Navy (26-7 / 17-1 PL) at Wake Forest (17-16 / 7-11 ACC)
Wednesday, March 18  I  7 p.m.  I  Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum  I  Winston-Salem, N.C.
National Invitation Tournament First Round

TV / ESPNU  I  Anish Shroff, Dennis Scott
Radio / WNAV  I  Matt Sabados

Five Starting Notes
•    Navy is playing its first postseason game since the 1998 NCAA Tournament and is in the NIT for just the second time (1962).
•    Navy is the first Patriot League team to play in the NIT in a decade (Bucknell, 2016).
•    Austin Benigni was named to the NABC's All-East District second team on Tuesday.  He is the first Mid to earn the award since Cam Davis in 2021.
•    Navy and Wake Forest are meeting for the first time since the 2001-02 season and last played in Winston-Salem in 2000-01.
•    This year's Navy team is tied for second for the most wins in a season (26) by the Mids.  Also, these are the most wins by any Navy team that did not have David Robinson on the roster.

Game Information
•    Navy will make its third trip of the season to North Carolina, this time for a Wednesday night game at Wake Forest in the first round of the NIT.
•    ESPNU will televise the 7 p.m. game between the Mids and the Demon Deacons from the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem.
•    WNAV will provide Navy radio coverage of the tilt, while SiriusXM 380 will carry the broadcast airing on the Wake Forest radio network.

Navy in the Postseason
•    Navy is playing in the postseason for the first time since the 1998 NCAA Tournament.
•    The Mids are making their second NIT appearance, with their lone prior game coming in 1962 when they lost a 70-58 decision to Duquense at Madison Square Garden in the first round of the 12-team tournament.

Patriot League Teams in the NIT
•    This is the seventh season in which a Patriot League team is competing in the NIT as a league-member school.  Those teams have compiled a 3-6 record.
•    Bucknell was the last league team to make the NIT, and that was in 2016. 

Mids Earn First Outright PL Title Since 1997
•    Navy's Feb. 18 win over Lehigh earned the Mids the outright 2026 regular season title in the Patriot League.  
•    This is the sixth time in which Navy has earned at least a share of the Patriot League title (last was in 1990-00) and the ninth time in which the Mids have at least shared a conference crown.
•    Navy has previously won outright titles in 1985-86 (CAA), 1986-87 (CAA) and 1996-97 (Patriot League).

Atop the Standings 
•     The Navy men's and women's basketball teams both won outright regular season titles in the Patriot League. 
•    Navy is one of eight schools to have both men's and women's teams end the year with at least a share of first place, and one of five to have each win outright regular season titles.
•     This is the sixth time in which one school has seen their men's and women's teams each win outright Patriot League regular season titles.
•    Navy's women's team will play at Harvard Thursday in the first round of the WBIT.

Navy in Mid-Major Poll
•    Navy appeared in several mid-major polls late in the season, and also received votes in the AP Poll.

•    College Insider Mid-Major Top-25 Poll 
    Feb. 23 - 22nd
    March 2 - 19th
    March 9 - 22nd
•     Mid-Major Madness Top 25-Poll
    Feb. 23 - Received Votes
    March 2 - 23rd
•     Mid-Major Basketball Power 25
    Feb. 23 - 25th
    March 2 - 22nd
•    Associated Press Polls
    Feb. 23 - 1 vote
    March 2 - 3 votes

Kehoe Named All-PL Tournament
•    Aidan Kehoe was named to the Patriot League All-Tournament Team.  The senior averaged 16.0 points and 9.5 rebounds a game in two games and shot 72.2%.

Benigni Earns All-District Honors
•    Austin Benigni received NABC Second-Team All-East District honors on Tuesday.
•    Benigni is the first Mid to garner the accolade since Cam Davis earned first-team honors in 2021.

Navy by Month
•    Navy posted a combined 21-1 record in the months of December, January and February.

W-L    Month
4-5    November
5-0    December
8-1    January
8-0    February
1-1    March

Wake Forest Preview
•    Wake Forest enters the week with an overall record of 17-16.  That includes a 12-6 record in home games.
•    The Demon Deacons placed 13th in the 18-team Atlantic Coast Conference with a record of 7-11.
•    Wake Forest won a 95-89 overtime game over 12th-seeded Virginia Tech in the first round of the ACC Tournament, then fell 71-62 to fifth-seeded Clemson in the second round.

Series History
•    Navy and Wake Forest first met on Jan. 8, 1930, in Annapolis.  The Mids won a 39-20 game that day.
•    Wake Forest holds a 5-4 advantage in the series, with the Demon Deacons having won the last four games.
•    The teams last faced each other on Jan. 7, 2002, when Wake Forest won an 87-65 game in Annapolis.
•    The Demon Deacons have won both previous games that were played in Winston-Salem, with the most recent game being an 85-69 game on Dec. 22, 2000.
•    The teams also have met in Raleigh (1950-51, 1951-52), Greensboro (1963-64) and Pittsburgh (1971-72).

Conference Comparison
•    Navy has posted a 91-101 record against teams currently in the Atlantic Coast Conference, including a 10-42 record in road games.
•    The Mids lost a 73-61 game at North Carolina earlier this season.
•    Navy's last ACC victory came on Nov. 9, 2021, when the Mids won a 66-58 game at Virginia.
•    Wake Forest has registered a 30-7 record against teams currently in the Patriot League.  This includes a 19-0 record in home games.
•    Wake Forest opened its 2025-26 season with an 88-74 victory over American in Winston-Salem.

Looking Ahead
•    The winner of Wednesday's game will advance to the second round and play the winner of the Kent State at Illinois State game.  
•    The second round will be played either March 21 or 22.

Wake Forest in the NIT
•    Wake Forest is playing in the NIT for the ninth time and has posted a 13-7 record in the event.  The program won the 2000 tournament.
•    The Demon Deacons have won at least one game in six of their previous eight NITs, including a pair of wins during the 2024 tournament.
•    Wake Forest has tallied a 6-2 record in NIT home games.

Navy-Wake Forest Ties
•    Naval Academy director of athletics Michael Kelly is a 1992 graduate of Wake Forest.
•    Kelly additionally served as the Wake Forest Director of Athletic Operations and Facilities from July 1995 to March 1998.
•    He later became the Senior Associate Commissioner at the ACC from May 2007 to Jan. 2013.
•    Wake Forest head coach Steve Forbes was the head coach at East Tennessee State for five years (2015-16 through 2019-20).  
•    Navy head coach Jon Perry played at ETSU ('02) and coached there as a graduate assistant during the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons.  
•    Navy assistant coach Scott Wagers spent 13 seasons as an assistant coach at ETSU (2000-01 to 2012-13).
•    Navy's career leading scorer David Robinson (2,669) and Wake Forest's Tim Duncan, who ranks fourth in scoring at the school (2,117), were longtime teammates in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs.

Navy in North Carolina
•    Navy has tallied a 25-39 record in games played in North Carolina.
•    This includes games played earlier this season in Chapel Hill (0-1) and Wilmington (1-2).

Navy Against North Carolina
•    Navy has posted a 66-72 record against teams located in North Carolina.
•    The Mids dropped games this season to North Carolina and UNCW and defeated Gardner-Webb.

Navy Earns 4 Major Patriot League Awards
•    Navy was well represented when the Patriot League announced its major awards and all-league teams.
•    Austin Benigni was named the Patriot League Player of the Year, becoming the second Mid to earn the honor (Greg Sprink, 2008).
•    Benigni also was named to the league's first team.  He is the fourth Mid to have earned multiple first-team all-league accolades.
•    He is the third Mid to earn three all-league awards.
•    Aidan Kehoe was selected as not only the league's defensive player of the year -- the second Mid to do so –– but also received all-league honors (first team) honors for the first time.
•    Head coach Jon Perry and his assistants were named the Patriot League Coaching Staff of the Year.
•    Perry is fourth Navy head coach to earn the laurel.
•    Donovan Draper was named to the all-defensive team for the second time. He is the third Mid to be on the team for a second time.
•    Benigni also was named this year's Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year.  
•    A computer science major with a 3.47 cumulative grade-point average, he is the first Mid in 25 years to win the award and the fifth in the league to be named the player and scholar-athlete of the year in the same season.

Mids Earn Another First Round Bye
•    Navy earned a first round Patriot League Tournament bye for the ninth time in the last 10 years (2017-26). Colgate ranks first in this span with no first round games, followed by Navy with one.
•    Navy has reached at least the semifinal round of the league tournament five times in this 10-year span.

Service Assignments Announced
•    Seniors at the USNA learned of their service assignments upon graduating from Navy this spring during lunch on Thursday, Nov. 20.
•    Those entering the Navy will do so with the rank of Ensign and those entering the Marine Corps will be 2nd Lieutenants.
•    The seniors on the men's basketball team received the following assignments:

Austin Benigni - Navy / aviation (pilot)
Cam Cormany - Navy / aviation (flight officer)
Donovan Draper - Navy / information warfare
Aidan Kehoe - Navy / surface warfare (nuclear)
Sam Krist - Marine Corps / ground
Mike Woods - Navy / surface warfare

•    Mike Woods selected the USS Fort Lauderdale for his first ship assignment.  LPD 28 (landing platform dock) is an amphibious transport dock ship based in Norfolk, Va.
•    Aidan Kehoe selected the USS Essex for his first ship.  LHD 2 (landing helicopter dock) is an amphibious assault ship with a home port of San Diego.

11th 20-Win Season
•    This is the 11th 20-win campaign in program history.
•    Navy's 26 wins this year ties it for second place for the most in a season.  This year's team won the most games of any Navy team that did not have David Robinson on the roster.

Navy Sets School Mark for Most PL Wins
•    With 17 wins, Navy set the school record for the most Patriot League regular season victories since the league went to an 18-game season starting with the 2013-14 season (not including 2020-21).
•    Navy's 2021-22 team held the prior mark with 12 wins.
•    Navy also recorded the second 17-1 record (Colgate, 2022-23) by a league team.

Navy Second in PL Wins Over Half Decade
•    Navy ranks second in the Patriot League for league regular season wins over the last five seasons.

PL W-L Records, 2021-22 to 2025-26
1.    70-20    Colgate
2.    58-32    Navy
3.    49-41    Boston
4.    47-43    Lehigh
5.    44-46    American
6.    40-50    Army
7.    39-51    Bucknell
    39-51    Lafayette
9.    34-56    Loyola
10.    30-60    Holy Cross

Home in Alumni Hall
•     Alumni Hall has been home to the Navy basketball teams since the 1991-92 season.
•    The Mids have compiled an overall record of 301-191 record in the facility.  This includes a 147-112 record in Patriot League regular season games.
•    Navy has compiled a 16-6 record in league tournament games played in the venue.
•    There have been 61 future NBA players to play in Alumni Hall since it opened.

Navy Finalists for Multiple National Awards 
•    Austin Benigni, Aidan Kehoe and Jon Perry all have been named finalists for awards presented annually by CollegeInsider.com.
•     Benigni and Kehoe are finalists for the Lou Henson Award, which is for the top mid-major player in the country.
•    Benigni is a finalist for the Nolan Richardson Award, which goes to the Division I player who is the "heart and soul of his team and a leader on and off the court."
•    Perry is a finalist for the Jim Phelan Award, presented to the top head coach in Division I basketball, the Hugh Durham Award, presented to the top mid-major head coach in Division I basketball, and the Joe B. Hall Award, presented to the top first-year head coach in Division I basketball.

Five Patriot League Player-of-the-Week Nods 
•    Navy has received a five Patriot League Player-of-the-Week accolades this season. Those are the most awards since it accrued a school-best six in 2009-10.
•    Austin Benigni earned the award on Dec. 8 after he averaged 18.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists in Navy's wins over Delaware State and Air Force.
•    Aidan Kehoe garnered his first career weekly award on Dec. 22 after he averaged 15.5 points and 11.0 rebounds a game in wins over Coppin State and Rosemont College.
•    Benigni was tabbed for his second nod of the season and sixth of his career on Jan. 5 following a week that saw him average 25.0 points, 6.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds a game in wins over Boston and Holy Cross.
•    Kehoe received his second laurel on Feb. 9.  He led Navy in points (38), rebounds (25) and assists (11) and shot 83.3 percent (15-18) from the floor in Navy's wins over Lafayette and American the previous week.  
•    Benigni garnered his third award on Feb. 23 after he total 52 points and 10 assists against Lehigh and Army.

Kehoe Named USBWA Player of the Month 
•    Aidan Kehoe was named the USBWA Oscar Robertson Mid-Major Player of the Month for February.
•    He posted a double-double in all eight games played in the month.

Navy Led League in Assist Percentage
•    Navy was credited with 314 assists on its 486 made field goals during the Patriot League season.  That's an assist percentage of 64.6 percent, which led the league and was one of the best in Navy history.

Balanced Offense
•    Navy had five players score in double figures in its quarterfinal round win over Bucknell.
•    It was the seventh time this year at least five Mids reached double figures.

Mids Well Ahead in Points in the Paint 
•    Navy scored more points in the paint in 15 of its 18 (one tie) league regular season games this season.  The Mids averaged just over nine more paint points a game than their foes.

Navy Good Again on the Offensive Boards
•    Navy has been very good over the last number of years at winning the offensive rebound margin.  The Mids are +1,093 in offensive rebounding margin over the last 12 seasons.
•    Navy is +1,043 in second-chance points in this span.
•    Aidan Kehoe had 15 second-chance points in Navy's double overtime win at Lehigh on Jan. 17 and 12 in Navy's Feb. 9 game at Bucknell.
•    Navy has scored on 47 of the 71 (66.2%) possessions in which Kehoe has grabbed at least one offensive board since the start of the Patriot League season (20 games).  The Mids have scored 84 points off of his offensive rebounds in this span.

500-Point Seasons
•    Austin Benigni scored 526 points during his 2023-24 sophomore season and 638 points in 2024-25 as a junior to became the fourth Mid to have scored 500 points in multiple seasons.  
•    He has scored 593 points in 2025-26 to join David Robinson as the only Mids with three 500-point seasons.
•    His 638 points a year ago ranks fifth for the most by a Mid for a season, and his 593 points this year ranks eighth.

Benigni Surpasses 1,900 Points
•    Austin Benigni became the 27th Mid to score 1,000 career points during Navy's Jan. 18, 2025, game at Bucknell.
•    He reached the milestone in his 81st career game  (12th fewest games needed to score 1,000 points).
•    Benigni scored career point No. 1,900 in Navy's league tournament semifinal against Boston.
•    Benigni ranks among the Navy scoring leaders for both all games and Patriot League games.
•    He also ranks 10th in Patriot League history in career points.
•    Benigni scored his 1,000th point in Patriot League regular season games Feb. 18 against Lehigh.
•    Benigni is in third place at Navy with 93 games of scoring in double figures and third place with 41 career games with 20 or more points.  

3-Point Progression
•    One of the reasons behind Benigni's scoring success this season has been his improved three-point shooting.
•    He made 59 three-point baskets in his first three seasons and has made 60 this season.

At the FT Line – Austin Benigni 
•    This is the third season in a row in which Austin Benigni ranks among the NCAA leaders in all three free throw shooting statistics.
•    He ranks among the NCAA's active career leaders in both free throws made and attempted.
•    He also ranks among the Navy and service academy leaders for the most foul shots made and attempted in a season and career.
•    Benigni ranks among the Navy and Patriot League leaders for career free throw percentage.

Benigni Leading in Points and Assists
•     Austin Benigni typically has led the Mids in either points or assists –– and occasionally both –– in a game, especially since the start of his 2023-24 season (40).
•     Benigni has totaled both 10 or more points and 5 or more assists in 37 career games.
•     Benigni is the first Mid to lead the team in total points and assists in three seasons since assists began being tracked with the 1972-73 season.
•     Benigni is the second Mid with 1,500 points and 300 assists in a career and the first 1,600 / 400 Mid.
•     He ranks among the Navy leaders for career assists.
•    He is the first Mid to have three seasons with both 400 points and 100 assists.
•     Benigni is one of six active players who have only played on the NCAA Division I level with both 1,900 points and 400 assists.
•     He is the second Patriot League player -- during each team's Patriot League era -- with 1,900 points and 400 assists. 
•     Benigni is one of three players to rank in the Patriot League's top-20 lists in both points and assists.
•     Benigni is one of three Mids to rank among Navy's top-10 statistical leaders in both career points and assists.

Benigni Among Minutes Played Leaders 
•     Austin Benigni enters the game tied for first in the Patriot League and 32nd nationally with an average of 36:04 of playing time a game this season.
•    He has played all 40 minutes this season against Southeastern Louisiana, Air Force, both games against Boston, all 50 minutes at Lehigh and all 40 minutes of the quarterfinal round game against Bucknell.
•    He ranks among the Navy leaders for the most minutes played in a career.

Benigni Among Games Played / Started Leaders 
•     Austin Benigni has set the Navy record for the most career games played and is tied for second for the most career starts.

Kehoe's Shooting Leads the NCAA 
•    Aidan Kehoe ranks first among all NCAA Division I players in field goal percentage this season.
•    Kehoe has not only attempted the most shots of those who rank among the top-five in field goal percentage, he also has dished out the most assists. 
•    Kehoe ranked second at Navy for the highest field goal percentage in a single season in 2024-25, and he has bettered that in 2025-26.

Highest Field Goal Pct. / Season 
Rnk.    FG%.    Player, Years
1.    .735    Aidan Kehoe, 2026
2.    .644    David Robinson, 1985
3.    .621    Aidan Kehoe, 2025

Highest Field Goal Pct. / Career
Rnk.    FG%.    Player, Years
1.    .671    Aidan Kehoe, 2023-pres.
2.    .625    Evan Wieck, 2017-20
3.    .613    David Robinson, 1985-88

•     Kehoe currently holds the top mark for the highest field goal percentage in a season by a Patriot League player.

Highest Field Goal Pct. / Season 
Rnk.    FG%.    Player, Years
--    .735    Aidan Kehoe, Navy, 2026
--    .688    Ben Defty, Boston U., 2026
1.    .680    A.J. Allenspach, Army, 2025
2.    .675    Keegan Records, Colgate, 2023

Kehoe and Draper -- Double-Doubles
•    Aidan Kehoe (fifth) and Donovan Draper (11th) each rank among the Navy leaders in career double-doubles, with Kehoe also ranking among the leaders for the most in a year. 
•    Kehoe is tied for fourth place nationally for the most double-doubles this season.
•    Kehoe recently saw his streak of double-double games end at eight. That is one of the longest runs of double-doubles by a Mid.  

Kehoe's 20-Point Double-Doubles
•    Aidan Kehoe has posted 19 double-doubles this season, nine of which saw him score at least 20 points.
•    He is in seventh place at Navy for the most 20-point double-doubles in a season with nine.

Draper and Kehoe -- Rebounds
•    Aidan Kehoe set a Navy record in 2024-25 for the most offensive boards by a Mid in a season.  He then bettered that mark in 2025-26.
•    Both he and Donovan Draper rank among the Navy leaders for a season and career in multiple rebounding categories.
•    Draper now ranks sixth at Navy and Kehoe eighth for the most career caroms.
•    Draper and Kehoe are two of the eight Mids to have totaled both 800 points and 700 rebounds in a career.
•    This is the second year in a row in which Kehoe ranks among NCAA leaders in all three rebounding statistics.
•    He also ranks fourth nationally in total rebounds.

Draper's Steals
•    Donovan Draper spent the 2021-22 academic year as a football player at the Naval Academy Prep School.  He then was wide receiver at Navy on the 2022-23 team.
•    Draper, who was an all-county basketball player in high school, joined the Navy basketball team in the spring of 2023.
•    After going 994 days between his last high school basketball game and first as a Mid, he made an immediate impact as he ranked among the Patriot League and NCAA leaders in multiple statistical categories (steals, offensive rebounds, total rebounds).
•    He ranks among the Navy career leaders in steals and steals per game.
•    Draper is the third Mid to rank among Navy's top-10 players in both career rebounds and steals.
•    He enters the NIT ranked 27th in the NCAA with an average of 2.06 steals per game and is 40th with 64 steals.  Both of those totals rank among the best by a Mid for a single season.

More Minutes for Cole
•    Cam Cole moved into a more prominent role in the rotation since the start of the Patriot League season.
•    He has surpassed all of the career totals he had recorded through the start of this season.
•    Cole scored a career-high 16 points in Navy's regular season finale against Colgate.
•    He then matched that effort with 16 points in Navy's quarterfinal round victory over Bucknell.
•    Cole was especially effective in the second half as he hit two of his three triples in the half (and four in the game) during Navy's 15-0 run that boosted it to lead it would not relinquish.  He scored 11 of his points after halftime.