WICHITA, Kan. – Friends University men's basketball head coach Phil McClintock has been named the KCAC Coach of the Year, while senior forward KJ Spiller is the league's Co-Player of the Year (Derrick Talton, Jr., OKWU), the conference office announced today (Feb. 25). Additionally, Spiller is a first-team honoree, Randy Woolf, Jr. earned All-KCAC third-team recognition and Cahlese Lee and Ring Deng each received honorable-mention status.
In just his second season at the helm, McClintock has guided the Falcons to contention status within the KCAC, finishing second in the league with an 18-4 conference record. The Falcons finished the season 22-6, equaling the program's most wins since the 2018-19 campaign.
"I'm honored to win the Coach of the Year award this year because it means we had a great year as a team," said McClintock. "The award is a team award that could not be possible without great assistant coaches and players that have made my job easy all year."
An all-around contributor, Spiller is tops on the Falcons and fifth in the KCAC with 17.0 points per game and is also tied for first on the team with 5.9 rebounds. He has also shot an efficient 50.9 percent (179-352) from the field and has dished out 2.3 assists per game on the season.
"I'm so happy for KJ to win the Co-Player of The Year award," said McClintock. "He is in the gym working on his game more than any player I've ever coached. He has been elite on both sides of the ball for us and is a big reason why we have had a successful year."
In his first season on campus, Woolf, Jr. has produced across the board with averages of 11.1 ppg, 4.4 rebounds and a team-leading 3.9 assists (fourth in KCAC) along with 1.3 steals.
Lee and Deng also made an immediate impact in their first season with the Falcons. Lee is second on the team with 12.9 ppg and has given the Falcons a reliable perimeter shooting option, leading the team and ranking fifth in the KCAC in three-point percentage (43.4) while contributing defensively with 1.3 steals. Deng is also averaging double-figure scoring with 10.1 ppg and is tied with Spiller for the team-lead in rebounds (5.9 rpg). Also an All-Defensive team member, Deng leads the Falcons with 1.5 steals this season.
"Randy, Cahlese and Ring are all new guys that are very deserving of post season honors," said McClintock. "They came in and bought in to the TEAM and it's showed in the win column immediately."
The second seed in the upcoming KCAC postseason tourney, the Falcons will host seventh-seeded McPherson College tomorrow night (Feb. 26) in the quarterfinal round at 7 pm inside the Garvey Center.
