Former Gateway coach Daryn Freedman leads Penn State Greater Allegheny to No. 1 ranking

By: Michael Love
Sunday, January 7, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Daryn Freedman entered his fourth season as Penn State Greater Allegheny men’s basketball head coach in the fall, and his team had its sights set on making its mark in the Penn State University Athletic Conference and beyond.

So far, things have gone well for the former boys head coach at Gateway. He and the Lions are the No. 1 ranked team in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Division 2 men’s poll.

Greater Allegheny was 9-5 overall through 14 games and 7-0 in PSUAC matchups through a 100-93 overtime win against Penn State Schuylkill on Dec. 9.

The Lions’ up-tempo style of play has produced six wins where they scored 90 or more points.

Greater Allegheny is not afraid to challenge itself away from conference play.

The Lions gave Division III Westminster a battle in early December before falling 89-80.

They made the trek east to face Division I Drexel on Dec. 18 and suffered a 117-49 loss.

The Dragons are 8-6 overall with a signature win over then-No. 18 Villanova, 57-55, on Dec. 2 as part of the Big 5 Classic.

Freedman owns 39 victories in two-plus seasons at Greater Allegheny. His first year with the Lions, 2020-21, was canceled because of the covid pandemic.

Before joining the Greater Allegheny program, he spent two seasons as associate head coach at NAIA Point Park and helped the Pioneers to a pair of River States Conference playoff appearances.

Freedman coached at Gateway four seasons from 2014-15 to 2017-18.

He led the Gators to a 51-41 overall record, the 2016-17 Section 3-5A championship, and four WPIAL playoff appearances.

Freedman stepped down at Gateway in March 2018 citing his desire to return to coaching at the collegiate level.

He had coached five seasons at the Kiski School and also served as an assistant at Sewickley Academy before coming to Gateway.

Freedman’s pre-Gateway resume also included work in the NBA with the New Jersey Nets and Philadelphia 76ers and in college on the staffs of John Calipari at Memphis and Ron Everhart at Northeastern and Duquesne.

In 15 seasons as a head coach where his team was in contention for a conference championships, Freedman helped lead that team to the title 11 times.

That included last year, his third at Greater Allegheny, where he guided the Lions to the PSUAC title and the second round of the USCAA Division 2 National Championship Tournament.

Greater Allegheny knocked off defending national champion Southern Maine before falling to eventual national champion and conference rival Penn State Wilkes Barre.

Gateway hockey alumni honored

The storied history of Gateway hockey was on display Dec. 26 at Palmer Imaging Arena in Delmont as the organization’s alumni were recognized at the annual holiday event.

A centerpiece of each year’s alumni celebration is the induction of three alumni to the Gateway Hockey Alumni Honor Roll for their contributions on and off the ice.

Honored this year were Mark Bobko (1983), Mark Schubert (1991) and Ken McCleary (2002).

Alumni president Stefan Biancaniello said the Honor Roll has a lasting impact that recognizes the past players’ dedication and support to Gateway hockey and their contributions to the program’s lasting legacy.

Close to four dozen players and coaches have been inducted to the alumni honor roll since its beginning in 2008.

Also, the inaugural 1972 team was inducted in 2012.

Gateway hockey celebrated the 50th anniversary of the program in 2022.

The first Gators team took to the ice in 1972. Four years later, Gateway went undefeated and captured the WPIHL Class AA title.

The Gators also won the WPIHL Class AAA title in 1996.

Close to 30 alumni participated in the annual Black-White alumni game

For the first time in the history of the event, the game ended in a tie.

“It was perhaps one of the most competitive games played in the series that is now 14 years old,” Biancaniello said.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Gateway