John Pelin was named the Head Coach of the men's basketball team in October 2015.
Pelin's 2019-20 season included 10 wins with eight of them coming over CUNYAC opponents. Despite a difficult start to the season, his squad bounced back and hit their stride midway through the season and went on a tear, winning nine of their last 12 games. Their effort over the final weeks allowed them to secure the #4 seed in the CUNYAC post-season tournament. However, in the quarterfinals, they were ousted by fifth seeded Brooklyn College. Senior standout, George Keener was named to the CUNYAC All-Star First Team while also eclipsing the 1,000 career point plateau which occurred on December 30, 2019 against Centenary.
During the 2018-19 season, Pelin's squad put together a 6-19 overall record with a 4-12 mark in conference play. Five of their losses were by eight points or less. One of the most exciting games of the year came against Baruch at Homecoming. His team erased a 25 point deficit in the second half and forced overtime thanks to a Melvin Collins contested triple with three seconds left in regulation. However his team wound up falling just short in overtime in the final seconds. Highlighting the year was George Keener who ranked in the top-10 in several statistical categories in CUNYAC and was named a Second Team All-Star. Additionally, under Pein, Hayden Belkin was named to the CUNYAC Sportsmanship Team.
The 2017-18 season marked the second straight year of improvement in the win column. Pelin led the Hawks to a 12-14 overall record and an 8-8 mark in CUNYAC action. The 12 wins is not only an improvement from the previous two years, but the most wins since the 2013-14 season. Additionally, his eight conference wins is the most the team has enjoyed since the 2009-10 season. The Hawks earned the #4 seed in the CUNYAC Tournament but made an early exit to John Jay in the quarterfinals. Under Pelin's direction both Matt Franks and George Keener earned CUNYAC Second-Team All-Star Honors. Additionally, Franks achieved the 1,000 point mark (1,051); 945 of which were scored while playing for Pelin.
During his short time at Hunter, Pelin tripled the team's win total in just his second season, leading the Hawks to the quarterfinals of the CUNYAC tournament in 2016-17 for the first time since 2014. He is on track for even more improvement in the 2017-18 season as he returns his top four scorers from the previous season, including CUNYAC Second-Team All-Star selection Matt Franks.
Prior to Hunter, Pelin spent seven seasons as an assistant men's basketball coach at New York University, where he was named senior assistant coach prior to the 2014-15 season. Success came early on and spanned each of his seven seasons as he helped lead the Violets to a 121-68 overall record and postseason appearances every season. In 2011-12, Pelin helped the 21-6 Violets to one of their best seasons in school history, leading the team to the NCAA Division III Championships for the first time since 1997-98 and earning their first NCAA Tournament win in 15 seasons. He and the rest of the staff went on to earn UAA Coaching Staff of the Year honors.
Pelin's duties of recruiting, practice planning and player development were major aspects in the success of the team in his final year as the Violets posted a 19-9 overall record, qualified for their ninth consecutive post season berth and then advanced to the finals of the ECAC Metro Tournament Championship. Additionally, under his tutelage, four players earned All-UAA honors including Co-Rookie of the Year.
Prior to NYU, Pelin spent two seasons at Drew University as an assistant coach from 2006-2008, overseeing all aspects of the program. Before beginning his coaching career Pelin was a member of the Gettysburg men's basketball team for four seasons, helping the squad to one NCAA Division III Championship appearance and two ECAC Division III South Championship invitations.
After graduating from Gettysburg in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in management, Pelin earned his Master of Science degree in sports leadership from Duquesne in 2011.
Pelin currently resides in Mount Vernon, NY with this wife Laura and sons Ryan and Carter.
| YEAR |
OVERALL
WINS |
OVERALL
LOSSES |
CUNYAC
WINS |
CUNYAC
LOSSES |
POSTSEASON |
| 2015-16 |
3 |
23 |
3 |
13 |
None |
| 2016-17 |
9 |
18 |
6 |
10 |
CUNYAC QF |
| 2017-18 |
12 |
14 |
8 |
8 |
CUNYAC QF |
| 2018-19 |
6 |
19 |
4 |
12 |
None |
| 2019-20 |
10 |
16 |
8 |
6 |
CUNYAC QF |
| 2021-22 |
13 |
13 |
7 |
7 |
CUNYAC SF |
