Hobart Basketball | 1/25/2017 2:21:00 PM
GENEVA, N.Y.—Prior to the start of the Hobart College basketball game on Friday, Jan. 27, two former Statesmen will be inducted into the Wendy's College Classic Hall of Fame. Hobart all-time leading scorer
Richie Bonney '14 and former Head Coach
Mike Neer will join the Hall's final class of inductees prior to the 8 p.m. tipoff.
Bonney is one of only 25 players in the 50-year history of the tournament to be named to the All-Tournament team three or more times. He was named to the first team as a sophomore and as a junior and earned a spot on the second team as a senior. In 12 tournament games, Bonney led Hobart to an 8-4 record, including the Statesmen's lone title in 2011.
In four seasons, Bonney averaged 14.3 ppg and 7.6 rpg while shooting .534 from the field and .694 at the free throw line during the Wendy's College Classic. He recorded 91 rebounds in his 12 tournament games, 11th on the Classic's all-time list.
Neer coached in 33 Classics, leading his teams to a Wendy's record 11 championships. He boasts an all-time tournament record of 65-30, including a 6-3 record in three seasons at Hobart. Neer owns more tournament wins than any other bench boss in the Classic's history. In his first season with the Statesmen, he guided the Purple and Orange to the Wendy's College Classic championship, defeating Nazareth 72-63 in the 2011 title game. The following year, Neer led Hobart back to the championship game, finishing second.
Neer joined the Statesmen following a successful run at the University of Rochester. He led the Yellowjackets to 10 Wendy's titles between 1979-80 and 2009-10.
The Wendy's College Classic was the longest running in-season Division III Tournament, beginning in 1966 and ending in 2015. This year's class of 13 inductees mark the final class to join the Hall of Fame, bringing the total roll to 49.
Hobart (9-8, 4-4) continues Liberty League play with Friday's showdown against Vassar (5-12, 1-7) which is scheduled to tipoff at 8 p.m. and on Saturday when Bard (2-14, 0-7) visits Bristol Gym at 4 p.m. Halfway through the conference's double round robin, the Statesmen are tied for fourth place with Clarkson. The top four teams at the end of the regular season will compete in the Liberty League Championship Tournament for an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
In addition to Friday's Hall of Fame induction, Hobart will welcome back alumni this weekend. Former Statesmen basketball players will gather to play an alumni game on Saturday at 11 a.m. Following the game against the Raptors, alumni will gather at Dana's Time Out at 6:30 p.m.
