Salisbury University Men's Basketball

Maurice "Mo" Williams returns for his second season after leading the Sea Gulls to a 10-16 (4-6 in conference) victory in the 2019-2020 season.  Salisbury picked up momentum at the end of December and into the new year. The Sea Gulls upward swing started with an 88-80 win over No. 6 Marietta in the Great Lakes Invitational on Dec. 28. That win sparked a streak of four wins in five games, including a three-game winning streak to start 2020. The Sea Gulls went on to host the CAC First Round against St. Mary's. William's had two players see all-conference accolades, as Gary Briddell saw First Team honors and Mike Ward saw Second Team honors. Williams returned to Salisbury after coaching at the Division I level. His tenure at Longwood University brought the Lancers the most Division I wins in school history along with its first postseason appearance (CBI), first postseason win (Southern Miss), most 3FGs made in a season (333), most 3FGs made per game (9.8) and becoming the #1 in the Big South in FG% defense (41.1%). While at Longwood, Williams coached Big South newcomer of the year, and all Big South honorable mention Lorenzo Shabooty Phillps. It was considered one of the biggest program turnarounds in Division I college basketball in the 2018-2019 season.  The Columbus, Ohio native, brings two NCAA Division III Tournament appearances, most recently with Johns Hopkins University collecting a 24-5 victory before going on to win the 2018 Centennial Conference Championship.    Williams has already collected two 20-win seasons, two conference championships, and two NCAA postseason trips. He has been a part of two 'Conference Coach of the Year' staffs, and in just six years, he has played a part in the development of six All-Conference selections.   Williams' most recent Division III coaching success came from Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, Md., where he was part of a coaching staff that earned first-year head coach Josh Loeffler Centennial Conference Coach of the Year and NABC Middle Atlantic Region Coach of the Year honors. Williams' role on Loeffler's bench was to assist in all aspects of the program, from recruiting to player development and opponent scouting.    In Williams' one year alongside Loeffler at Johns Hopkins, the Blue Jays reached 20 wins for only the second time in the past decade and won the Centennial Championship for the first time since 2014. Johns Hopkins finished the season ranked No. 12 in the nation and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual Final Four participant MIT.   With player development oversight of Johns Hopkins' guards and forwards, Williams was paramount in the development of freshman Conner Delaney, who earned Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year honors, and All-Centennial first-team selections Kyle Doran and Michael Gardner.   Williams' stint at Johns Hopkins was the most recent stop in his ascent through the Division III ranks, which has taken him from Eastern University in Pennsylvania to Frostburg State and Stevenson in Maryland, and then to Johns Hopkins.  During that time, Williams also played a key role in another 'Conference Coach of the Year' staff at Salisbury during the 2014-15 season. Williams helped the Sea Gulls to a 21-8 record before moving onto the Capital Athletic Conference Championship. It was the first 20 win season in over 18 years for the Sea Gull basketball program. Salisbury head coach Josh Merkel earned CAC Coach of the Year honors for that season, which included a trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament and a first-round win over Eastern Connecticut State. Williams played a large roll in the development of All-Conference players Wyatt Smith & Gordon Jeter with skill development  Williams entered the coaching ranks after a decorated playing career at Frostburg State where he captained the team and earned All-CAC first-team honors after leading the Capital Athletic Conference in points per game, offensive rebounds, and free throw percentage. After being selected for CAC All-Academic Team, Williams went on to earn his Bachelor of Science in Health and Physical Education, Minoring in Coaching.  Williams was selected by the NABC last season to be featured in the  Next Generation series, It Primesport NABC Next Generation is an interview series with assistant coaches and support staff from across the country, highlighting their career experiences and future goals. https://www.nabc.com/social/next_generation/2018/williams