Motlow College Men's Basketball 2008-09 Story Archives

The Motlow Bucks (2-1) featured four double-figure scorers in a decisive 93-66 win over Mid-Continent on Wednesday, Nov. 5 in Mayfield, KY. The Bucks will not step back into action until they travel to West Tennessee to battle Southwest Tennessee on Friday, Nov. 14, and Dyersburg St. on Saturday, Nov. 15.

Motlow's home opener is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 20 when Northwest Shoals, from Muscle Shoals, AL, visits Copperweld Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30pm.

Justin Johnson, a 6-9 freshman from North Carolina, led the scoring for Motlow with 29 points, with 21 coming in the first half. Tim Williams added 16, Channing Coffey had 14, and Ryan Allen added 13 points for Motlow, which powered to a 53-35 halftime lead and coasted to the victory.

Bucks Split to Open Season

The Motlow Bucks (1-1) split a pair of games to open the 2008-2009 basketball season at the Itawamba Tip-Off Tournament in Fulton, MS during this past weekend. The Bucks wlll join the Lady Bucks and travel to Mayfield, KY to battle Mid-Continent on Wednesday, Nov. 5, before traveling to West Tennessee to take on Southwest Tennessee and Dyersburg St. on Nov. 14 and 15.

Motlow opened the season dropping a 74-66 decision to the host Itawamba team, which opened the year ranked 12th in the preseason National Junior College Athletic Association Poll, on Friday, Oct. 31.

The Bucks faired better on Saturday, beating Northeast Mississippi 75-65. Details of the two contests are coming soon.

Bucks Open Against Ranked Opponents

The Motlow Bucks will open the 2008-2009 regular season against a pair of nationally-ranked opponents at the Itawamba Tip-Off Tournament in Fulton, MS, on Friday, Oct. 31 and Saturday, Nov. 1.

The season opens against the host team Itawamba on Friday night at 8pm. Itawamba finished the 2007-2008 season as the nation's fourth-ranked squad, and they open the season ranked 12th in the preseason National Junior College Athletic Association Poll.

The competition doesn't get much, if any, easier for the Bucks on Saturday when they will battle Shelton St., AL. Shelton opens the year ranked 14th in the NJCAA poll. The Bucks first home game is Tuesday, Nov. 11, when they host Lindsey Wilson at 8pm at Copperweld Arena.

Morris Lone Returnee for Coming Season

Jamaal Morris, 5-10 point guard from East Literature Magnet school in Nashville is the lone returning player this season for the Motlow Bucks men's basketball team. The Bucks' roster also features two transfer sophomores and 10 freshmen, including two that were Motlow redshirts last season.

Isaiah Kirk, a 6-9 center from Lighthouse Christian in Nashville, and D.J. McCallister, a 6-3 guard from Chattanooga Central were both redshirts during Motlow's 28-5 season last year. Both will play as freshman this season.

New head coach Mike Brown's first recruiting class features two players from Chicago and two from Michigan. There are six in-state players on the roster, including forward Channing Coffey from Pulaski.

The Bucks will open the 2008-2009 season in Fulton, MS at the Itawamba Tip-Off Tournament on Friday, Oct. 31 and Saturday, Nov. 1. The first home game is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 11, when Lindsay Wilson visits for an 8pm contest at Copperweld Arena.

Morris Lone Returnee for Coming Season

Mike Brown Named Head Coach of the Bucks

Motlow College has named former Kent State University Director of Basketball Operations Michael Brown as its new head basketball coach.

Brown follows former Bucks head coach Bobby Steinburg in the position. Steinburg, who led the team to the most wins in school history last season (28), interestingly enough left Motlow to become an assistant at Kent State.

Brown brings one year of college head coaching experience, one year as a college assistant, and one year as a high school assistant coach experience with him to Lynchburg. He received his Bachelors Degree in English and Masters Degrees in Sports Administration from Wayne St. University in Detroit, MI.

His first two years of college basketball were spent at Siena Heights University in Adrian, MI, where he started every game as both a freshman and sophomore from 1998-2000, leading the team in scoring each season.

Brown then transferred to Wayne St., where he was named Captain as a junior and led the team in scoring, assists, steals, and minutes played. He was named All-Conference and named to the All-Academic team. His senior season was cut short by injury after only seven games, but he was again named to the All-Academic team.

He was an assistant coach at Belleville High School in Belleville, MI during the 2004-2005 season, helping lead the team to a 21-2 record and a division championship.

The 2005-2006 season was spent as an assistant coach at Schoolcraft Junior College in Livonis, MI, where the team finished the season with a 23-5 record and featured the MCCAA Conference Player of the Year.

Brown was then promoted to head coach at Schoolcraft for the 2006-2007 season. He was named MCCAA Coach of the Year, leading his team to the state championship with a 23-10 overall record. His squad featured two All-Americans and all four sophomores signed Division I scholarships.

The 2007-2008 Bucks finished second in the Eastern Division of the TJCCAA, compiling a 28-5 record under Steinburg. Coach Brown is hopeful that a number of freshman from that team, including All-Eastern Divison selection Cliff Dixon, will return for their sophomore season.