Still one of the most outstanding guards Washington College and the Centennial Conference has ever seen, Ben Harris did not let a serious injury put a premature end to a storied collegiate basketball career.
During his freshman season of 1993-94, Harris averaged 14.8 points per game while handing out 68 assists and knocking down a conference-leading 48% of his three-point attempts and 85% of his free throws. As a sophomore the following season, Ben averaged 20.2 points per game, recorded 82 assists, and netted 42% of his three-point attempts. He was named to the All-Centennial Conference second team following the season.
A broken foot sidelined Ben for the entirety of the 1995-96 season, but he came back the following year to average 14.2 points per game and dish out 63 assists on his way to All-Centennial Conference first-team recognition. He completed his collegiate career by averaging 14.1 points per game and recording 71 assists as a senior in 1997-98.
All told, Ben scored 1,547 points at Washington College, which ranked him third in school history at the time of his graduation and is still good for fifth in school history. He also holds the school record for career three-point field goals with 200; a single-season school-record 67 of those came during the 1994-95 campaign. His scoring and three-point totals rank him in the top 10 all-time in the Centennial Conference, while his 284 career assists place him in the conference’s top 15.
Perhaps the most compelling evidence of Ben’s impact on the Shoremen comes in the team’s win-loss records during his career. In his four years playing for the Shoremen, the Maroon and Black went 57-42, advancing to the Centennial Conference Tournament three times. During the 1995-96 season, when Ben sat out with his broken foot, the Shoremen finished 9-15.
Washington College considers it an honor and privilege to induct Benjamin A. Harris into its Athletic Hall of Fame on this 22nd day of October, 2011.
