BOSTON -- UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins was named among the 20 finalists for the 2017 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year award, presented by CollegeInsider.com. The finalists were announced on Monday.
In his first year with the Knights, Dawkins has led UCF to a 24-11 overall record and one of the best seasons in program history. The UCF record for wins in a season during its Division I era is 25, set in 2004-05.
Leading UCF to its second National Invitation Tournament appearance in program history, Dawkins has coached the Knights to three NIT victories. An opening round win over Colorado marked the first NCAA or NIT victory in program history, and Dawkins added two more to the Knights' resume with wins at Illinois State and over Illinois.
The Jim Phelan award is presented annually to the top coach in division I men's basketball. Phelan led the Mountaineers to the 1962 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Championship. When he retired in 2003, after coaching for 49 years, he had amassed 830 wins (overall record of 830-524) in all divisions. In those 49 years, 19 of his teams amassed 20 or more wins in a season.
The recipient of the 2017 Phelan award will be announced in Phoenix, Ariz., site of the men’s NCAA Division I Basketball Championship.
2017 JIM PHELAN AWARD FINALISTS
Steve Alford, UCLA
Dana Altman, Oregon
Rod Barnes, CSU Bakersfield
John Becker, Vermont
John Calipari, Kentucky
Chris Collins, Northwestern
Kermit Davis, Middle Tennessee
Johnny Dawkins, UCF
Jamie Dixon, TCU
Mark Few, Gonzaga
Mitch Henderson, Princeton
Chris Holtmann, Butler
Kevin Keatts, UNC Wilmington
Frank Martin, South Carolina
Matt Painter, Purdue
Josh Pastner, Georgia Tech
Richard Pitino, Minnesota
Bill Self, Kansas
Mike White, Florida
Roy Williams, North Carolina