Penn State Harrisburg men’s basketball head coach Don Friday has announced that former Guilford assistant Drew Shaw has joined his staff for the program’s upcoming 2024-25 campaign. 

Most recently, Shaw served as a student assistant coach at Guilford, his alma mater, for three seasons and helped lead the Quakers to one of the most successful seasons in program history, culminating in a trip to the Final Four of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament in 2023-24. Shaw served under Guilford head coach Tom Palombo and during the program’s most recent campaign, the Quakers won 26 games and were dominant during their run to the national semifinals. Last spring, Guilford standout Tyler Dearman won the 2024 Jostens Trophy for most outstanding player in Division III and earned All-America honors from both the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and D3hoops.com after being named the D3hoops.com Region VI Player of the Year, as well as the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Player and Defensive Player of the Year. 

The season prior, Shaw helped lead Guilford to another 20-win campaign that ended with the Quakers narrowly missing out on an NCAA Tournament bid with a narrow setback in the ODAC Championship Game. In 2022-23, all but one of the team’s six losses came against nationally-ranked opponents. That spring, Dearman earned NABC All-District Second Team honors for his efforts. During Shaw’s first season as a student assistant in 2021-22, Guilford racked up 18 victories and advanced to the ODAC Championship Tournament. Following the season, Liam Ward was tabbed second-team all-district by the NABC.

“We are very excited to welcome Drew to the Penn State Harrisburg men’s basketball program,” said Friday about the addition. “He was a valued member of the Guilford basketball program and we are excited about the impact he will make preparing our student-athletes for success in the classroom and on the hardwood. He understands the importance of building relationships within our program and will be an excellent recruiter and ambassador for Penn State Harrisburg. I am excited for him to hit the ground running and to be able to work alongside him.”

As a player at Guilford, Shaw saw time in eight games during his freshman campaign in 2019-20, netting his first collegiate point against Emory in November before appearing in one contest during the 2020-21 season that was abbreviated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

A four-sport star at North Gaston High School, Shaw earned all-conference honors following his senior season with the boys’ basketball program. He also earned all-conference recognition as a tennis player and secured letters as a member of the school’s baseball and cross country programs.

Penn State Harrisburg opens the 2024-25 season by hosting Franklin & Marshall on the opening day of the program’s annual tip-off classic on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 9.

https://athletics.hbg.psu.edu/sports/mbkb/2024-25/releases/20240909j1e0eg