ST. BONAVENTURE — The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team has announced the new coaching staff that will fill the bench behind new head coach Mike MacDonald.
The appointments of Akbar Waheed, Clive Bentick and Nick Fruscio as assistant coaches were all made officially by the program on April 22.
Waheed, Bentick and Fruscio were all names that had been long associated with the job since Mike MacDonald’s hire, it was just a matter of working things out contractually before they could be officially unveiled.
It was also announced that Nick MacDonald, Mike MacDonald’s son, will join the program as a video coordinator and player development specialist.
“We are very excited about the coaching staff we have put together,” Mike MacDonald said in a statement. “We have a mix of veteran coaches and young coaches. We have coaches with NBA experience and high-major Division I experience. Most importantly, we have assembled a staff who love basketball, love teaching and are great role models for the young men on our team.”
Waheed brings with him 25 years worth of experience as a coach and a scout. He comes to the Bonnies after having spent the last three years as a scout for the Brooklyn Nets. He was also a scout for the Oklahoma City Thunder for one season.
In terms of collegiate experience, Waheed worked as an assistant coach in Patrick Ewing’s staff at Georgetown from 2016 to 2022. He was also the lead assistant at Hofstra (2015-16), Boston College (2010-14) and Niagara (2000-10).
Bentick also brings with him over 20 years of experience at the Division I level. Most recently, he was on the staff at Monmouth, where he had been since 2022. Prior to his time with the Hawks, he was an assistant coach at St. Francis Brooklyn for 15 seasons.
In 2021, Stadium listed Bentick as one of the top Division I assistant coaches in the nation.
Fruscio spent the last two years as an assistant coach at Daemen University and followed Mike MacDonald to St. Bonaventure. In those two years, the Wildcats compiled a 61-3 record.
Fruscio was an assistant at Canisius High School (2023-24) and Northwest Florida State (2022-23). He began his career as a graduate assistant at East Carolina from 2020 to 2022.
Nick MacDonald was a graduate assistant at Cincinnati last season. Prior to his time with the Bearcats, he was an assistant coach at Buffalo State for a year. He played collegiate basketball for five years, the last three of which were spent with his father at Daemen.
