Dave Paulsen Finalist for Skip Prosser Man of Year Award
Dave Paulsen Finalist for Skip Prosser Man of Year Award
LEWISBURG, Pa. — Bucknell head men’s basketball coach Dave Paulsen has been named as one of 16 finalists for the 2015 Skip Prosser Man of the Year Award. Named after the late Skip Prosser, who died suddenly in 2007 while the head coach at Wake Forest, the award is presented annually by CollegeInsider.com to those who not only achieve success on the basketball court but who also display moral integrity off of it.
Paulsen, who was named the 2015 Patriot League Coach of the Year after leading the Bison to its fourth outright regular-season championship in the last five years, is in some good company among this year’s finalists for the Skip Prosser Award. Other finalists include Oregon’s Dana Altman, Virginia’s Tony Bennett, St. Francis (N.Y.) coach Glenn Braica, Notre Dame’s Mike Brey, Iona’s Tim Cluess, Central Michigan’s Keno Davis, Temple’s Fran Dunphy, NJIT’s Jim Engles, San Diego State’s Steve Fisher, New Hampshire’s Bill Herrion, Northern Iowa’s Ben Jacobson, Yale’s James Jones, South Dakota State’s Scott Nagy, Eastern Kentucky’s Jeff Neubauer and William & Mary’s Tony Shaver.
Skip Prosser posted a career record of 291-146 in 14 seasons as a head coach at Loyola, Xavier and Wake Forest. During his time at Wake, Prosser’s teams averaged 21 wins per season while playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference. His son, Mark Prosser, spent five years as an assistant coach at Bucknell and is now the associate head coach at Winthrop.
The recipient of the 2015 award will be announced at the CollegeInsider.com Awards Banquet on April 3 in Indianapolis, site of the 2015 men’s division I basketball championship.
Paulsen guided a young Bucknell squad to a 12-5 record and a first-place finish in the Patriot League this season. The Bison are currently 19-14 and are awaiting word on their NIT destination (Sunday, 8:30 p.m., ESPNU). This will be the team’s fourth postseason berth — two NCAA appearances and two NITs — in the last five years.
In his seventh season as head coach at Bucknell, Paulsen has guided the Bison to a 134-93 record. His .590 winning percentage is the highest in program history among coaches with 40 or more games.
Paulsen is a three-time Patriot League Coach of the Year. In 2011 he was one of 16 finalists for the Hugh Durham Mid-Major Coach of the Year Award, and in 2013 he was picked as the NABC Co-District 13 Coach of the Year.
