Brown men’s basketball head coach Mike Martin departs for assistant coaching post at Michigan

Mike Martin, Brown’s all-time winningest head coach, leaves his alma mater to join the Michigan coaching staff. (Photo: Brown Athletics)

Ivy League head coaching departures typically don’t happen in mid-July, but Monday brought an exception with the surprise announcement of longtime Brown men’s basketball coach Mike Martin stepping down to take an assistant coaching role at Michigan.

“Brown has changed my life,” Martin told Brown Athletics. “The relationships we’ve built here — with our players, staff, alumni, and the broader community — are so meaningful to my family. As a proud Brown alumnus, I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to have led this program for the past 14 years and to have worked alongside so many remarkable young men. Brown will always hold a special place in my heart.” 

Martin joins the staff of newly minted head coach Mike Boynton, Jr., who shed the interim tag and was given a two-year contract three weeks after the Dallas Mavericks hired Dusty May away from the defending national champions.

“Mike is someone I’ve admired for a long time,” Boynton said in a statement. “He’s an outstanding coach, an exceptional teacher and one of the best recruiters in the game, but more than anything, he’s a great person who truly invests in his players. At Brown, he’s built consistently competitive teams through player development and a winning culture, and those values align perfectly with what we’re building here in Ann Arbor. We’re excited to welcome Mike, Kristin and their daughters to the Michigan family.”

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Penn basketball and the Palestra get a presenting sponsor

On Tuesday afternoon, Penn’s Dr. M. Grace Calhoun, director of athletics and recreation, held a press conference to announce that Penn Athletics secured a sponsorship with Macquarie Investment Management. The multi-faceted agreement is highlighted by the group’s presenting sponsorship of the men’s and women’s basketball teams, as well as naming rights to the Palestra’s famed court.

Calhoun refused to disclose the length and value of the deal but noted the partnership is for several years and is the largest such agreement in the history of Penn Athletics.

Typically, a presenting sponsor attaches its name to a product. With respect to the “Cathedral of Basketball”, the hardwood will now permanently be known as “Macquarie Court at the Palestra.” Calhoun noted, iin response to questions from Jonathan Tannenwald of Philly.com and reporters form the Daily Pennsylvanian, that having a corporate name linked directly with the fabled arena was not an option. However, she did admit that the school’s famed football stadium, Franklin Field, and the Penn Relays could be considered for a deal in the future.

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