Bio

Rich Bensman is in his sixth season as the head men’s basketball coach at Ohio Northern.

Before taking over the program on February 24, 2016, he had served as an assistant coach the previous four seasons.

In five seasons at the helm, Bensman has guided the Polar Bears to a 56-60 overall record and a 37-44 mark in Ohio Athletic Conference play. His 2016-17 squad finished runner-up in the OAC Regular Season title race with a 14-4 league mark, while the 2017-18 squad advanced to the program's first OAC Tournament title game since the 2006 season.

Bensman coached Ryan Bruns to back-to-back All-America honors during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons and the 2017-18 OAC Men's Basketball Player of the Year award. He has also coached seven All-OAC honorees.

Bensman came to ONU following a highly-successful prep basketball coaching career. He won 296 games, four consecutive district championships, three consecutive regional finals, and an Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championship in 18 seasons leading the Cincinnati Reading High School basketball program.

He was named the Cincinnati Hills Conference Coach of the Year in 2002, 2003, and 2011 and was named the Ohio Public High School Coach of the Year in 2003 when he guided Reading to a 24-3 record and a state title.

He was also named the Southwest District Coach of the Year in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005.

Bensman had previous coaching stints at Archbishop Moeller High School and Cincinnati McNicholas High School as an assistant, helping guide the Rockets to an OHSAA Final Four appearance in 1993.

"I am excited to be coaching at the NCAA Division III level and am impressed with the vision and leadership at Ohio Northern," Bensman said. "There is a lot of comradeship, working together for the common good of the university and the students."

Bensman has a bachelor's degree in communication arts from the University of Cincinnati. He completed his graduate work at Xavier University.

He is a native of Minster, Ohio, where he played basketball in the storied MAC conference.

Men's Basketball under Bensman