FAIRFAX, Va. – George Mason University men's basketball head coach Tony Skinn ('06) announced Tuesday that Serge Clement will join his staff as an assistant coach.
Recognized by multiple outlets as one of the preeminent mid-major assistants in the nation, Clement comes to Fairfax after leading Hofstra to three-straight 20+ win seasons including a 2023 Coastal Athletic Conference regular season championship.
"I'm excited to welcome Serge to our program," Skinn said. "He's a talented and connected coach who is a great communicator and passionate leader. We've traded ideas back and forth for years, and I knew if I had the opportunity one day, I'd love to have him on my staff. He's a basketball guy who commands so much respect in recruiting circles across the country. Every program he's been a part of has achieved success, and I know his experience will benefit our guys and our staff."
Clement earned acclaim in 2022, 2023, and 2024 as part of the Silver Waves Media "Rising Stars: Impactful Men's Mid Major Assistants" list. Overall, for the past four years, he has been a four-time Silver Waves Media honoree and a four-time Top Connect attendee.
"I'd like to thank Coach Skinn for the opportunity to join the George Mason Basketball Family," Clement said. "Tony is someone I have always admired as a transformational leader and a charismatic winner with a high level of integrity. George Mason has a storied history and tremendous tradition and I look forward to integrating myself into the program. It is my goal to elevate the Patriot standard while helping to build a championship program and develop holistic student-athletes the George Mason way!"
Clement guided Hofstra during one of the most successful three-year runs in program history. During that time, he also coached and developed six players who received conference recognition including two-time CAA Player of the Year Aaron Estrada (2021, 2022) and 2024 CAA Player of the Year Tyler Thomas.
In 2021-22, the Pride won 21 games, then followed up that season with a 25-victory campaign in 2022-23, which included a regular season CAA title. The Pride advanced to the second round of the NIT on the strength of a first round victory at Rutgers. This past season, Hofstra won 20 games and advanced to the CAA semifinals. Also, in 2023-24, the Pride earned its third Top-3 finish and won 20 games for the third-straight season.
During his tenure at Hofstra, the Pride also earned victories over two nationally ranked opponents. Hofstra defeated #24 Arkansas in 2021-22, then knocked off #18 Charleston in 2022-23.
Prior to his time with the Pride, Clement coached for three seasons at Marist. As an assistant, Clement served as the program's lead recruiter and assisted in all aspects of managing the program. In 2020-21, the Red Foxes had their first winning season in 13 years and best conference finish in 14 seasons. During that same season, Marist finished above .500 for the first time in 19 years, and the Red Foxes' 6-1 start was their best in 22 years.
In 2020, Clement was named as a Top-5 Assistant Coach in the MAAC by Jeff Goodman. In 2019, he was selected to join fellow industry peers in Tampa, Florida, for the NCAA Basketball Coaches Academy.
ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
George Mason welcomes back two starters from last season's 20-win squad, including second-leading scorer
Darius Maddox (14.0 ppg) and
Jared Billups. GM also brings back three additional letter winners, including
Woody Newton,
Austin Ball and 2023 All-SoCon Third Team selection
Jalen Haynes (ETSU). The Patriots finished in the top-100 nationally last season for the first time since 2010-11.
The Green & Gold will bring in five transfers for the 2024-25 campaign, including forward
Giovanni Emejuru (Siena), guard
Jeremiah Quigley (Iona), guard
K.D. Johnson (Auburn), guard
Brayden O'Connor (UMass Lowell) and forward
Zach Anderson (FGCU). That group is ranked 57th nationally among transfer classes by EvanMiya.com. George Mason's three athlete freshman class includes guard
Justin Begg (Houston, Texas) and forwards
Bryson Cokley (Whiteville, N.C.) and Staš Sivka (Celje, Slovenia).
MEN'S BASKETBALL TICKET INFORMATION
George Mason Men's Basketball season tickets are on sale now! Seats as low as $99 are
available online, while additional seating is available by contacting the George Mason Athletic Ticket Office at 703-993-3270 or filling out an
interest form to be contacted by a dedicated Account Rep!
Additional ticket offerings will be available in the fall upon the full schedule release.
