Geoff Billet Won’t Return as CBA Basketball Coach

Throughout the rich history of the Christian Brothers Academy basketball program, only one person has led the team both on the court and from the bench.

Geoff Billet starred for the Colts as a player in the mid-1990’s and returned to the Academy in 2007 to run the program and led the Colts to championships as both a player and coach. On Monday, CBA announced that 2024-25 was the final season for Billet, who was just the third coach in the history of a CBA program that started in 1962.

“These 18 years would not have been possible without the hard work of our student-athletes, partnership with terrific assistant coaches, and the support of our parents and fans,” Billet said in a statement released by the CBA athletic department. “It has been an honor to serve as head basketball coach at the Academy and I will forever be thankful for the memories we made together.”

Billet did not return a request for further comment from Shore Sports Insider as of the time of this post. CBA has not said whether Billet resigned or the school chose to fill the position with someone new for the coming 2025-26 season.

In 18 seasons as the successor to his former head coach, Ed Wicelinski, Billet amassed record of 325-127, which is the second-most wins of any program in the Shore Conference during that time, with Manasquan leading the field. Billet’s teams won 10 Shore Conference division championships, Shore Conference Tournament championships in 2009 and 2010, and SCT final appearances in 2014 through 2016 and again this past February.

As a player, Billet led CBA to its only appearance in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions, which came after CBA won the 1994-95 overall Non-Public A championship. During his 18 years coaching his alma mater, Billet guided the Colts to NJSIAA South Jersey Non-Public A championships in 2008-09 and 2014-15, with the Colts losing the 2009 Non-Public A final to Immaculata and the 2015 group championship game to Pope John.

This past season was CBA’s best year since 2016, with the Colts reaching the 20-win mark for the first time since 2018-19 and making it to the Shore Conference Tournament championship game for the first time since that 2015-16 season. Although CBA lost to St. Rose, 45-36, in the final at Monmouth University, the Colts were one of just two teams from the Shore Conference to come within single-digits of St. Rose this season. Manasquan lost to St. Rose by five points in December, then lost by margins of 13 and 19 two later games vs. the Purple Roses.

CBA finished the season ranked No. 3 in the Shore Sports Insider rankings behind St. Rose and Manasquan. The Colts also lost to Manasquan, 34-31, at the Hoop Group Boardwalk Showcase at Georgian Court University while playing without junior starting point guard Charlie Marcoullier.

Billet is only the third coach in the history of the CBA program and all three coaches left the job with at least 325 wins. Vinnie Cox won 350 games in 18 seasons and delivered CBA five overall state championships, including three straight from 1971 to 1973.

Wicelinski took the reins in the 1980-81 season and won 625 games — a Shore Conference record among boys basketball coaches. Under Wicelinski’s watch, CBA won overall state titles in 1984, 1985 and 1995, as well as six additional South Jersey sectional championships. On top of the state-tournament success, Wicelinski also led CBA into the Shore Conference in the early 1980’s and once the Colts joined the Conference, they won 14 championships in 25 seasons between 1983 and 2007 and were the tournament runners-up six times during the same span.

After a standout college career at Rutgers and stops as a college assistant at both Monmouth and Rutgers, Billet took over at CBA after Wicelinski retired following the 2006-07 season. Billet guided CBA to Shore Conference Tournament and NJSIAA sectional championships in his second season at the helm and coached the Colts to a second consecutive SCT championship in 2009-10. CBA later would reach three straight SCT finals from 2014 to 2016, but fell short in each championship game.

The winning tradition over the last six-plus decades makes CBA the Shore’s most prestigious coaching position and that job is now open for the first time since 2007. This past winter’s team graduates two senior starters (Kevin Pikiell and Justin Fuerbacher ) — both of whom were Shore Sports Insider All-Shore selections. The Colts still figure to have a well-rounded roster in place, with both Marcoullier and 6-foot-5 forward Connor Andree due back as fourth-year varsity players and 6-foot-8 rising junior David Boley also coming off a strong season.

CBA has said it will begin its search for the next basketball head coach later this month and that search is likely to include an inquiry with St. Rose head boys basketball coach Brian Lynch. Billet and Lynch played together on CBA’s 1995 state championship team and squared off with one another in each of the last three Shore Conference Tournaments — all won by St. Rose. Lynch — who played college basketball at Villanova and enjoyed a long professional career in Europe as both a player and coach — guided the Purple Roses to Shore Conference Tournament championships in each of the past two seasons and to an overall NJSIAA Non-Public B championship in 2023-24, including the No. 1 ranking in the state to finish the season.

Lynch’s daughter, Jada, and god son, Jayden Hodge, are due to be seniors at St. Rose in 2025-26 and his nephew, Avery Lynch, is a rising junior with the Purple Roses. Lynch also lives in Belmar, so he has strong ties to both St. Rose and the surrounding community.