JWU's Lamonte Thomas & Jamie Benton Honored With Cox Sports/R.I. Basketball Media Awards

Junior basketball player Lamonte Thomas (Providence, R.I.) and head men’s basketball coach Jamie Benton were honored with Cox Sports/R.I. Basketball Media Awards at the annual awards luncheon held at the Raddison Hotel on Monday afternoon.

Thomas was named the Steve McDonald Division III/JUCO Player of the Year while Benton was named the Jim Baron Division III/JUCO Men’s Coach of the Year.

Thomas continued to rack up the awards as last week he was named a Second Team D3Hoops.com All-American.  Thomas, the 2011 GNAC Player of the Year, led the way for the Wildcats all season long with his 30.7 points per game and 6.1 assists per contest. Thomas led all scorers in all divisions while leading the GNAC with 6.1 assists per contest.  He had 16 games with at least 30 points and two games of 40 or more points, including 43 points in the Wildcats victory against Ramapo in the first round of the NCAA Division III Championship.

Benton led the Wildcats to a 21-9 overall record with a 14-4 mark in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference.  The 21 wins tied the school record set in the 2003-04 season.  The Wildcats, the No. 2 seed for the GNAC Championships, traveled to St. Joseph’s of Maine and knocked off the top-seeded Monks to earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship.  At the NCAA’s, the Wildcats upset host Ramapo College of New Jersey in the first round to record the first win in school history at the NCAA tournament.