Brett MacConnell

Handicapping the Columbia and Penn men’s basketball coaching changes

by

The Penn and Columbia men’s basketball coaching jobs are both open. There has been much speculation and more rumors.

What we know is neither team is in the postseason, but some of the candidates are. Penn has hired Georgia-based Parker Executive Search, an executive search firm.

Columbia athletic director Peter Pilling is handling the Columbia search. Pilling made a great hire on the women’s side in Megan Griffith in 2016 and should know talent when he sees it. He was at Ivy Madness on Friday and Saturday and played all conversations close to the vest. Every candidate will want to know definitively if there will be some form of NIL available.

The candidates and the odds:

Read more

Power ranking candidates for Penn men’s basketball to succeed Steve Donahue

by

Instead of dragging out the inevitable, Penn fired Steve Donahue on Monday after 10 years as head coach and two consecutive seventh-place finishes in the Ivy League. Donahue ends his time at Penn with a record of 131-130.

The Quakers have retained Georgia-based executive search firm Parker Executive Search to find Donahue’s replacement. It seems likely that the next Penn head coach will be one of the names below, conveniently grouped into a handful of tiers for debate and discussion:

Read more

The Steve Donahue era ends for Penn men’s basketball

by
Penn is moving on from coach Steve Donahue after the Quakers went 131-130 and 63-63 in Ivy League play in his 10 years at the helm. (Steve Donahue X page)

After a disappointing 8-19 season and a second consecutive seventh-place Ivy League campaign, Penn men’s basketball coach Steve Donahue was fired by Alanna Wren on Monday morning.

With tenures at Cornell, Boston College and Penn, Donahue’s 23-year overall record is 331-344. Through his nine years at Penn, the coach finished at 131-130 overall and 63-63 mark in league play.  

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily Pennsylvanian, all three of Donahue’s assistants, Nat Graham, Joe Milalich Jr., and Kris Saulny, have also been released by the university.

“Steve has been steadfast in his commitment to the program and the development of our student-athletes. I’ve always had great respect for his commitment to Ivy values, and he has been a strong representative of Penn during his career,” Wren noted in Penn Athletics’ news release. “Unfortunately, the competitive success on the court has not been up to our standards. While difficult, a change in leadership is necessary to provide the championship-caliber experience our student-athletes, alumni and fans expect.”

Read more

Elegy for the Killer Ps

by

Not so long ago, the Princeton Tigers and the Penn Quakers – the Killer Ps – ruled the realm of Ivy League men’s basketball.  

Read more

Reporter’s Notebook: Ivy Madness day two

by
The Cornell jersey arrived special delivery from Ithaca, and all is right in the world of Ivy hoops. (Photo: Rob Browne)

Another great day in the books at Columbia University and Levien Gymnasium.

Four good press conferences, two very good semifinal games and lots of tasty food (including pizza!) in the media room. It’s really hard to beat a day like that.

Some things of note from an Ivy hoops Friday:

Read more

LISTEN: Q&A with Princeton men’s basketball director of basketball operations Chris Mongilia

by

Mongilia (Princeton Sports Camps)

Ivy Hoops Online caught up with Princeton men’s basketball director of basketball operations Chris Mongilia Saturday. In his eighth  season at Princeton, Mongilia recounts how he came to the Tigers, his broad range of duties in his role, “speak[ing] for” and “protect[ing]” Princeton basketball,” and more:

Audio Player

 

Princeton men’s basketball putting it all together heading into Ivy League play

by

Matt Allocco.
Senior guard Matt Allocco’s intangibles have keyed Princeton’s 12-1 start to the 2023-24 season. (Princeton Athletics)

Princeton men’s basketball is poised to enter what promises to be an eventful Ivy League campaign beginning Saturday against the Harvard Crimson at Jadwin Gym.
Skipper Mitch Henderson has compiled an enviable record of 208 wins against 116 losses, a winning percentage of 63%. Since he took the helm in 2011, he has won four Ivy titles and two Ivy tournament crowns. His record playing Ivy teams is a glittering 111-48. He joins Pete Carril, who recruited him as a player, as the only two Tiger coaches to have amassed more than 100 league wins. In 2017, after a 16-0 run through the league and the inaugural Ivy tourney, he was named Ivy League Coach of the Year.

Read more

Takeaways from Princeton men’s basketball securing 3-0 start with 70-67 win at Duquesne

by

Listen to Ivy Hoops Online contributor George “Toothless Tiger” Clark analyze Princeton men’s basketball’s 70-67 win in Pittsburgh over a KenPom top-85 Duquesne squad, the Tigers’ second win over a team in that echelon away from Jadwin Gym in three games to become one itself:

Audio Player

Caden Pierce explosion sparks Princeton men’s basketball in 74-67 win at Hofstra

by

Ivy Hoops Online writers George “Toothless Tiger” Clark and Rob Browne deliver their respective audio and written reports on Princeton men’a basketball’s 74-67 victory at Hofstra Friday night:

Audio Player

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — No Mitch Henderson, no problem.

Princeton men’s basketball’s leader was ejected eight minutes into Friday night’s contest, but a career-high 26 points and 15 rebounds from Caden Pierce propelled Princeton to a convincing 74-67 victory over Hofstra at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex Friday night.

Following a Pierce travel, Henderson yelled at the lead official and was quickly called for two technical fouls. As the coach headed towards the locker room or the nearby Jersey Mike’s on Hempstead Turnpike, associated head coach Brett MacConnell took over the reins for fourth time in his career.

Read more

Q&As with Princeton men’s coaches Mitch Henderson and Brett MacConnell

by

Our George “Toothless Tiger” Clark caught up with Princeton head coach Mitch Henderson and associate head coach Brett MacConnell at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville ahead of No. 15 Princeton’s Sweet 16 matchup with No. 6 Creighton slated for 9 p.m. ET on TBS:

Read more