Jon Perry, a 12^th-year assistant men's basketball coach at Navy, remembers the moment he realized the Midshipmen absolutely needed to secure the commitment of a recruit named Austin Benigni.
 
It was the first time Perry had seen Benigni play on a talent-rich, Houston-based AAU team in the prestigious Nike Elite Youth Basketball League. As a sophomore and junior at The Woodlands (Texas) Christian Academy, Benigni had led his high school team to consecutive state titles. He capped his junior season at point guard by being named Private High School Player of the Year by the Houston Chronicle.
 
That day in the summer of 2021, prior to his senior year of high school, Benigni stood out to Perry – first, by being easily the smallest, skinniest player in the gym, which was teeming with serious, high-level Division I and professional basketball prospects.
 
Benigni's Houston Hoops squad then included Jaland Lowe, a 6-feet-3 point guard now playing at Pitt; Cameron Corhen, a 6-10 center/forward also with the Panthers; and Zubi Ejiofor, a 6-9 forward (and best friend of Benigni's) who currently is the top rebounder and shot blocker and second-leading scorer for No. 7-ranked, 26-4 St. John's. The Red Storm has clinched its first, regular-season Big East title in 40 years.
 
Benigni, now a junior at Navy listed at 5-10, 171 pounds, came off the bench as a point guard that day for the Houston Hoops. He immediately got busy, at both ends of the floor. What Perry witnessed was compelling.
 
"The first time I watched Austin play with the EYBL, he's guarding a 6-6 point guard, and he is climbing right up on him and into him. And he is not backing down," Perry said.
 
"Then he's directing the offense, protecting the ball, getting guys to the right spots and helping them score, making them better," Perry added. "What you saw in him was character, competitiveness and great quickness, especially with the ball in his hands. You didn't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out there was something special about that guy."
 
After high-level college coaches avoided Benigni, due primarily to his slight stature, he fielded a bunch of offers from mid-major D-1 schools. He narrowed his choices to Texas-El Paso, Mount Saint Mary's in Emmitsburg, Md., and the Naval Academy.
 
The Mids, who are taking a 10-8 record in Patriot League play into the conference tournament quarterfinal round as the No. 5 seed and will face Boston University on Thursday, are ever-thrilled that Benigni – the short, light, strikingly dynamic point guard – chose to play ball in Annapolis.
 
Following his strong freshman season spent mostly coming off the bench, a year during which he earned three Patriot League player of the week honors, Benigni has taken his versatile game to new heights. He has started every game (62 and counting) since the start of his sophomore season.
 
Over the past two seasons, Benigni has pushed the envelope as arguably the Patriot League's most skilled, tireless and smartest, toughest player, especially considering his undersized frame while manning the critical position as Navy's quarterback.
 
A year after scoring in double figures in the last 21 games, tallying at least 20 points in 10 contests and winding up second in the conference in scoring – while displaying his unusual ability to draw fouls and make opponents pay frequently with his deadly skill at the free-throw line – Benigni has upped his game more as a junior.
 
Benigni wrapped up Navy's regular season with a 24-point effort in Saturday's win over Loyola. He finished as the top scorer in the Patriot League (18.3 points per game overall, 19.0 ppg in conference play) and ranked second in the conference in assists (4.2 per game). He chipped in 3.2 rebounds per game, collected 27 steals and shot 36 percent from three-point range, while committing just 2.4 turnovers per game and averaging 33.5 minutes per game, tied for third-highest in the conference.  He was named 2025 First-Team All-Patriot  League earlier this week.
 
His work at getting to the foul line and making those trips count, particularly late in games, once again was stellar.
 
Benigni led the league in both free throws made (177) and attempted (209), while finishing second in overall scoring. He was named second-team, all-league. This year, he improved by making 184 foul shots in 215 attempts, tops in the conference in both categories. He ranks ninth in D-1 in free-throw attempts. His 85.6 foul shooting percentage led the league.
 
He already has scored 1,239 career points, which is tied for 19^th in school history. He is one of eight Mids all-time with at least 1,000 points and 300 career assists. He has posted two of the four 500-point, 100-assist seasons ever at Navy. He is the third Mid to lead Navy in both points and assists in multiple seasons.
 
Benigni prides himself on using his exceptional quickness, decision-making and gritty physicality to both guard the bigger ball handlers he regularly encounters, and to draw fouls that have helped him to salt away numerous wins at the foul line in clutch moments.
 
"As an undersized guard, there are tricks you need to learn. [For example] I have to figure out how to attack taller shot blockers by getting into their bodies to negate their size advantage," said Benigni, who is known to head downhill in the lane with seemingly reckless abandon, daring opponents large and smaller to foul him. Yet, there is a clear calculation going on in Benigni's mind.
 
"A lot of it is positioning. If I see [a defender] helping, and starting to reach toward my arm, I might get a little closer as I'm getting past him. Or I might pull up for a jumper when he doesn't expect it, and get the shot off before he can jump to block it," Benigni added.
 
"A big part of it is knowing how to fall and how to absorb the contact without taking the brunt of the hit. I try to never leave my feet to avoid an injury. I might land on my side or roll away from the hit on the floor. Sometimes, I'm just trying to make the defender foul me, since I'm a decent foul shooter. There is no place I'd rather be than on the free-throw line, with the game on the line."
 
"Austin throws his body around and gets whacked pretty good. He fights through lots of nagging injuries. But he's also like the running back that's hard to get a good shot at. He has that knack. Nobody can coach that," said Navy head coach Ed DeChellis.
 
"He is a fearless competitor who is hard to gauge, hard to read. He's really tough to guard one-on-one. He gets guys good shots, makes open shots, pushes the ball well in transition and he has really improved his on-ball defense."
 
Justin Kischefsky, Navy's sports information director for men's basketball, said of Benigni, "He is one giant bruise."
 
Navy senior and team captain Lysander Rehnstrom said he has become a close friend and admirer of Benigni's over the past three years. Off the court, he described Benigni as "a quiet, sometimes goofy guy. He's not the high-energy, trash-talking guy people see on TV. We have deep philosophical conversations in the locker room, or we might talk about developing network algorithms. The dichotomy is fun to watch."
 
"Austin is always in the gym. He watches all kinds of tape on our opponents," Rehnstrom added. "There is a lot of pressure being a star player who is targeted and double-teamed all of the time. In our Holy Cross win [recently in OT], they switched to put [6-9 forward] Caleb Kenney, a Defensive Player of the Year, on Austin. He is our go-to guy. We do our part to alleviate that pressure on him."
 
Benigni said the roots of his style of play can be traced to elementary school. From kindergarten through ninth grade, he was home-schooled. Early on, it was clear to his parents that their son had a blend of above average athleticism and hand-eye coordination and it really showed on the basketball court.
 
As a fourth grader, Austin and his parents were ready for a challenging decision. They sought an advanced level of basketball instruction.
 
That led them to John Lucas, formerly an All-America performer in basketball and tennis at the University of Maryland who was the first point guard ever drafted No. 1 in the NBA in 1976. Lucas played 14 seasons for the Houston Rockets, went on to head coaching stints in Houston and Cleveland, and started a basketball training business that is still thriving.
 
After former professional basketball player Ben Perkins finished his pro career overseas 16 years ago, he also got into the training business. Lucas and Perkins took Benigni in together, and immediately loved what they saw – a small kid with a huge heart and that quickness and skill, determined to get better.
 
Perkins recalled picking up Benigni five days a week early in the morning, and driving at least 45 minutes to the downtown Houston gym, where Benigni drilled hard on the fundamentals, with a huge emphasis on defense, and played in all kinds of competitive situations with older, more developed guys.
 
"I got pushed around a lot. I got used to playing a physical style. It probably really started when I was in middle school," Benigni said. "That's when I started developing my style."
 
In fourth grade, Benigni was playing with and against seventh-graders. By middle school, he would be mixing it up with older high school players. By ninth grade, he was training with an older crowd that included Division I athletes.
 
"It didn't take long to realize that Austin had this drive, this work ethic was just different. I still haven't found anybody that has matched that. It wasn't so much about his talent when he got here [at age 10]. It was his mindset," Perkins said. "He really wanted to meet every challenge. He wanted to out-work everyone else. There was no better player in the gym. He was always willing to play so hard. Even if a kid was bigger and stronger than him, Austin's will would carry him through."
 
"I made my mark by being a good passer and defender. Those were my calling cards," Benigni said.
 
DeChellis said he is always challenging Benigni to sharpen his game – take more open shots, grab more rebounds and be a better off-ball defender. But there is no question the undersized kid from Houston is The Man at Navy.
 
"[Benigni] can do so many things. He's a scoring guard who can really distribute. He directs the traffic. When we are late in the shot clock, the ball is usually in his hands. He draws fouls better than anyone, by far" DeChellis said.
 
"You know he is going to show up to play and play hard. We want to hear his suggestions in our huddles. He stays late after practice and he comes early. He has unique qualities you can't teach. He has got a chance to do something special here."