PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The brown banner at the Pizzitola Sports Center sits ominously among a slew of white ones and reads “Men’s Basketball Ivy League Champions.”
Below that sits a lone number: 1986 — with plenty of space for a companion or two.
It almost read 2024, of course. We don’t have to rehash what happened last March in New York on this site, but Brown had earned its first NCAA Tournament in 38 years by upsetting Yale and Princeton. Until it hadn’t.
There are facets of life that are more prone to people feeling sorry for you, but competitive athletics, at least at this level, ain’t one of them. And so Brown has been left to pick up the pieces, regroup, and prepare for the 2024-25 season, one which will see that banner on display for the entire league in March as the Pizzitola Sports Center will host the 2025 Ivy League Tournament.
Despite losing three of the eight players that were on the floor in last year’s Ivy tournament (Kimo Ferrari and Malachi Ndur graduated, Kalu Anya transferred to Saint Louis), Brown was still picked third in the Ivy preseason poll, only to lose Nana Owusu-Anane (the leading non-Princeton returner in Ivy League KenPom efficiency) for the season to a shoulder injury.
What has followed is an uncertain start to the 2024-25, losses to Siena and Maine – neither projected to be a powerhouse in its league – then a win over New Hampshire, followed by a 73-65 loss to Holy Cross (which hasn’t had more than 10 wins in a season since 2018-19) Saturday night at the College Hill Classic.
Kino Lilly was hounded and frustrated most of the evening, but he was still able to finish with 24 points and became Brown’s all-time leading three-point shooter in the process (now at 264 and counting). But the rest of the Bears were just 2-for-18 from behind the arc and got to the free-throw line just 10 times.
“I thought that we got outworked and out-efforted and out-toughed in the first half,” Martin – now in his 13th year in charge of the program – said. “We challenged them to not let that happen in the second half, and in the first three minutes, I didn’t see any change, so I called timeout and let them know that.”
A late comeback bid came up short for the Bears, but one of the concerning things for Mike Martin and his staff was the body language, especially at the beginning of the second half when the Crusaders pulled away. Lilly committed two of his five turnovers in that stretch and got an earful from Martin as well.
“I’m extremely grateful to be able to coach Kino,” Martin said. “He allows me to coach him. He allows me to challenge him. I expect an awful lot out of him and he delivers most of the time. They’ve been playing basketball here for a long time, I know a lot of it didn’t have a three-point line, but to have the record four games into your senior year shows how special Kino is.”
In addition to the changes on the court, Martin and Brown are adjusting to a new associate coach. T.J. Sorrentine is now with the Washington Wizards as an assistant after 16 seasons at Brown, and stepping in is Matt Lottich, who was at Missouri last season and spent seven years as Valparaiso’s head coach. Sorrentine spent 16 years at Brown, the last 12 as Martin’s associate coach, so it’s a big adjustment for all involved.
Brown rebounded on Sunday by blasting Sacred Heart 89-70, pulling away in the second half. A challenging close to the nonconference season awaits, including trips to Kansas and Kentucky.
It is important to remember that the Bears started last season 6-17 before becoming the hottest team in the Ivy League. It’s also important that there will be four teams at the Ivy tournament in March. Right now, Princeton is the favorite and Yale has never missed an Ivy Madness, but Dartmouth, Harvard and Penn have all looked poor to start the season, Cornell has a new head coach, and Columbia has not had a winning conference record since Kyle Smith was in charge (2015-16).
So where can Brown go to help Lilly? Start with the returners. Alexander Lesburt played 26 minutes in the Ivy final last year and is a great shooter, but unfortunately, opponents know that as well now, and with an increased focus on the scouting report, he will have to adjust. He was just 1-for-10 from three (coming off an injury), but he shot 6-for-10 Sunday in posting a career-high 22 against Sacred Heart.
Seniors Aaron Cooley and Lyndel Erold have been with the program for four years now. Cooley, especially, has shown flashes of dominating inside and hit double digits in rebounds in three of Brown’s first four games. Erold is a defensive specialist who attempted only 26 field-goal attempts all of last season.
Which leaves the new guys. Well, Landon Lewis isn’t exactly new, but the junior was used sparingly last season. He has scored in double figures in all five games to start 2024-25, shooting 27-for-42 from the field (64.3%).
“AJ (Lesburt) is still working his way back from injury, and he’s going to be a guy that will punish you for overhelping on Kino or on Landon inside,” Martin said. “That’s all part of the process. That stuff I will have patience for, it’s getting outworked and outcoached and out-physicaled the way we did that we have to correct quickly.”
Jeremiah Jenkins became the first Brown freshman to start the opener in seven years, but he has struggled to make his mark offensively. Sophomore Malcolm Wrisby-Jefferson has made 16 of his 20 two-point shots. Freshman David Rochester brings some size (6-foot-8) off the bench, and is 0-for-7 from three-point range to start the season.
Turnovers have long been a problem for Brown. in their losses, the Bears have averaged 15.7 this season, and Lilly’s early-season 22.7% turnover rate – although an obvious result of how much attention he is getting – is not going to get it done.
They seemed to figure everything out Sunday, though, against Sacred Heart, recording 1.35 points per possession and shooting 15-for-32 from the behind the arc (while going 16-for-23 from inside). Cooley was 3-for-4. If he can do that, Brown’s offense might be able to rival the one that stormed through the Ivy League down the stretch last season.
“I think we have versatility and we have a lot of different pieces,” Martin said. “The style we’re trying to play, pressing and trapping, we’re going to have to use our bench. We want to compete defensively at a level that demands physical effort. We want to sub, but we have to compete, and we haven’t been as difficult to play against as we need to be.”
And as hosts for the Ivy League Tournament in March, they would have at least a chance at redemption.