Cheyney legend Bell will try to revive his alma mater

One of the most storied men’s basketball programs in Pennsylvania has turned to a former great to bring it back to life.

After a 1-21 season in 2019-20, Cheyney University has named former Cheyney great Leon Bell to head its men’s basketball program, the only official men’s sport offered at the school.

Bell has been an assistant with the Wolves for the past four seasons and was named head coach this week when Dawud Morris’ contract was not renewed.

Cheyney withdrew from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and NCAA Division II before the 2018-19 season. The men’s basketball program played as an independent team last year, scheduling mostly Division III schools and community colleges.

Bell is a Cheyney graduate and former head coach at West Chester Henderson High School, where he won four consecutive Ches-Mont League titles and made the Warriors one of the top boys programs in District 1 before he retired in 2010 after 13 seasons.

Bell played for legendary head coach John Chaney from 1972-75 where he averaged 14 points per game and scored 1,009 points in his three years of play, leading the Wolves to two PSAC East Division titles. Bell was elected to the Chester County Hall of Fame in 2015 and the Ches-Mont League Hall of Fame in 2018.

“I want young men to come to Cheyney for a great education and our basketball program will be something they can build on and become pillars of the school,” Bell said. “We want to have a positive impact on the rest of the school and have a program that everyone at Cheyney University can be proud of. I want the kids to know that I care about them and that Cheyney Universaity cares about them.”

Last year, the Wolves went 1-21. They won the season opener against Delaware County Community College by just one point, and then lost 24 straight, by an average of 35.5 points.

But Bell is very optimistic about not only the Cheyney men’s basketball program but the entire future of the university under the direction of school president, Aaron A. Walton.

“President Walton cares deeply about Cheyney University,” Bell said. “He puts in a whole lot of time in making Cheyney a great place to go to school and he always puts Cheyney’s fortunes first. Things are looking up for Cheyney and President Walton has had a lot to do with that feeling.”

The Wolves now play an independent schedule, and Bell said he hopes to have 29 games scheduled for the 2020-21 season.

Leon Bell