Binghamton’s men’s basketball head coach Tommy Dempsey will begin his eighth season at the helm in 2019-20.
Hall of Fame Coach holds wins record at three schools
Dempsey, a 2013 inductee into the Northeast Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall Of Fame has engineered success at every stop during his 21-year professional career. In 16 years as a college head coach Dempsey has amassed 253 wins and is a four time conference coach of the year. He has established school records for wins at three colleges (Keystone College- 29, Lackawanna College- 33, and Rider University- 23).
At Binghamton, Dempsey has recruited and developed a core of talented and well-rounded student-athletes who are now poised to lift the Bearcats into the upper echelon of the America East Conference. Last season his Bearcats featured the introduction of a phenomenal freshman, a pair of 1,000-point scorers and a stunning postseason victory over the No. 2 seed in the America East tournament. Along the way, the Bearcats held their own against nationally second-ranked Michigan (single digits until final eight minutes), posted a buzzer-beating win at the Barclays Center and also set several program records. The team ranked 29th in the nation in blocks and set a record with 19 three-pointers in a win at Maine.
Testament to the recruiting success, in the last five years, BU has seen 10 different players earn conference Rookie of the Week honors - an America East record during that span. In 2018-19, freshman Sam Sessoms exploded onto the scene and racked up numerous accolades, including America East Rookie of the Year and Freshman All-America honors.
Dempsey was announced as Binghamton’s new head coach on May 24, 2012 and the program has continued to see growth both on and off the court during his tenure.
Recruited and coached NBA lottery pick
Dempsey came to BU after a successful seven-year tenure at Rider University (N.J.), that included 119 wins, a MAAC Championship, three trips to national post season tournaments, and an NBA lottery pick in 2008. At Rider, Dempsey steered two different teams to 23-win seasons. His 2007-08 squad, led by current Toronto Raptors forward Jason Thompson, captured the MAAC regular season crown in 2008. Thompson was then taken with the 12th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings.
Dempsey was named the 2008 MAAC Coach of the Year and also was presented with the Peter A. Carlesimo Award as the Division I Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Coach of the Year. Dempsey’s Broncs won 82 games in a four-year span (2007-2011), the most in any four-year span in Rider school history. During that span the Rider program collected wins against teams from the Big 10 (Penn St.), Big East (Rutgers), SEC (Mississippi St.), Pac 12 (USC), and Atlantic 10 (St. Joseph’s and Lasalle).
Prior to taking the reins at Rider, Dempsey was an assistant coach with the Broncs from 2003-05. His tenure as an assistant helped head coach Don Harnum to a regular-season MAAC title in 2005 and first ever trip for the Broncs to the MAAC Tournament Championship game.
Two-time finalist for National Coach of Year
Prior to his time at Rider, Dempsey took two different schools to the NJCAA Final Four, including a trip to the national championship game in 2003. In three years as head coach at the junior college level, he compiled an 88-12 overall record, including a perfect 46-0 mark at home. He was twice a finalist for National Coach of the Year honors.
At Lackawanna College, Dempsey took his team to the Division II national championship game in 2003 and was the Region 19 and District 9 Coach of the Year. He inherited a team that wasn’t in the preseason top 40 and finished national runner up with a school-record 33 wins (33-4).
Dempsey spent two seasons at Keystone College and compiled a 55-8 record. After inheriting an 11-12 team, Dempsey led the 2000-01 squad to 26 wins and a conference title in his first season, earning Eastern Pennsylvania Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year honors. In 2001-02, Keystone won a school-record 29 games and advanced to the NJCAA Final Four and Dempsey was the Region 19 and District 6 Coach of the Year and a finalist for national coach of the year.
He began his head coaching career at age 24 at Wyoming Seminary Preparatory School (Pa.) in 1999.
Before that, Dempsey served as an assistant coach under his college coach Frank Marcinek for two years at his alma mater, Susquehanna University (1997-99).
As a player, Dempsey was a three-year letterwinner and team captain at Susquehanna before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 1997. He earned his master’s degree from Bloomsburg University in 2005.
A native of Dunmore, Pa, Tommy and his wife Amy live in Binghamton with their four children: Tommy (19), Emily (17), Brian (12) and Tyler (10).
