The men’s and women’s basketball programs have been steady standouts among Saint Anselm College’s athletics teams. For the men, 10 Northeast-10 championships (the most of any team in league history), and for the women, recently advancing to the NCAA postseason for the second time in five years. In addition to racking up championships and winning seasons, both teams also have seen several of its alumni move on to play professionally abroad over the last few years.
“It’s great to have so many former players achieving their dreams of playing at the professional level,” says Chris Santo ’15, head coach for the men’s basketball team. Santo, a former Hawks standout, was named the 11th head coach in program history in April 2024. “The men’s basketball program here at Saint Anselm has always competed at the highest level of Division II, and having players graduate and go on to play professionally is one of the most gratifying pieces of being a college coach.”
The following alumni are actively playing in professional leagues abroad. Photos courtesy of Saint Anselm College Athletics.
Tim Guers ’19, a natural science major, has signed a professional contract to play for Sporting CP in Portugal. The team competes in the Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol (LPB), the country’s top men’s basketball league. Guers was a member of the Saint Anselm men’s basketball program for four years from 2015 to 2019. During his four seasons, he started in all 122 games he appeared in, which is the second-most in program history. He led the Hawks to 91 wins compared to just 32 losses during his career (.739 winning percentage) and finished as the program’s all-time scoring leader with 2,327 career points. Over that time, Guers led Saint Anselm to a Northeast-10 Conference Championship in 2016-17 as well as four straight trips to the NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball tournament. Across his four seasons, Guers was a two-time NE10 Player of the Year in 2017-18 and 2018-19, the league’s Rookie of the Year in 2015-16, and a four-time NE10 All-Conference selection, including three times as a member of the First Team.
Danny Evans ’20, a business major, played for Union Rennes Basket 35 in French NM1 last year. Evans played for two seasons on the Hilltop, and started in all 61 games, averaging 11.2 points per game and scoring just shy of 700 points. Averaging exactly five rebounds per tilt, Evans also had 2.6 assists per contest and helped his team to a 47-14 overall record.
Shannon Ryan ’20, a psychology major, has joined the Sunshine Coast Phoenix playing in Australian NBL One East. Previously playing for Baden in the Swiss Basketball League, Ryan was a standout Hawks player, appearing in all 28 games as a senior, leading all of NCAA Division II in double-doubles (26), defensive rebounds per game (26) and field goals made (271), and averaging 23 points per game, ranking seventh in the country.
Chris Paul ’22, a communication major, has signed a professional contract to play for BBG Herford in Germany. He previously played professionally in Luxembourg and Finland. Paul helped the Hawks win a Northeast-10 (NE10) Championship and earn four NCAA Division II Tournament berths during his tenure on the Hilltop. During the 2018-19 campaign, Paul led Saint Anselm to an NCAA Division II East Region title and helped the team reach the Final Four. he was a four-time All-NE10 selection (two-time First Team pick), a two-time NABC All-District First Team selection, and a two-time D2CCA All-East Region Second Team selection.
Gustav Suhr-Jessen ’22, an economics and international business double major, plays for Hottur in Icelandic Subway League. During his four years at Saint Anselm, he played and started in all games. In his senior year he averaged 10.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game for Saint Anselm, and shot 44.7 percent from the floor (102-for-228).
Owen McGlashan ’23, a finance major, signed his first ever contract with BK Iskra Svit, a professional basketball club based in Slovakia. McGlashan played two full seasons with the Hawks after transferring in from NCAA Division I University of Denver in Denver, Colo. While on the Hilltop, he helped the team win the Northeast-10 (NE10) Championship in 2022-23, and helped the team reach a pair of NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Tournaments.
Miles Tention ’23, a business and marketing double major, signed a professional deal with Tigers Tübingen in Germany. This marks the second professional contract for Tention, who played professionally last year in Cyprus. Tention helped the Hawks win two NE10 Championships and earn four NCAA Tournament berths. He was a three-time NE10 All-Conference selection and helped Saint Anselm win 86 games, compared to just 33 losses, from 2018-2023.
Tyler Arbuckle ’24, a business and marketing double major, will be playing with HKK Mostar, a professional club that plays in the Basketball Championship of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Balkan nation’s top league. This is his first professional contract. Arbuckle helped the Hawks win two Northeast-10 (NE10) Championships and earn three NCAA Tournament berths during his tenure on the Hilltop. He was a three-time All-NE10 selection, a two-time All-Region selection, a one-time NABC All-American, and helped Saint Anselm win 76 games compared to just 42 losses during his career.