Doty Leads HCU from Underdogs to Southland Showdown
It was July 11, and I found myself back in Sharp Gymnasium for my third season as a manager of the Husky men鈥檚 basketball program. The gym was familiar, but the faces were not. A new HCU basketball rack sat in the corner, a new coaching staff was settling in, and only four players remained from last season鈥檚 roster. This was the first official practice of a season that would see the Huskies transition from a slow non-conference start to earning a spot in the Jersey Mike鈥檚 Southland Conference Championship. – By Immanuel Burress
Doty laid out his approach for the new year. 鈥淩ight away we said that we wanted to double our win total and be successful in all aspects of our student-athletes鈥� lives for every micro-victory that we could get, whether that was community service, whether it is academics or whether that is going to the Southland tournament,鈥� he said.
Summer ended and fall practices shifted to offense while maintaining Doty鈥檚 defensive intensity. New plays featured more one-on-ones to create defensive matchups and exploit mismatches and switches. Players embraced the freedom Doty鈥檚 offense provided, enjoying more space and scoring opportunities. Multiple scorers on the floor meant more options and counters depending on how opponents defended.
Julian Mackey, a senior guard, said, 鈥淭he offense was so beneficial because a lot of our plays involved all of our scorers and the plays put all of us in a spot to make a play.鈥�
The non-conference schedule included eleven games, with a 3-8 record. The first two wins came at home against Avila University and Rockford University, by a combined margin of 47 points. Following that was a four-game stretch decided within the final possession or minute.
鈥淲e continued to be process-focused instead of results focused. This allowed our players to get a consistent approach from the coaching staff and ultimately led to on-court success and finishing games with wins,鈥� Doty said.
The program earned its first Division-I victory since November 23, 2018, when Mackey scored a career-high 32 points to lead the Huskies past the University of Louisiana Monroe, 74-68. The Huskies entered Southland Conference play, starting with two games in early December and then continuing through 18 conference matchups. Despite being picked last out of 12 teams in the preseason poll, the team started conference play strong, going 7-3 and sitting second midway through the schedule. They finished 9-11鈥攖he most conference wins the program had seen in eight years鈥攅arning a spot in the Jersey Mike鈥檚 Southland Conference Championship.
Much of the team鈥檚 success came behind the experienced trio of Mackey, junior guard Bryson Dawkins, and senior guard Elijah Brooks. The scoring ability of these three simplified the game for the Huskies, each player seeing their numbers triple from previous seasons.
The players credited the trust and support from the program for their success. 鈥淒oty gave me the chance, believed in me and gave me the chance to be a part of an offense and do my thing,鈥� said Mackey.
Dawkins echoed that sentiment: 鈥淚t was more of the coaches supporting and believing in my abilities to go out there and play my game. Even through the bad stretches I had in the season, the staff and my teammates continued to believe in me which boosted my confidence.鈥�
Building on the positives from the 2024-25 season, Coach Doty emphasized the need to 鈥渒eep expanding our roster and bringing in talented student-athletes鈥� to continue raising the program鈥檚 success.
The Huskies entered the fall 2025 season with returning core players including guards Elijah Brooks and Deaundre Samuels, forwards Trent Johnson and Demari Williams, and center Ahjany Lee, who missed last season due to a torn ACL. This team isn鈥檛 just playing games鈥攖hey鈥檙e building a culture of resilience, excellence and community. With returning leaders and rising talent, the future of HCU men鈥檚 basketball looks bright.