Southern Wesleyan has announced that ‘Interim’ has been removed from Brian Hewitt‘s title. Effective immediately, Brian Hewitt will serve as the fourth official Head Men’s Basketball Coach for the Warriors of Southern Wesleyan. He will follow in the footsteps of Tom Shaver, Charles Wimphrie and Nick Pasqua.
“I am excited to remove the “interim” tag from Coach Brian Hewitt,” said Director of Athletics Julia Reininga. “I have seen him grow personally and professionally over the last year and a half at Southern Wesleyan University. He was brought in very late to lead this season and he did a great job of recruiting and mentoring. I am excited to watch him move the program forward in the future.”
Brian Hewitt came to the Warriors team in the fall of 2021 as the assistant men’s basketball coach. Alongside former Head Coach Nick Pasqua, Hewitt helped the Warriors go 19-10 and 16-7 in Conference Carolinas action over the 2021-22 season. Southern Wesleyan advanced to the semifinals while winning sixteen conference games, the most victories the school has seen since transitioning to Division II. During their 2021-22 campaign, the Warriors were able to defeat the #5 nationally ranked UNC Pembroke Braves, giving them their best conference win in school history.
As interim during the 2022-23 season, Brian Hewitt brought eleven new faces in to join returning Men’s Basketball athletes Marcus Long and Raevon Allen. Under his guidance, three of those players (Jamal Edmonson – 14.3, Tyrin Hollis – 13.5 and Bryson Felder – 12.5) averaged double digits in scoring during the season. Hewitt went on to bring in mid-year transfer Dyren Brown who went on to lead the team in rebounding average with 8.7 per game. The Warriors went 5-23 overall during the season, challenging to the final second in the majority of their games.
Prior to coaching for the Warriors, Hewitt served as an assistant coach at Lee University under Head Coach Ryan “Bubba” Smith. While with Lee, he assisted the staff in leading the Flames to finish second in their conference, which was their highest finish in school history. The Flames would go on to advance to the conference tournament semifinals and receive an at large bid to the national tournament before the tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
A product of King University, Hewitt went on to serve on the King Tornado coaching staff for three years under legendary coach, George Pitts. While serving as an assistant coach for the Tornado, the team went on to win two regular season conference championships and one conference tournament championship. The Tornado went on to appear in the national tournament twice while Hewitt was an assistant coach.
Over the course of his career, Hewitt has coached four First Team All-Conference athletes along with several Second and Third Team All-Conference Players. He has had one athlete named Freshman of the Year, one named Player of the Year and two named All-Region Players under his guidance.
Prior to coaching, he attended King University where he was a member of the Tornado Men’s Basketball team. During his time with the Tornado, he surpassed 1000 points and remains ranked seventh in the program with 200 made three point baskets to give him a 38.2% from beyond the arc. During his career with King, he averaged 12.3 points per game. Hewitt remains the all-time leader in school history for the Tornado in career steals (193) and assists (448). Hewitt earned his Bachelor of Arts in Sport Management from King University in 2012.
“I am extremely honored and humbled to be named the next men’s basketball coach here at Southern Wesleyan,” said Hewitt. “Most importantly I’d like to thank God for giving me the passion and tools to be able to do this. I want to thank President Barker and the Athletic Director Julia Reininga and the leadership team for believing in me to be able to represent this University well. To the coaches that have mentored me and the players that have shaped me into the coach that I am today, thank you. My family and friends, and last but certainly not least, my wife Amy for supporting me through years of trials and tribulations. She is my everything and I don’t know what I would be doing without her endless encouragement and support. We have a lot of work to do, but I am excited for the challenge and grateful for the opportunity to lead this program and these young men into a successful future. It’s only the beginning. Go Warriors.”
