Larry Brown Has SMU Poised for a Deep NCAA Tournament Run After Beating UConn

By Mike Gibson
Larry Brown, SMU,
Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

In what might be one of the great sports trivia facts ever, both SMU head coach Larry Brown and Connecticut coach Kevin Ollie are tied with pretty amazing winning streaks. The last time both were in the NCAA Tournament, both won all six of their games.

So a lot of the interest surrounding No. 25-ranked SMU’s 73-55 win over the visiting Huskies centered on the coaching matchup and, this time, the 74-year-old Brown got the most of his former player, who he coached with the Philadelphia 76ers. Brown directed the ball into the paint and changed his ball screen defense on the Huskies’ Ryan Boatright after that guard made three shots from beyond the arc in the first half for a 10-3 lead. That’s just good coaching.

Brown did not make the NCAA tournament on his return to college basketball last season, but the win almost assures the Mustangs (21-5) of a spot in the tournament this time, no matter what happens going forward. That should concern the other 67 teams in the 68-team field because there is no better game day coach at any level of basketball than Brown. On the other hand, UConn (14-10) will now have to win the AAC Tournament to get a chance to defend their NCAA title.

With Brown, though, comes the same kind of baggage that won him a national championship at Kansas in 1988. Under Brown, both UCLA and Kansas were placed on probation, but that came after deep runs into March Madness. The NCAA has given SMU a formal notice of investigations into academic improprieties, but is not expected to rule until after the season. If that delay holds true, it looks like the Mustangs have the pieces in place for a deep tournament run. They have a 5-foot-9 point guard who can score in Nic Moore, and a solid front court that includes 6-foot-8 Ben Moore (no relation), with 6-foot-9 Markus Kennedy and 6-foot-11 Yanick Moreira.

That’s the kind of height that could give any team, with the possible exception of Kentucky, fits in March. Even if those two teams were to meet, with Brown’s history, people have to figure he could find a way to make opponents squirm.

Mike Gibson is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @papreps , “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

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