Jason Crafton (born January 30, 1982) is an American basketball coach. He's the former head coach of the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks men's basketball.[1]
 Crafton in 2023 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 30, 1982 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1999–2003 | Nyack |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2003–2005 | Villanova (video coordinator) |
| 2005–2010 | Navy (assistant) |
| 2010–2012 | Navy (associate HC) |
| 2012–2018 | Nyack |
| 2018–2019 | Delaware Blue Coats (assistant) |
| 2019–2024 | Maryland Eastern Shore |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 90–184 (.328) |
| Tournaments | 0–1 (TBC) |
Playing career
editCrafton played college basketball at Nyack College, where he was named team captain his junior and senior seasons. He was also a member of the schools only CACC Championship Team in the 1999–2000 season.[1]
Coaching career
editAfter graduation, Crafton joined Jay Wright's staff at Villanova as a video coordinator for two seasons until 2005, when he accepted an assistant coaching position at Navy where he'd serve under fellow former Villanova staffer Billy Lange as well as a season under Ed DeChellis.[2] Crafton would return to Nyack to become the school's head men's basketball coach where from 2012 to 2018 he compiled a 47–108 record before accepting an assistant coaching position with the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League.[3][4]
On April 24, 2019, Crafton was named the head coach at Maryland Eastern Shore.[1][5]
The 2022–23 season was a historic one in many ways for Hawk Basketball. Crafton's squad finished 18–13, leading to the program's best win percentage (.581) in 50 years and the most wins in a season of Crafton's coaching career. The team broke last season's school records in steals (345) and steals-per-game (11.1). Their per-game clip ranked #1 in the nation this season, while the team also ranked #1 nationally in turnovers forced per contest (19.0). Crafton guided the Hawks to a 10–3 record at William P. Hytche Athletic Center, the best home mark for the program since the 1973–74 season. The team also logged significant non-conference wins at Temple on December 20 and Columbia on December 28. The Hawks finished the first half of MEAC play at 6–1, the best Division I record to open league play in 50 years. Under Crafton, forward Nathaniel Pollard Jr. was named to the All-MEAC Second Team and guard Zion Styles received All-MEAC Third Team and All-Defensive Team honors. Pollard was also named to the 2023 HBCU All-Star Game in Houston, Texas. Crafton was named a finalist for the Ben Jobe Coach of the Year award, recognizing the top Division I minority coach annually.[6]
Head coaching record
editNCAA DII
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nyack (CACC) (2012–2018) | |||||||||
| 2012–13 | Nyack | 5–20 | 3–15 | 7th (North) | |||||
| 2013–14 | Nyack | 10–16 | 8–11 | 5th (North) | |||||
| 2014–15 | Nyack | 7–19 | 6–13 | 6th (North) | |||||
| 2015–16 | Nyack | 11–15 | 8–11 | 5th (North) | |||||
| 2016–17 | Nyack | 7–19 | 3–16 | 7th (North) | |||||
| 2017–18 | Nyack | 7–19 | 7–12 | 5th (North) | |||||
| Nyack: | 47–108 (.303) | 35–78 (.310) | |||||||
| Total: | 47–108 (.303) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
NCAA DI
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland Eastern Shore (MEAC) (2019–2024) | |||||||||
| 2019–20 | Maryland Eastern Shore | 5–27 | 4–12 | T–9th | |||||
| 2020–21 | Maryland Eastern Shore | Season Canceled (Covid) | N/A | N/A | N/A | ||||
| 2021–22 | Maryland Eastern Shore | 11–16 | 6–8 | T–6th | TBC First Round | ||||
| 2022–23 | Maryland Eastern Shore | 18–13 | 9–5 | T–3rd | |||||
| 2023–24 | Maryland Eastern Shore | 9–20 | 4–10 | 7th | |||||
| Maryland Eastern Shore: | 43–76 (.361) | 23–35 (.397) | |||||||
| Total: | 43–76 (.361) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
edit- ^ a b c "Hawks hire Jason Crafton as new steward of basketball program". University of Maryland Eastern Shore Athletics.
- ^ "Matt Sladky and Jason Crafton Join Navy Men's Basketball Staff". Naval Academy Athletics.
- ^ "Blue Coats Announce Basketball Operations Staff". Delaware Blue Coats. Archived from the original on 2021-07-09. Retrieved 2019-04-26.
- ^ "Warrior Men's Basketball Head Coach Accepts NBA G-League Coaching Position". Nyack. 14 September 2018. Archived from the original on 26 April 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- ^ "Philadelphia 76ers G-League assistant hired as next UMES men's basketball coach". Delmarva Daily Times.
- ^ https://easternshorehawks.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/coaches/jason-crafton/1348 [bare URL]
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