2023-24 Gannon men's basketball team
Jeff Kirik

Men's Basketball Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Season Preview: New-Look Golden Knights Begin First Season Under Head Coach Jordan Fee

ERIE, Pa. – Jordan Fee was named as Gannon's 20th head coach on April 12, 2023. Since that time Gannon fans have waited to see what the first-year coach who helped win a national championship at Nova Southeastern can do.

The much-anticipated wait is over. Gannon opens the 2023-24 season this weekend in the Atlantic Region Tip-Off Challenge. It will indeed be a challenge for a Gannon team coming off a 3-23 finish a year ago. The Golden Knights face a pair of Mountain East Conference teams that reached the MEC quarterfinals last year, beginning with Glenville State on Friday, November 10 followed by a game against host Charleston (WV) on Saturday, November 11. Glenville State finished at 17-13 last year while Charleston was 19-10.

Gannon fans will have their first opportunity to view Fee's frenetic style of basketball on Wednesday, November 15 as Penn State DuBois visits the Highmark Events Center. That's followed by the 39th annual Gary Miller Classic on Friday, November 24, and Saturday, November 25. Gannon will play in the first game of the Friday twinbill at 5:30 p.m., facing Georgian Court. Lincoln (Pa.) and Davenport meet in the nightcap.

When the New Year dawns so too will a new homecourt. Extensive renovations will begin at the Highmark Events Center with Gannon playing its final nine games at Cathedral Prep's Hagerty Family Events Center.




While expectations are high among the Gannon faithful that is not necessarily the case among the league's coaches. The PSAC recently released its preseason coaches poll with Gannon picked to finish seventh in the nine-team Western Division.

Five players return from last year's squad, including three starters. Fee added nine new players to replenish the roster. That includes six transfers.

Head Coach: Jordan Fee was introduced as Gannon University's 20th men's basketball head coach on April 12, 2023. Fee, 34, joined Gannon after serving as the Associate Head Coach for the NCAA Division II champion Nova Southeastern University men's basketball team. He played an integral role in the Florida school's rise to national prominence and helped head coach Jim Crutchfield lead the Sharks to an unblemished 36-0 record in 2022-23. Fee worked as an assistant coach at Nova Southeastern since 2015 and helped transform a Sharks program that finished 6-20 in 2016-17 into a national powerhouse that finished with a 122-11 record over the past four seasons. That record includes a 67-1 mark over the past two seasons. Fee was instrumental in attracting top student-athletes to Nova Southeastern. He recruited and signed forward RJ Sunahara, who was named NABC Player of the Year after this past season. Fee also recruited and signed forward Sekou Sylla, who was voted D2CCA Player of the Year after the 2021-22 season. Despite spending eight seasons in Davie, Fla., with Nova Southeastern, Fee has a background from western Pennsylvania. He was born in Erie, and his family moved to Grove City when he was young. He attended Grove City High School from 2003-07 and was a basketball standout while playing under his father, Don Fee, a Grove City legend who guided the program to more than 400 wins. After high school, Fee received an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy, and he served as a team captain while helping Air Force Preparatory School to a 19-6 record. He transferred to Detroit Mercy from 2008-10 and later transferred to West Liberty, where he was part of a program that went 65-4 in two seasons and reached the Elite Eight twice under Jim Crutchfield. He received his Bachelor of Science in Physical Education/Health Education from West Liberty in 2013. Fee coached for one season as a graduate assistant at Clarion in 2013-14 and then spent the 2014-15 season as a graduate assistant at Detroit Mercy. He received his Master of Arts in Liberal Studies/Athletic Leadership in 2015. From there, Fee was hired by Nova Southeastern where he remained for eight seasons. He was originally hired by NSU head coach Gary Tuell in the summer of 2015. Fee was retained on the staff in 2017 when Nova Southeastern hired Crutchfield, Fee's former coach at West Liberty. Fee was promoted to Associate Head Coach before the 2022-23 season.

Top Returnees: Sophomore Josh Omojafo (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean de Brebeuf) is the top returning player from last year's squad after starting 18 games and averaging 8.2 ppg., good for fourth on the team. He is a 6'5" guard. Thomas Whitley (Laurel, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt), a 6'6" redshirt sophomore, averaged 4.4 ppg. and 4.5 rpg., with his 116 boards second on the team. Whitley started 21 games as a redshirt freshman. Berkay Yilmaz (Istanbul, Turkey/Fenerbahce Beko) started the final 15 games at point guard as a true freshman while playing in all 26 games. He led the team with 77 assists as opposed to just 42 turnovers. Fellow Turkey native Cenker Evran (Adana, Turkey/Turk Telekom) will add much-needed size to the lineup at 6'8". He played in 25 games, averaging 3.9 ppg. and 2.8 rpg. The Golden Knights could be bolstered by the return to good health of Michael Lucarotti (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep). A 6'5" swingman who began his career at Youngstown State, Lucarotti was just rounding into form when he went down with a season-ending injury eight games into the season. He averaged 7.0 ppg.

Key Newcomers:  Fee brought in nine new players to fortify a roster that has undergone great change. That group includes six transfers. Two of the transfers were their respective conference players of the year a year ago. Lyle Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Philadelphia Montgomery Christian Academy) is a 6'3" swingman who previously played at Geneva. He departed as the school's seventh all-time scorer with 1,758 points and ranks 14th all-time in rebounds with 619, averaging 24.5 ppg. last year. He was named the Presidents' Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second straight season in 2022-23. Nathan Schneider (Kersey, Pa./St. Marys Area) was the AMCC Player of the Year last season after averaging 23.1 ppg. and 8.6 rpg. for Pitt-Bradford. In two seasons he departed with 1,141 points and 540 rebounds. In addition, Zachary Hobbs (Gilbert, Ariz./Gilbert) joins the program after playing two seasons at Indiana State. A 6'4" guard forward, Hobbs was part of a Sycamore's program that reached the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament in 2021-22 and played in CBI (College Basketball Invitational). He made 71 3-pointers in his two seasons. Nigel Haughton (Bel Air, Md./South Kent) (Chestnut Hill), Derrick James (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) (Ashland) and Derrick Anderson (Youngstown, Ohio/Boardman) (Butler CC) figure to supplement the backcourt.

Two Venues in '23-24: The Golden Knights will play a 28-game schedule, with 15 of those games at "home" in what will be an unconventional season. The first six games will occur at the Highmark Events Center, including the annual Gary Miller Classic. With renovations beginning at the venerable facility in late December, Gannon will host its final nine games in Joann Mullen Gymnasium at Cathedral Prep's Hagerty Family Events Center.

Season Opener: Gannon plays in the Atlantic Region Challenge on Friday, November 10 and Saturday, November 11 hosted by Charleston (WV). The Golden Knights play Glenville State at 5:00 p.m. on Friday and meet host Charleston on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Gannon's home opener is set for Wednesday, November 15 against Penn State DuBois in a first-ever meeting with the Nittany Lions.

The Atlantic Region Challenge: Gannon will play Glenville State on Friday, November 10 and then face host Charleston (WV) on Saturday, November 11. Glenville State comes off a 17-13 record a year ago and the Pioneers were picked to finish eighth in the Mountain East Conference preseason poll. Charleston, meanwhile, is second in the MEC preseason poll after posting a 19-10 record in 2022-23.  

Preseason Rankings: The Golden Knights were picked to finish seventh in the PSAC West in the coaches preseason poll.
 
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Players Mentioned

Derrick Anderson

#3 Derrick Anderson

G
6' 2"
Junior
Cenker Evran

#32 Cenker Evran

F
6' 8"
Sophomore
Nigel Haughton

#10 Nigel Haughton

G
6' 1"
Graduate Student
Zachary Hobbs

#24 Zachary Hobbs

G/F
6' 4"
Graduate Student
Derrick James

#12 Derrick James

G
5' 10"
Sophomore
Michael Lucarotti

#2 Michael Lucarotti

G
6' 5"
Redshirt Freshman
Josh Omojafo

#4 Josh Omojafo

G
6' 5"
Sophomore
Nathan Schneider

#23 Nathan Schneider

G
6' 2"
Graduate Student
Lyle Tipton

#33 Lyle Tipton

G/F
6' 3"
Graduate Student
Thomas Whitley

#22 Thomas Whitley

F
6' 6"
Redshirt Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Derrick Anderson

#3 Derrick Anderson

6' 2"
Junior
G
Cenker Evran

#32 Cenker Evran

6' 8"
Sophomore
F
Nigel Haughton

#10 Nigel Haughton

6' 1"
Graduate Student
G
Zachary Hobbs

#24 Zachary Hobbs

6' 4"
Graduate Student
G/F
Derrick James

#12 Derrick James

5' 10"
Sophomore
G
Michael Lucarotti

#2 Michael Lucarotti

6' 5"
Redshirt Freshman
G
Josh Omojafo

#4 Josh Omojafo

6' 5"
Sophomore
G
Nathan Schneider

#23 Nathan Schneider

6' 2"
Graduate Student
G
Lyle Tipton

#33 Lyle Tipton

6' 3"
Graduate Student
G/F
Thomas Whitley

#22 Thomas Whitley

6' 6"
Redshirt Sophomore
F