Iona Prep enlists a familiar name to reshape the basketball program

NEW ROCHELLE – The search was over soon after Iona Prep sketched out the attributes of a successful CHSAA basketball coach.

Tim Philp checked every box, some twice.

“I think his resume in the league speaks for itself,” said Gaels athletic director Ryan Mahoney, who interviewed 10 candidate for the job after the school parted ways earlier this month with Steve Alvarado.

Federation tournament: Stepinac unable to keep up with Long Island Lutheran in Class AA final

Biggest game of the season: Blaise New and Iona Prep secure long-awaited win over Stepinac

Philp, 45, has a history in the CHSAA.

He played at Stepinac, graduating in 1995 and came back to guide the freshman team in 2002. After one season, he was promoted to varsity head coach, leading the Crusaders to the best season in program history before stepping away following the 2013.

After taking a year to be with a growing family, Philp landed on the bench at Cardinal Hayes where he was the associate head coach.

“The experience in the Catholic high school league separated him from the other candidates,” Mahoney said.

Philp was twice named coach of the year in the CHSAA and has been a part of three Archdiocesan championships and three City titles. He formally announced Monday and met with the players right after school.

He was intrigued from the start of the process.

“First off, it’s a job in the CHSAA, one of the best high school leagues in the country,” Philp said. “I think there’s super high potential here, great campus, great facilities, great academic reputation. … It’s in a good location. There’s a lot of talent in Westchester, but you can also tap into the city, whether it’s Harlem or the Bronx.”

The plan is to build a strong brand that entices student-athletes to seek the school out.

Iona Prep went 17-11 this past season and was 10-7 in league play. The first win over Stepinac in four seasons capped an impressive stretch run, but the Gaels went 2-3 the rest of the way and lost to St. Francis Prep in an Intersectional quarterfinal.

“The league is super competitive,” Philp said. “Win or lose you have to forget about it, get ready for the next opponent. It’s not an easy thing to do.”

He doesn’t believe it will be difficult for a Stepinac guy to wear rival colors.

“I kind of already made the adjustment when I went down to Hayes,” Philp said. “It took a season or two. Going back into Stepinac was strange a little, but those guys are great so it was never awkward. They always welcomed me with open arms. It’s a great, healthy, competitive rivalry.”

The Gaels only had three seniors on the roster, but two of them were All-CHSAA picks – A.J. Rodriguez and Blaise New. Iona Prep also had 10 juniors and two sophomores in uniform this past season.

Practice begins on Tuesday.

“We’ll roll the balls out, let them relax,” added Philp, who is working on building his staff. “They don’t have anything to prove. I’ll get to know them little by little and little by little they’ll get to know me.”

Mike Dougherty covers basketball for The Journal News and lohud.com. He can be reached at mdougher@lohud.com or via Twitter @lohudhoopsmbd.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Iona Prep announces Stepinac grad Tim Philp as boys basketball coach