Manor College Men’s Basketball: A Comprehensive History
With national All-Americans and championship appearances, Manor College’s Men’s Basketball team is one of the longest and most successful squads on campus.
By Steven Glassman, Manor College Director of Sports Information
Manor’s Men’s Basketball team is one of the Blue Jays’ longest running and most successful athletics programs on campus.
Its history is filled with championship appearances and national players of the year. With an appearance in the USCAA National Championship Tournament in the 2021-22 season, the program continues to have a bright future.
Here’s how the squad developed into who they are today.
Early Beginnings
Manor College Men’s Basketball made its debut in the 1990-1991 season under head coach Dave Foody. The team finished its inaugural season 8-8.
The Blue Jays had their first taste of success during the 1994-95 season with Rich Casey at the helm. The team reached the Eastern Pennsylvania Collegiate Conference quarterfinals with an 8-8 record. Freshman Mark Cunningham became the first Blue Jay to receive a post-season award after he was named the Sam Cozen Junior College Player of the Year and All-EPCC Second Team.
In Casey’s third season, Manor reached lofty heights with a 22-4 record, including 15-1 in the EPCC. The Blue Jays were undefeated at home (9-0) as the EPCC Regular Season Champions. They lost in the finals of the 1996-97 EPCC postseason tournament.
Joe Heinbach, Sr. took over the team in 1997 and went on to become Manor’s longest tenured head coach. Under his guidance, the team qualified for the EPCC tournament 10 times and the National Junior College Athletic Association tournament in its first season in 2008-09.
Heinbach holds the school record for wins (170) and conference victories (145). Manor reached the championship game three times during that span.
The best player through those years – and arguably the best in Manor’s history – is Aaron Brown ‘06. He holds the distinction of being the institution’s only 1,000 point scorer. Brown is also the school record holder in career points (1,202), points in a season (671) and points per game in a season (30.5).
Manor College began a new era in the 2008-09 season when the school became a member of the NJCAA. The Blue Jays made their debut on Nov. 7, 2008, defeating Penn State-Schuykill 74-67 in the Turnpike Tournament in Pittsburgh. Manor won the tournament the next day, defeating Luzerne County Community College, 75-47.
The Blue Jays qualified for the NJCAA Region XIX Division II Postseason Tournament in its first NJCAA season. They defeated Mercer County Community College 58-57 on Feb. 21, 2009 for its first postseason victory.
Flying High
The Blue Jays had its first winning season in the NJCAA in 2014-15. That team went 18-6 overall and 10-6 in the conference, reaching the postseason for the first time since 2008. Their stellar season included receiving photos in the NJCAA Division II Men’s Basketball poll on December 2, 2014.
The 2014-15 season includes its first wins over a NJCAA nationally ranked team. The school defeated third-ranked Division III Community College of Philadelphia 81-66 on December 11, 2014 and Division II ranked Essex County College 88-75 on Jan. 17, 2015.
That team was lead by guard Marcus Glover and forward Khalil Williams. The duo marked the first time multiple Blue Jays were voted to the All-Region XIX team.
Manor completed its first 20-win season in the NJCAA the following year. The Blue Jays lost in the Region XIX Division II Postseason tournament finals.
During the 2015-16 season, Manor College became a nationally-ranked NJCAA Division II team for the first time on Jan. 5, 2016. They ranked as high as 16th in the pool that year and spent seven weeks receiving votes.
The success continued in the 2016-2017 season when the Blue Jays again won 20 games, this time under first-year head coach Diallo Daniels. It’s the first time the team had back-to-back 20 win seasons. Manor College again appeared in NJCAA Division II polls, spending five weeks in the rankings and reaching as high as 14.
That team was led by sophomore Kuante Sargent. His 20.7 points per game and 43.1 three point percentage lead the Blue Jays and helped him become the EPAC Division II Men’s Basketball Player of the Year. He was additionally voted to the NJCAA All-Region Division II First Team.
Sergeant’s season included the third highest point total in school history (558). The highlight of his season was a last-second buzzer-beater against Essex County College on Feb. 11, 2017 that gave the 18th-ranked Blue Jays to a 75-73 home victory over the second-ranked Wolverines. It was the first time Manor won a NJCAA nationally-ranked matchup.
Between the 2014 and 2018 seasons, Manor was 75-35 overall including an outstanding 44-11 at home with four tournament appearances.
Manor would leave the NJCAA in July 2020. During their tenure, Manor won 137 games, went to the postseason tournament six times and appeared in the championship once. Five Blue Jays were named All-Region XIX Division II selections and one was named an All-American.
Manor also had two EPAC Division II Players-of-The-Year, three Athletes-of-The-Week, and eight All-Academic Team Members. A total of 34 Blue Jays went on to careers in the NCAA during that time.
Recent History
Manor College joined the United States Collegiate Athletic Association in July 2020, forming the Eastern States Athletic Conference with bucks County Community College, Central Pennsylvania College and Williamson College of the Trades in Fall 2021.
The team made its USCAA Division I debut on Nov. 5, 2021 with a victory over NCAA Division II Bryn Athyn College 74-58. The team started 2-3 overall, but finished the regular season winning eight of their last ten contests.
The run was enough for the Blue Jays to be selected to their first USCAA Men’s Division I Small College National Tournament on Feb. 24, 2022. The Blue Jays would lose their first game in Petersburg to Bryant and Stratton College – Albany on March 7, 2022.
Under first year head coach Leo Mahon, the Blue Jays finished its first USCAA and ESAC seasons with a 10-7 overall record.
Sophomore forward Rahmaad Dejarnette was voted an USCAA Men’s Division I Basketball All-American (First Team). Dejarnette and forward Enoch Clark were selected to the PSCBA Weekly Honor Roll throughout the season.
Three Blue Jays, Raphael Ayeni, Kareem Haines and Eddie Fortescue Jr. were named to the USCAA Division I 84 Lumber Men’s Basketball All-Academic Team.
Notable players
- Mark Cunningham – 1994 Sam Cozen Junior College Player of the Year. All-EPCC Second Team. 11.6 ppg, 10.3 rpg.
- Aaron Brown – 2004-2006. Manor College’s first 1,000 point career scorer. Holds school record for most points in a career (1,202), single season points (671), points per game average in single season (30.5).
- Joe Kehoe – 2012-2013 Exemplary NJCAA Academic Student-Athlete Award. First Blue Jay to receive a postseason Academic Award
- Avery Brown – 2012-2013. NJCAA All-Region XIX Division II Second Team. First Blue Jay to be voted to a NJCAA team. Averaged 24 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.1 steals.
- Marcus Glover – 2014-2015. First Blue Jay voted to NJCAA All-Region XIX Division II First Team. Averaged 17.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3 assista and 1.3 steals.
- Khalil Williams – 2014-2015. Voted NJCAA All-Region XIX Division II Second Team. Along with Marcus Glover became the first time multiple Blue Jays were voted to All-Region.
- Calil Moultrie – (2015-2016) – Became the first Blue Jay to be named EPAC Athlete of the Week Twice in one season.
- Thomas Farrior – (2015-2016) – First Blue Jay voted NJCAA Division II All-American (Third Team).
- Kuante Sargent – (2016-2017) – NJCAA All-Region XIX Division II First Team. EPAC Division II Player of the Year.
- Robert Tucker – (2019-2020) – EPAC Division II Player of the Year. NJCAA All-Region XIX Division II First Team. EPAC Athlete of the Week and NJCAA Division II Player of the Week.
- Rahmaad Dejarnette (2021-2022) – USCAA Men’s Division I First Team All American. 3x Philadelphia Small College Basketball Association Weekly Honor Roll.
List of Head Coaches
- Dave Foody (1990-1991)
- Ed Mullen (1991-1994)
- Rich Casey (1994-1997, 2009-2010, 2020-2021)
- Joe Heimbach, Sr. (1997-2009, 2010-2011)
- Mike Mahon (2011-2014)
- Alfred Johnson (2014-2016)
- Diallo Daniels (2016-2018)
- Dave Ellerbee (2018-2020)
- Leo Mahon (2021-Present)
Read more:
- Manor College Sophomore Stars as Three-Sport Athlete
- Manor College Men’s Basketball Receives Bid to USCAA National Championships
- Super Bowl at Manor College: Remembering When the Eagles Won It All
- Two Years Later, COVID Pandemic’s Effects Still Seen on Campus