University of North Carolina at Pembroke Men's Basketball

After leading Lander to its most regular-season wins in 20 years, as well as a Peach Belt Conference Tournament title, as the head coach of the Bearcats in 2019-20, Drew Richards returned to Pembroke in March 2020 as the 16th head coach of the Braves, and heads into his sixth season leading the Black & Gold in the 2025-26 season.   It is the second coaching stint at UNCP for Richards, who helped guide the Braves to a 113-43 (.724) record and four NCAA Tournament appearances as an associate head coach from 2014-19. The Braves compiled a 72-29 (.713) record against conference foes over that span, and captured the PBC regular season and tournament championships in both 2016-17 and 2017-18. His return to Pembroke has resulted in more success for the Black & Gold, leading the Braves to a 104-25 record over the last four seasons, including a ridiculous 73-9 clip in Conference Carolinas play, which has resulted in four regular season conference titles and two Conference Carolinas Tournament championships, and the program's first appearance in the Sweet 16 during the 2024-25 season. UNCP has earned a berth to four straight NCAA tournaments under Richards. The 2023-24 Braves squad led Division II in rebound margin at +11.9, and finished ninth, nationally, in field goal percentage defense at 40.0%. The 2024-25 team finished in the top 15, nationally, in seven categories, including second in rebound margin (+10.3), fourth in scoring margin (+14.9), and eighth in field goal percentage (50.6%). Richards has twice been named both Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year and NABC District Coach of the Year, and has seen 12 players be named All-Conference, three players named Conference Carolinas Defensive Player of the Year, and one player named Conference Carolinas Player of the Year.    In his lone season with the Bearcats in Greenwood, S.C., the nine-year college coaching veteran helped lead the program on a 10-game turnaround from an 12-17 clip in 2018-19 to a 23-8 mark in 2019-20. The Bearcats concluded the 2019-20 campaign with a 15-1 mark at home, and rolled through the PBC Tournament on the way to a conference championship and the league’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.   A native of Rogersville, Mo., Richards enjoyed immeasurable success as both a player and coach in the 10 years prior to his initial move to Pembroke. Following a standout collegiate and professional playing career, he stepped into the coaching world as an assistant at Missouri State-West Plains – a heavyweight in the junior college ranks – and helped pace the Grizzlies to a cumulative 42-20 (.677) record, as well as the 2012-13 NJCAA Region XVI regular season title. As a rookie coach in 2011-12, he helped mold a 21-10 club that finished ninth, nationally, in field goal percentage defense. The squad also established a new program benchmark for fewest points allowed in a season (1,807).   His success in West Plains would inevitably follow him to Lawton where he was an integral part of the Aggies’ best conference start in school history in 2013-14. He also was responsible for the tutelage of NCAA Division II Bulletin Preseason Player of the Year Craig Foster who finished the campaign averaging 14.8 points, 4.7 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game.   Richards also served a brief coaching stint with the Amateur Athletic Union’s (AAU) Missouri Flight organization where he helped place more than a dozen student-athletes into NAIA, NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II programs. He also helped the club achieve multiple top finishes on the AAU, Showcase and Mid-America Youth Basketball (MAYB) circuits.   A four-year letterwinner at Missouri State, Richards played in 118 career games (69 starts) and helped the Bears compile a collective 80-49 (.620) record and three trips to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT). Richards started in 56 games during his final two seasons as a collegian and led the club in blocked shots in each of his last three years in Springfield, Mo. His career was highlighted by a host of honors as well, including the Guy Thompson Award which is given annually to the team’s most outstanding senior on and off the court. He currently ranks third all-time in MSU annals with 132 career blocked shots, while also ranking among the program’s all-time top 10 in games played.   Following a stellar collegiate career, Richards moved on to the professional ranks where he was a fixture in the starting lineup for the Erdgas Ehingen Steeples in Ehingen, Germany. He finished ninth in the league in blocked shots and 12th in rebounds per game in 2008-09.   A color analyst for the radio broadcasts at Missouri State from 2009-11 as well, Richards earned his bachelor’s degree in public relations from Missouri State in 2008, while also earning his master’s degree in sports science from the United States Sports Academy in 2013.    Richards earned his bachelor's degree in public relations from Missouri State in 2008, while also earning his master's degree in sports science from the United States Sports Academy in 2013. He and his wife, Caeli, have two children, Knox and Benton.   HEAD COACHING RECORD Season Team Overall Pct. Conference Pct. Conf Finish Postseason Lander (Peach Belt Conference)  2019-20  Lander  23-8  .742  14-6  .700  3rd PBC Tournament Champions, NCAA Southeast Regional Lander:  23-8  .706  14-6  .700  UNC Pembroke Braves (Peach Belt Conference)  2020-21  UNC Pembroke  3-3  .500  3-2  .600  4th UNC Pembroke Braves (Conference Carolinas) 2021-22  UNC Pembroke  27-4  .871  22-2  .917  1st NCAA Southeast Regional 2022-23  UNC Pembroke  26-4  .866  18-2  .900  1st NCAA Southeast Regional 2023-24  UNC Pembroke  23-7  .767  15-3  .833  1st Conference Carolinas Tournament Champions, NCAA Southeast Regional 2024-25  UNC Pembroke  25-7  .781  18-2  .900  1st Conference Carolinas Tournament Champions, NCAA Southeast Regional Runner-Up 2025-26 UNC Pembroke 21-8 .724 18-2 .900 1st Conference Carolinas Tournament Semifinals UNC Pembroke:  125-33  .791  91-11  .892 Total  145-41  .779  108-19  .850 Updated: June 2025

Having already attained a wealth of experience with previous coaching stops at two other collegiate institutions, including a one-year stint at Wingate during the 2021-22 campaign, Chris Sause begins his fourth season in 2025-26 as an assistant coach with the Braves. Sause played in 95 games as a 4-year letterwinner (3-time captain) at North Carolina Wesleyan, and helped pace the Battling Bishops to 68 wins from 2015-19, including an impressive 43-18 mark against USA South Conference foes. He shot better than 46 percent from the field across his career in Rocky Mount, as well as a 67.9 percent success rate from the free throw line. He also served as an intern and administrative assistant with the program for all four seasons as well. The Durham native and Voyager Academy graduate joined the Averett coaching staff as an assistant coach prior to the 2018-19 season and helped lead the Cougars to a wealth of success, including a 2020-21 campaign that saw the Cougars amass a 20-7 record, including a 15-2 mark in the always-tough USA South Conference. The success of the program during his time in Danville, Va., was also evidenced by a quartet of All-USA South selections as well. Wingate registered a 21-8 mark and a fourth-place finish in the South Atlantic Conference last season. Sause also enjoyed a stint as a scout and social media reporter for Phenom Hoop Report across the 2018-19 college basketball season as well. Sause earned bachelor’s degrees in both business administration and organizational administration from North Carolina Wesleyan in 2019, and completed his master’s of business administration coursework at Averett in 2020. Updated: June 2025