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Bears Wrap-Up Fall Semester in Washington, DC Against Georgetown
12/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Providence, R.I. - Riding a two game winning streak, Brown closes out it's fall semester against the Georgetown Hoyas on Monday, December 7 at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. The Bears will break for final exams for 15 days following the game. Tip-off on Fox Sports 2 is 7:01 pm.
Kuakumensah Ties Ivy Blocks Record: With four blocked shots against Central Connecticut, Bears' forward Cedric Kuakumensah '16 tied the Ivy League career record for blocked shots, equaling the all-time Ivy record of 252 blocked shots by Dartmouth's Brian Gilpin from 1993-1997.
The Records: Brown (3-5) won for the second straight time, earning a 76-68 victory on the road over Bryant on Saturday. Tavon Blackmon '17 and Justin Massey '18 each scored 19 points each to lead the Bears. Blackmon, from Upper Marlboro, MD, who played at Gonzaga College High School, will be playing in front of the hometown fans for the first time in his career. Georgetown (4-3) is coming off a 79-72 win over #14 Syracuse at the Verizon Center behind 21 points from Bradley Hayes.
Break For Finals: Following Monday's game against the Hoyas, Brown breaks for 15 days to take final exams, returning to action on December 22nd in the Hall of Fame Shootout at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The Bears face Marist at 6:30 pm and St. John's (NY) battles South Carolina at 9:00 pm.
The Series Record: Brown and Georgetown have met twice before with the Hoyas holding a 2-0 advantage in the series that dates back to 1959-60. The two teams last met in the 1970-71 season, an 80-76 Georgetown win in Washington, DC.
Kuakumensah Poised To Break Ivy Blocks Record: Senior forward Cedric Kuakumensah (Worcester, MA), Brown's two-time Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year (2013 and 2014), tied the Ivy League record for career blocked shots with his 21 point, 16 rebound, 4 block performance against Central Connecticut. Kuakumensah equaled the Ivy League record for all-time career blocked shots, tying the Ivy mark of 252 blocks by Dartmouth's Brian Gilpin from 1993-1997. A rare three-year captain, Kuakumensah is Brown's top scorer (13.0 ppg) and leads the Ivy League in rebounding with 10.1 per game, 23rd best nationally. He's the top ranked rebounder at Brown in the last 30 years with his 720 career rebounds seventh in the Brown record book. Kuakumensah had 14 points and six rebounds vs. Bryant, despite being in foul trouble. He scored 10 points and grabbed 17 rebounds against St. Peter's, and came back with 14 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots vs. Holy Cross. Kuakumensah tossed in 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds vs. New Hampshire. He tossed in 10 points and grabbed 11 rebounds vs. Niagara, and had 13 points and seven rebounds vs. #25 SMU. He led the Ivy League with 76 blocked shots last season and blocked an Ivy League record 93 shots in 2013-14. A second team All-Ivy selection a year ago, he ranked fifth in the league in rebounding with 7.4 per game and led the Bears in scoring with 11.2 ppg.
Kuakumensah:
Career Points: 894
Career Rebounds: 720
Ivy League Career Blocked Shots
1. 252…Cedric Kuakumensah (Brown, 2012-present)
252 ... Brian Gilpin (Dartmouth, 1993-97)
3. 225 ... Walter Palmer (Dartmouth, 1986-90)
4. 213 ... Greg Mangano (Yale, 2009-12)
5. 195 ... Geoff Owens (Penn, 1997-01)
Brown: Individual Single Season Blocked Shots
1. 93*…Cedric Kuakumensah (2013-14) * Ivy League record
2. 76…Cedric Kuakumensah (2014-15)
3. 66…Cedric Kuakumensah (2012-13)
Brown Career Rebounds
1. 931, by Phil Brown (1972-75)
2. 924, by Ed Tooley (1952-56)
3. 878, by Arnie Berman (1969-72)
4. 870, by Gerry Alaimo (1955-58)
5. 816, by Allan Poulsen (1956-59)
6. 789, by Stark Langs (1981-85)
7. 720, by Cedric Kuakumensah (2012-present)
8. 710, by Alai Nuualiitia (1999-2003)
9. 690, by Bill Arnold (1952-55)
10. 683, by Bob Purvis (1966-69)
Blackmon at the Point: Junior point guard Tavon Blackmon (Upper Marlboro, MD), Brown's floor leader, is averaging 10.5 points and 4.4 assists per game for the Bears. He scored a season high 19 points vs. Bryant, connecting on 8-of-10 second half free throws. Blackmon took over the Central Connecticut game, scoring nine points in a 90-second spurt in the second half to put the game away, scoring 14 points overall. He led the Bears against St. Peter's with 13 points and five assists, and just missed a double-double vs. Holy Cross with nine points and eight assists. He added 11 points and five assists vs. Niagara. Blackmon is coming off a breakout season in 2014-15 where he averaged in double figures (10.4 ppg) and led the Bears in assists (114). He scored a career-high 25 points vs. Harvard on 7-of-12 shooting from the field and 11-of-12 shooting from the free throw line, while also handing out a career-high nine assists against the Crimson. Blackmon ranked fifth in the Ivy League with 3.9 assists per game, and was fourth in the league in free throw percentage (.820).
Spieth Grabs Career-High 14 Rebounds: Junior guard Steven Spieth (Dallas, TX) is averaging 8.6 points per game, while his 7.1 rebounds per game are seventh best in the Ivy League. Spieth, who has started 67 career games (67-of-68) for the Bears, grabbed 13 rebounds against Bryant. He celebrated his homecoming to Dallas by scoring 14 points, grabbing six rebounds and handing out five assists vs. #25 SMU. Spieth scored 11 points and handed off five assists vs. New Hampshire. He registered a double-double vs. Holy Cross with 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field, and a career-high 14 rebounds, including 10 boards in the second half. Spieth led the Bears with 15 points, while grabbing nine rebounds vs. Niagara. He opened the season with 10 points and eight rebounds against St. Peter's. Last year, Spieth proved to be an aggressive scorer (9.9 ppg) and rebounder (4.7 rpg), who can play in the front court or backcourt. Spieth netted a season-high 21 points vs. Illinois in Champaign, while grabbing seven rebounds against the Illini. He scored in double figures 17 times and ranked eighth in the Ivy League in free throw percentage (.812) last year. Spieth registered a double-double vs. Central Connecticut with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Hobbie From Three: Sharpshooting junior JR Hobbie (Spring Lake, NJ), Brown's fourth leading scorer with 8.9 ppg, tossed in a game-high 16 points against Holy Cross on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the three point arc. Hobbie netted 12 points vs. New Hampshire, and opened the season with nine points vs. St. Peter's on 3-of-6 three-point shooting. He had nine points, all on treys, in the Bears' win over Central Connecticut. Last year, Hobbie started 11 of Brown's last 12 games and connected on 73 treys, fourth best in Brown basketball history. Hobbie scored a career-best 21 points in consecutive wins vs. Penn in 2014-15. He also connected on a career-high six treys against the Quakers. Hobbie ranked seventh in the Ivy League in three-point field goal percentage (.408) and third in the Ivies in treys made with 2.4 per game.
Daugherty Contributes: Freshman Corey Daugherty (Barrington, RI) has established himself as a viable scoring and ball-handling option and is averaging over 24 minutes per game and 8.6 points per game. He tossed in 10 points, grabbed four rebounds and had four assists vs. Central Connecticut. Daugherty, who had nine points vs. New Hampshire, scored a season high 13 points vs. Holy Cross on 6-of-11 shooting from the field. He tossed in nine points vs. #25 SMU, connecting on 3-of-6 treys. Daugherty scored eight points and had three steals in his collegiate debut against St. Peter's.
Seeing Double: The Bears features a set of twins in the lineup, returning sophomore Jason Massey (Cooper City, FL), and his brother, Justin Massey (Cooper City, FL), a sophomore transfer from Florida Atlantic.
Jason Massey Earns Starting Role: Sophomore guard Jason Massey (Cooper City, FL) has started all eight games for the Bears and posted 11 points and a career high eight rebounds vs. Central Connecticut. Massey had eight points and pulled down five rebounds vs. Bryant. He had six points and four assists vs. #25 SMU, scored a career-high 12 points vs. Providence on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, after scoring nine points vs. Niagara and seven points vs. St. Peter's. He tossed in nine points and grabbed five rebounds vs. New Hampshire. Jason saw action in all 30 games for the Bears last season, earning starting roles vs. Prairie View, Johnson & Wales and American. He scored a season-high nine points vs. Prairie View on 4-of-5 shooting from the field.
Justin Massey Steps Up: Sophomore guard Justin Massey (Cooper City, FL) scored a career high 19 points in Brown's win over Bryant, connecting on 7-of-13 field goals, including 4-of-8 treys. He tossed in16 points against #25 SMU on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from beyond the three-point arc. Massey registered 11 points, while pulling down five rebounds, vs. New Hampshire, and tossed in nine points vs. Providence. Justin played in all 29 games at Florida Atlantic last season, earning 11 starts. He averaged 7.5 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, and scored a season high 17 points vs. Harvard and East Carolina. His 38 steals ranked second on the team.
Fuller First Forward Off The Bench: Freshman forward Travis Fuller (Encinitas, CA) has seen considerable playing time in Brown's first eight games and is the first forward off the bench for the Bears. He stepped up against Providence with a career-high 12 points on 4-of-4 shooting from the field, while pulling down a career-high six rebounds. He had six points before fouling out vs. New Hampshire. Fuller grabbed four rebounds vs. St. Peter's and three rebounds vs. SMU and Central Connecticut.
Head Coach Mike Martin: Former Brown basketball standout Mike Martin '04, the 31st head men's basketball coach in the program's 109-year history, has changed the direction and culture of the program in three years as head coach of the Bears, with the building blocks in place to develop an Ivy Championship team. Martin took over the reins of the program in 2012-13 and was named a finalist for the Joe B. Hall Award as the nation's outstanding first-year head coach after leading the Bears to a turnaround season with a 13-15 overall record, including a fourth-place finish in the Ivy standings with a 7-7 mark after winning four of its last five games. Martin's 2013-2014 team posted a 15-14 overall record and hosted Brown's first-ever postseason game, playing Holy Cross in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament at the Pizzitola Sports Center. In addition, he has guided two-time Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year Cedric Kuakumensah, who is poised to become the Ivy League's all-time leader in blocked shots. A four-year starter at Brown, Martin was part of the winningest class in Bears' basketball history, posting a 63-45 four-year record from 2000-2004. He also helped the Class of 2004 to a school-record 39-17 Ivy League mark during that period -- the best by an Ivy League team, other than Penn and Princeton, since 1970. An Agawam, Mass., native, Martin launched his coaching career at Brown as an assistant coach in 2005-2006 and was an assistant coach at Penn from 2006-2012.
Bears Shoot The Trey: The Bears rank 11th nationally in three-point field goals attempted with 29.1 per game. Following its game vs. #25 SMU, where Brown connected on 15-of-32 treys, Mustangs Associate Head Coach Tim Jankovich had kind words for the Bears and their shooting prowess. "Every player who comes on the floor is a three-point threat," Jankovich told the Associated Press. "It's kind of like playing the Golden State Warriors."
Bears On The Air: Brown's entire 28-game schedule is being broadcast on WPRV-AM 790 with Scott Cordischi, the voice of Brown basketball and football, calling all the action. Former Brown basketball star Russ Tyler '71 (1,133 career points) provides the color analysis. Brown fans can also listen to the broadcast on BrownBears.com.
Watch Live Video of The Bears On BrownBears.TV: All of Brown's home games and its Ivy League away games can be viewed on the Ivy League Digital Network, a nine-channel digital network that includes an easy-to-navigate interface, a League-wide network schedule and interactive features, such as simultaneous four-game viewing, full DVR controls and social media integration. These features are available on computer, mobile and tablet devices all without the use of an app. Packages for Brown's channel are $89.95 for 12 months, $34.95 for four months, $10.95 for one month and $9.95 for a day pass. Packages for the League-wide channel, which features everything the network has to offer, are $119.95 for 12 months, $49.95 for four months and $15.95 for one month.
Next Game: Brown returns to the hardwood after a 15-day break for final exams on December 22 against Marist at the Hall of Fame Shootout, held at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Tip-off is 6:30pm.
