The 2005-06 Utica College men’s basketball team was arguably the greatest team in program history. This group of Pioneers finished the 2005-06 campaign with a program-best 23-7 overall record and earned the program’s first-ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, where they made an appearance in the Sweet 16 after winning two NCAA Tournament games.
The Pioneers defeated Gordon College 71-66 and nationally-ranked Worcester Polytechnic Institute 76-58 en route to the third round of the national tournament. They closed out the regular season ranked fourth in the East Region by the NCAA and received an at-large bid to the tournament after falling to nationally-ranked St. John Fisher in the Empire 8 Conference Championship. Utica ended the regular season ranked third in the nation in strength of schedule and was chosen second out of the 33 schools that received at-large bids.
The team featured three members of the program’s 1,000 point club: Doug Herring (1,587), Justin Cichon (1,576) and Willie Lucas (1,076). Also, three members of the team are current Pioneer Hall of Famers as individual selections: Cichon, Herring, Bryant.
Head Coach Andrew Goodemote was named the 2006 NABC Division III East Region Coach of the Year and the D3hoops.com East Region Coach of the Year. He was also the Empire 8 Conference Co-Coach of the Year. Justin Cichon and Ray Bryant were All-Conference First Team selections, while Willie Lucas was named an All-Conference Honorable Mention. Ray Bryant was an NABC All-American selection.
Team members: Chris Bitetto, Shawn Brown, Ray Bryant, Justin Cichon, Brian Collier, Bradley Everett, Kafele Flemming, Doug Herring, Jack Lighthall, Willie Lucas, Dennis Munch and Kirk Poulson.
Coaching Staff: Head Coach Andrew Goodemote, Assistant Coach Jeff Gorski, Assistant Coach Nedzad Hodzic, Manager Mike Harwood
