We’re counting down the top 10 moments in each Ivy school’s history as part of our Ivy League at 60 retrospective. Brown is next because the bandleader plays on…
Glen Miller wouldn’t have had the opportunity to turn the Penn basketball program into a still unextinguished dumpster fire if he hadn’t done a solid job in Providence.
Before Miller became Brown head coach in 1999, the Bears had enjoyed just one winning season in 23 years (the 1986 Ivy title season) and 14 total wins in the previous three seasons. Under Miller, whose previous coaching stop was at Division III Connecticut College, Brown quadrupled that achievement, reeling off four straight winning seasons from 2000-01 through 2003-04, including the school’s only NIT appearance in 2003.
Miller implemented a four-guard motion offense that allowed the Bears to routinely lead the Ivy League in scoring, lifting the program from Ivy bottom dweller status to three second-place conference finishes in Miller’s seven seasons at Brown. Leading the way were some of the greatest players in school history, including 2004 Ivy Player of the Year Jason Forte and Brown all-time leading scorer Earl Hunt.
Then Miller got lured away to helm the Quakers by Penn athletic director Steve Bilsky in 2006 and Brown and Penn have combined for three winning seasons out of a possible 18 between them ever since.
*Deep breath* There, the article’s over, Penn people. That wasn’t so bad, now was it? (Okay, yeah, it was.)
Miller wasn’t easy to play for, but his former players (or, at least those who stayed) are loyal to him and to Mike Martin, who will continue to improve the program. Miller started with some talent recruited by Dobbs, Hunt and, I believe Kilburn, Nualuatia was a late Miller get. He had a good eye for talent, no one wanted McAndrew who wound up leading the league in scoring. Other than Peter Sullivan and a few others in Robinson’s first recruiting class, Martin had a fairly empty cupboard. Maia was Agel’s only addition, Kuakumensah was a Sorrentine get.
After reading this I have admitted myself to the HUP psych ward and have been on a thorazine, xanex, haldol cocktail ever since. I am told i have now become “patient zero” in a study analyzing group PTSD as regards college hoops.
The AQ