Rothesay Redhawk Colin Downey will continue to have Coach Hickey as his bench boss as he transitions to ACAA Basketball.

His high school coach Peter Hickey is the younger brother of his next coach John Hickey at St. Thomas and he already likes what he sees when he'll put on the Tommies jersey this Fall.

"Coach (John) Hickey has built an amazing basketball program and the team encourages and pushes their players to get better every day. I have been to some of their games and I was really impressed with the atmosphere in the gym and how the players really support each other," mentions the 5'11" point guard who also spent time as a shooting guard.

The Tommies are putting pieces of puzzle back together after their 2021-22 ACAA championship run had some bumps in the road, and met the MSVU Mystics in the final.

"Their playoff run was exciting to watch this year and I can't wait to be part of it in the future!" adds Downey.  The Tommies will get to host the ACAA Basketball tournament in March 2023, so he'll be part of that same atmosphere.

Coach Hickey is looking forward to bringing Downey into the fold and continue to grow his game.  "Colin will bring added intensity on the defensive end of the court and an ability to shoot the 3 on the offensive end." 

In choosing St. Thomas, Colin has a budding interest in Economics, but will also look at a variety of offerings at the Liberal Arts institution.  

"STU is a tight knit, friendly community with small class sizes which is a good fit for my learning style," Colin boasts.  

On the court, Downey is a team player first and foremost.  "I will be a player who will do whatever it takes for our team to win. I will be a great teammate and work as hard as I can to become a better basketball player everyday."

"We’re excited to have Colin on board with our crew. His work ethic is second to none." plugs Coach Hickey,

Downey is the second recruit announced by the Men's Basketball team along with Tre Campbell of Toronto.