Gents Basketball Claims SCAC Newcomer of the Year, Three All-Conference Players

SEGUIN, Texas – The Centenary Gents Basketball team received multiple honors when the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference released the All-Conference teams late Saturday night, February 23, after the semifinals of the 2019 Conference Tournament Semifinals.

Freshman Ty Prince led the way, becoming the fourth Gent to be named SCAC Newcomer of the Year – joining Brett Bell (2013), Kendall Demouchet (2014), and Travion Kirkendoll (2015). Prince was also the only freshman to be named All-Conference, appearing on the Third Team.

"Ty is a relentless worker on the court. His ability to play the 1-5 position has made him extremely valuable to our program," explained head coach Chris Dorsey. "This season, I put a lot on his shoulders and he accepted the challenge every single night. He has been a big piece to our system and consistently performed at a very high level. This accomplishment of Ty earning Newcomer of the Year and Third Team All-Conference is well earned. I look forward to his development and I'm excited to see how good of a player he will become in the future."

Joining Prince with postseason accolades was First Team All-Conference selection, senior Treylan Matthews, and Second Team All-Conference honoree, junior Cedric Harris.

Prince averaged 11.5 points, 6.2 rebounds (ninth in the SCAC) and added 21 blocks (fifth in the SCAC) for the Gents during the regular season. He led all first-year conference players in rebounding and was second in both scoring and blocks per game. Prince also shot 45.8 percent from the field (12th in the SCAC). He was the overwhelming choice of the SCAC coaches to be named Newcomer of the Year, receiving 6-of-9 votes.

Prince appeared in all 26 games of the year for the Gents, earning 23 starts. He reached double figures in 16 games on the season, including a season best 24 points on 8-for-14 shooting in the Gents 75-69 win against East Texas Baptist December 15. He also finished with a pair of double-doubles on the season. The first came in only his second collegiate game, a 12-point, 10 rebound performance against Louisiana College November 15. He added 10 points and 11 boards at Austin College January 22.

Matthews finished his Gents career with a First Team All-Conference selection after being named Honorable Mention after both his freshman and sophomore campaigns.

"Treylan had a phenomenal senior season. He has been the backbone of our success and he carried us through the latter half of the year," said Dorsey. "I'm most impressed with his steady growth in leadership and his ability to make his teammates better both on and off the court. I'm very proud of him for earning a spot as a First Team All-Conference member. What a great way to end his career as a Gent!"

Matthews finished third in the conference in three-point field goals per game (2.5) and fourth in three-point percentage (39.8). Earlier this season, he became just the 34th Gent to reach the 1,000-point plateau in a fitting way: a three-pointer for the first score of the game in an eventual 81-61 win at East Texas Baptist January 12. He led the team and finished fifth in the conference with 16.6 points per game. Matthews also finished second on the team with 2.2 assists per game.

Starting all 26 games for the season, Matthews reached double figures in scoring 23 times – including reaching double-figures in the last 14 games of his collegiate career. In his penultimate home game of the season, he poured in a career high 34 points in the Gents 66-62 win against Colorado College February 8. He followed that up with a fantastic senior night, helping Centenary rally from a double-digit, second half deficit to knock off Johnson & Wales 61-59 February 9. In the game, Matthews hit the game-winning jumper with 1.6 seconds left – the first Gents lead in the entire ballgame.

For his stellar senior week, which included a road win at Dallas February 5, Matthews received his second Conference Player of the Week accolade of the season.

Finally, in limited action in 2018-19, Harris was named Second Team All-Conference for the second consecutive season.

"Several games this year, Cedric has been an important piece for us offensively," explained Dorsey. "Because of his ability to shoot, he had to play every game with a target on his back and he still found ways to help us win. Earning Second Team All-Conference is a reflection of how valuable he is to our program and the huge impact he has on the league."

In 17 games, Harris finished second on the team in both points (15.4) and rebounds (6.5) per game. In a big home win against Austin January 18, Harris scored 22 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Later at Trinity, he against scored 22 points but grabbed 12 boards to record his second and final double-double of the season.

In Centenary's 81-69 win at East Texas Baptist January 12, Harris scored a career high 34 points.