 1993. Z. Mason (Nashville, Tenn.) became the first Chattanooga student-athlete to win the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year award as he blocked a school-record 92 shots. Mason and Casey Jones (New Orleans, La.) each earned All-SoCon mention as well.
The 18 wins did not come against a soft schedule. All totaled, the Mocs faced seven teams that reached postseason play including a 2-1 record against NCAA Tournament squads. Their 10-game winning streak from the end of December through the end of January was the longest by the school since 1996-97.
Wade’s student-athletes took great strides forward in the classroom. There were two Dean’s List students in Eric Robertson (Huntsville, Ala.) and Ronrico White (Knoxville, Tenn.), while Tre’ McLean (Charleston, S.C.) and Greg Pryor (Memphis, Tenn.) earned the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll. Robertson brought home an impressive 4.0 as the returning student-athletes from 2013-14 tallied a 2.93 grade point average.
The Mocs were stellar in the community as well. Wade speaks regularly to student and civic groups and was the keynote speaker for the University’s fall convocation. His team went door-to-door engaging the student body prior to the season.
The program led the Southern Conference in attendance, proving the strong tie to the campus and the city. The largest crowd since 2009 rolled through the turnstiles as nearly 6,700 fans watched Chattanooga capture a key SoCon win over UNCG in January.
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