Tom Bennett
Coach Tom Bennett’s 19 years at the helm of Mesa Men’s Basketball and five years as Golf Head Coach brought 442 victories and numerous trophies that still adorn the cases outside the Theo Heap Gym. He assisted MCC Hall of Famer Coach Ed Van Winkle from 1971-1976 prior to ascending to the head coaching position. His 73-percent winning percentage and nine ACCAC Championships highlight a career that still goes strong, even though Coach Bennett will tell you he’s retired. That retiree was seen, however, running the gym floor and mentoring young basketball players just last month for MCC’s Day on Defense Seminar hosted by Coach Royce Youree, Coach Hector Bejarano, and current Mesa Men’s Head Basketball Coach Sam Ballard. To say that Coach Bennett is still actively involved wouldn’t do him justice.
Coach Bennett won six Region I Championships, placed 3rd in Nationals in 1987, and 5th in 1990. He coached 11 consecutive 20-plus win seasons, and four of those teams won 30-plus. In the 1980’s, Coach Bennett won 86-percent of his games against ACCAC opponents. The 1990 –team finished #1 in the NJCAA polls and won 30 straight contests. Six of Coach Bennett’s players from that year went on to START at D-I universities. He coached 44 All-ACCAC players and seven NJCAA All-Americans, while over 50 of his players went on to participate in NCAA Division I.
Coach Bennett won seven ACCAC- Coach- of –the- Year Awards, six NJCAA-Region I-Coach- of- the- Year Awards, and was named 1990 NJCAA National Coach- of -the -Year.
His winning ways are well-known by the folks at Central High School, Camelback High School, Westwood High School, and Gilbert High School most recently, where his 2003 team won the state championship. Team USA was also a recipient of Coach Bennett’s talents in 1979 as he assisted in the USSR. In 1985, he coached in the US Air Force Clinics in Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines. In 1991, Coach Bennett was an assistant coach in the US Olympic Festival for the West team. In all, he has won 711 games as a head coach.
“He’s one of the greatest coaches in Arizona history…Period. When I walk into the Theo Heap Gym, I think…Tom Bennett.” --- Current Thunderbird Head Coach Sam Ballard.
No stranger to Halls of Fame, Coach Bennett was inducted into the NJCAA Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995. In 1999, Wabash College enshrined him. In 2004, Mesa City Sports inducted him. In 2006, the State of Indiana inducted him into their Hall of Fame.