Ben Wilkins
Ben Wilkins
Phone: 301-447-5388
Email: wilkins@msmary.edu
Position: Assistant Coach
Experience: 1st year
Alma Mater: North Carolina State
Graduating Year: 2001

Wilkins is in his first season at the  Mount after spending the past six seasons as an assistant coach at William and  Mary.

Wilkins spent his six seasons on the staff at William and  Mary under the direction of two-time Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year Tony Shaver.  Wilkins was instrumental in implementing the offensive and defensive systems at William and  Mary.  His responsibilities included scouting, scheduling, recruiting, individual skill work and development of the perimeter players.

William and  Mary appeared in the CAA championship game in two of the past five seasons, and Wilkins was part of the staff that saw one of the best four-year stretches in school history that culminated with a 22-win season and a berth in the National Invitation Tournament in 2010.  Wilkins and Christian were on staff together at William and  Mary for three seasons.

“I have worked alongside Coach Wilkins and I know the value of person and coach he instantly adds to our program here at the Mount,” said Christian.  “His experience in program building and understanding of the team dynamic is second to none.  I look forward to him impacting our program in the same ways as he has done on every stop along his coaching journey.”

Before coming to William and Mary, Wilkins was the video coordinator at N.C. State. The Wolfpack advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2005-06, while amassing an overall record of 22-10. N.C. State also went 10-6 in ACC action. During the season, Wilkins was involved with various aspects of the Wolfpack program including film editing, player housing, player financial services and organizing a past player reunion. He also served as the liaison for sports marketing, handled office and player tickets and was an assistant camp director.

Wilkins served as the first assistant and recruiting coordinator for Barton College in Wilson, N.C., during the 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons. The Bulldogs compiled a 35-21 mark over those two seasons, including a third-place finish in the Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference (CVAC) during his final campaign. In his time at Barton, Wilkins' primary responsibilities centered around recruiting, scouting reports, both practice and in-game coaching, development of the perimeter players and film exchange. Wilkin's final recruiting class at Barton finished their careers with a 68-12 CVAC record to go along with three regular season and three tournament championships. The group advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament on three occasions and tallied an Elite Eight appearance in 2006 to go along with its 2007 NCAA Division II National Championship.

During his time as the recruiting coordinator at Barton, the Bulldogs signed two-time CVAC Player of the Year, Anthony Atkinson, and CVAC Freshman of the Year, Bobby Buffaloe. A trio of Wilkins recruits, including Atkinson, Buffaloe and Brian Leggett, were two-time All-CVAC selections during their careers. Wilkins also assisted in the organization and operation of the Barton Basketball Camp and served as the game day manager during both men's and women's basketball games.

After graduating from N.C. State, Wilkins served as the junior varsity coach for Apex High School in Apex, N.C. He guided the Cougars to a 17-1 mark and a first-place showing in conference play. As an assistant for the boys' varsity squad, Wilkins helped guide Apex to the state playoffs.

Wilkins graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in history in December of 2001. During his time at N.C. State, he was also a team manager.