Central Penn vs Navy prediction: Navy starts life after Benigni against Central Penn
A non-Division I visitor gives Jon Perry an early look at which returners and freshmen can carry a Patriot League champion that lost its national player of the year.
- Navy played at a deliberate tempo last season, and the real interest here is who earns minutes after Austin Benigni's departure.
- Watch Navy's returners, including Jerry Ashley Jr., Owen Gray and Cam Cole, to see who takes the shots Benigni used to take.
- No spread or total is posted yet. Navy played at 63.2 possessions per 40 minutes last season, 355th of 365, which keeps scores modest.
A champion without its star
Navy won its first outright Patriot League regular-season title since 1997 last season and finished 26-8. Austin Benigni, the 2026 Lou Henson national player of the year, has finished his Navy career. Jon Perry enters his second season as head coach with a roster that mixes returners such as Jerry Ashley Jr., Owen Gray, David Burnett, Cam Cole and Julian Gabbidon with a large freshman class that includes Luke Mayberry, Wayne Fletcher II and Sam Pitrof. Nobody has said who starts. A November home date against a non-Division I opponent is where Perry can sort that out.
The defense is the inheritance
Last season's Navy team won with defense. The Mids allowed 64.3 points per game, 6th nationally, and opponents made just 29.7% of their threes, 7th of 365. They also kept opponents off the free-throw line, with an opponent free throw rate (free throws attempted per field goal attempt) of 25.8%, 17th. With the roster in flux, how much of last season's defensive profile carries over is one of the questions to watch.
Slow by design
Navy ranked 355th in pace last season, playing about 63.2 possessions per 40 minutes. Fewer possessions mean fewer chances to stretch a lead, so even a lopsided matchup can produce a margin that looks smaller than the talent gap.
Who Central Penn brings
Central Penn is listed in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association's Division 2, not NCAA Division I. Kenton Alston enters his second year as coach of a program that went 6-17 in 2024-25. No 2026-27 roster or results have surfaced, so the Knights arrive as an unknown.
Numbers that matter
| Navy record last season | 26-8 | Navy won the Patriot League regular-season title, though Benigni has since left. |
|---|---|---|
| Opponent 3-point % last season | 29.7% | Ranked 7th of 365, the strongest piece of Navy's defensive profile. |
| Pace last season | 63.2 | Navy's possessions per 40 minutes ranked 355th, which tends to keep scores low. |
| Points allowed per game last season | 64.3 | Ranked 6th nationally, partly a product of the slow tempo. |
Central Penn vs Navy: quick answers
When is Central Penn vs Navy?
Sunday, November 8, 2026 at 1:00 PM ET.