DREW RICHARDS

Camp Owner, Head Coach at UNC Pembroke

After leading Lander to its most regular-season wins in 20 years, as well as a Peach Belt Conference Tournament title, as the head coach of the Bearcats in 2019-20, Drew Richards returned to Pembroke in March 2020 as the 16th head coach of the Braves.

It will be the second coaching stint at UNCP for Richards, who helped guide the Braves to a 113-43 (.724) record and four NCAA Tournament appearances as an associate head coach from 2014-19. The Braves compiled a 72-29 (.713) record against conference foes over that span, and captured the PBC regular season and tournament championships in both 2016-17 and 2017-18.

In his lone season with the Bearcats in Greenwood, S.C., the nine-year college coaching veteran helped lead the program on a 10-game turnaround from an 12-17 clip in 2018-19 to a 23-8 mark in 2019-20. The Bearcats concluded the 2019-20 campaign with a 15-1 mark at home, and rolled through the PBC Tournament on the way to a conference championship and the league’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

Richards began his collegiate coaching career at Missouri State-West Plains, where he helped lead helped pace the Grizzlies to a cumulative 63-30 record in two seasons, as well as the 2012-13 NJCAA Region XVI regular season title. His 2011-12 team finished ninth nationally in field goal percentage defense while also setting a program record for fewest points allowed in a season.

As a player, Richards spent four seasons at Missouri State, where his Bears teams averaged 20 wins per season and made three trips to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT). He played in 118 games, making 69 start, including 56 over his final two seasons. He led the team in blocks each of his final three campaigns and currently ranks third in program history in career blocks.

Richards played professionally for one season with Erdgas Ehingen Steeples, where he finished ninth in the league in blocked shots and 12th in rebounds per game during the 2008-09 seasons.

Richards earned his bachelor's degree in public relations from Missouri State in 2008, while also earning his master's degree in sports science from the United States Sports Academy in 2013. He and his wife, Caeli, have two children, Knox and Benton.

A native of Rogersville, Mo., Richards enjoyed immeasurable success as both a player and coach in the 10 years prior to his move to Pembroke. Following a standout collegiate and professional playing career, he stepped into the coaching world as an assistant at Missouri State-West Plains – a heavyweight in the junior college ranks – and helped pace the Grizzlies to a cumulative 42-20 (.677) record, as well as the 2012-13 NJCAA Region XVI regular season title. As a rookie coach in 2011-12, he helped mold a 21-10 club that finished ninth, nationally, in field goal percentage defense. The squad also established a new program benchmark for fewest points allowed in a season (1,807).

His success in West Plains would inevitably follow him to Lawton where he was an integral part of the Aggies’ best conference start in school history in 2013-14. He also was responsible for the tutelage of NCAA Division II Bulletin Preseason Player of the Year Craig Foster who finished the campaign averaging 14.8 points, 4.7 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game.

Richards also served a brief coaching stint with the Amateur Athletic Union’s (AAU) Missouri Flight organization where he helped place more than a dozen student-athletes into NAIA, NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II programs. He also helped the club achieve multiple top finishes on the AAU, Showcase and Mid-America Youth Basketball (MAYB) circuits.

A four-year letterwinner at Missouri State, Richards played in 118 career games (69 starts) and helped the Bears compile a collective 80-49 (.620) record and three trips to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT). Richards started in 56 games during his final two seasons as a collegian and led the club in blocked shots in each of his last three years in Springfield, Mo. His career was highlighted by a host of honors as well, including the Guy Thompson Award which is given annually to the team’s most outstanding senior on and off the court.

Richards currently ranks third all-time in MSU annals with 132 career blocked shots, while also ranking among the program’s all-time top 10 in games played.

Following a stellar collegiate career, Richards moved on to the professional ranks where he was a fixture in the starting lineup for the Erdgas Ehingen Steeples in Ehingen, Germany. He finished ninth in the league in blocked shots and 12th in rebounds per game in 2008-09.

A color analyst for the radio broadcasts at Missouri State from 2009-11 as well, Richards earned his bachelor’s degree in public relations from Missouri State in 2008, while also earning his master’s degree in sports science from the United States Sports Academy in 2013.

Richards earned his bachelor's degree in public relations from Missouri State in 2008, while also earning his master's degree in sports science from the United States Sports Academy in 2013. He and his wife, Caeli, have two children, Knox and Benton.

CHRIS SAUSE

Camp Manager, Assistant Coach at UNC Pembroke

Having already attained a wealth of experience with previous coaching stops at two other collegiate institutions, including a one-year stint at Wingate during the 2021-22 campaign, Chris Sause begins his first season at 2022-23 as an assistant coach with the Braves.

Sause played in 95 games as a 4-year letterwinner (3-time captain) at North Carolina Wesleyan, and helped pace the Battling Bishops to 68 wins from 2015-19, including an impressive 43-18 mark against USA South Conference foes. He shot better than 46 percent from the field across his career in Rocky Mount, as well as a 67.9 percent success rate from the free throw line. He also served as an intern and administrative assistant with the program for all four seasons as well.

The Durham native and Voyager Academy graduate joined the Averett coaching staff as an assistant coach prior to the 2018-19 season and helped lead the Cougars to a wealth of success, including a 2020-21 campaign that saw the Cougars amass a 20-7 record, including a 15-2 mark in the always-tough USA South Conference. The success of the program during his time in Danville, Va., was also evidenced by a quartet of All-USA South selections as well.

Wingate registered a 21-8 mark and a fourth-place finish in the South Atlantic Conference last season. Sause also enjoyed a stint as a scout and social media reporter for Phenom Hoop Report across the 2018-19 college basketball season as well.

Sause earned bachelor’s degrees in both business administration and organizational administration from North Carolina Wesleyan in 2019, and completed his master’s of business administration coursework at Averett in 2020

DYLAN ANDERSON

Camp Manager, Assistant Coach at UNC Pembroke

An aspiring coach who gained valuable experience over the past two seasons on the staff at Winston-Salem State, Dylan Anderson begins his second season at UNC Pembroke in 2022-23 as an assistant coach for the Braves. He previously served as a graduate assistant coach during the 2021-22 season.

Anderson played two seasons at Johnston Community College in Smithfield before transferring to Winston-Salem State where he earned a role as head manager for the Rams who made a run to both the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) regular season and tournament championships in 2019-20. He served a facilities and equipment internship for the WSSU athletics department in 2020-21 after the CIAA announced it was suspending athletics due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Fayetteville native and Fayetteville Christian High School alum earned dean’s list honors and was an active member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity on the way to earning his degree in physical education from Winston-Salem State in 2021. He is pursuing his master’s degree in sports administration at UNCP.