Education
Benton, a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania native, attended from 1988 to 1992. He was the team"s sixth man during his sophomore and junior seasons before becoming the starting point guard as a senior in 1991-1992. Benton helped the Perry Commodores to their school"s first state title during his junior year.
In his final year, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Fabulous Five" team after also being named an all-City League player.
Benton continued his basketball career at the University of Vermont.
He went on to have the most decorated career in Vermont"s program"s history during his tenure. He scored a still-standing school record 2,474 points, including a record 54-point game against Drexel on January 29, 1994.
His point total was the second-highest in America East Conference history, and for his career he averaged 23.8 points per game. In three of his four seasons, Benton finished in the top 12 nationally.
Benton scored his 1,000th career point during his sophomore season and became only the third National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I men"s basketball player ever to record 1,000 points before his 19th birthday (others include Louisiana State University"s Shaquille O"Neal and Duke"s Mike Gminski).
He was named a First Team All-America East Conference performer in all four seasons, becoming just the third player in conference history to achieve that. In 1995-1996 Benton won the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award as the best senior player under 6-feet tall (he is 5"11"). At the time of Benton"s graduation in 1996, he held 15 different offensive category school records, including career field goals, free throws, three-pointers and scoring average.
He also recorded 458 assists, the third-highest total in Vermont history as of his graduation.