Earl plans to change Tribe’s pace of play, but not culture
WILLIAMSBURG — On Tuesday, the day before he was introduced to the university community as William & Mary’s 32nd men’s basketball coach, Brian Earl conducted a workout at Kaplan Arena with the returning players.
Earl, 47, the head coach at Cornell the past seven seasons, wanted to give them a sampling of the racehorse basketball he prefers to play. He got something in return: an indoctrination into a culture he probably won’t change as much as he does the Tribe’s pace of play.
“I watched our guys (and saw) they like each other and support each other,” said Earl, who guided Cornell to a 22-8 record this season, which ended with a last-second loss at Ohio State in the first round of the NIT. “I sort of don’t like to get in the way of that.
“They brought it in and yelled ‘Family.’ When I see something that needs to be addressed culturally, I’ll do it, but they seem to really like each other.
“That’s the biggest part of culture. You can have slogans and pillars, but these are good people, exceptional people, and I’ll sort of let them figure (their culture) out until they need a little reminder from me.”
Earl replaces Dane Fischer, who was fired recently following a 10-23 season and a 35-80 record the past four years. Remaining are players including Chase Lowe, who averaged 12.5 points and led the Tribe in rebounds (7.3 rpg), assists (3.2 apg) and steals (32 total).
Lowe, who was recruited by then Cornell-coach Earl while in high school, said he and his teammates are excited about the tempo change.
“I thought he gave a good first impression and gave the impression that he wants to play fast,” Lowe, a 6-foot-5 sophomore guard, said of the practice. “I think especially with my game, it will work very well with my play style.
“Being able to get up and down, and kind of play in transition and get in the paint and find shooters, is my strong suit. I did like Brian Earl at Cornell, but I loved William & Mary because of how close it was to home, the prestige of the school, the players here and the culture. “It’s really a family.”
But it’s family that has struggled on the hardwood. A few exceptions aside — the 1977 win over then-No. 1 North Carolina the most legendary one — the Tribe has lost more often than it has won in men’s basketball.
Unlike three of the four Princeton University NCAA Tournament participants Earl played for in the 1990s, while setting school records for games played and 3-pointers made, the Tribe has not reached the Big Dance a single time during its 119 seasons.
That begged the question of why Earl would take on the challenge at W&M, when his past three Cornell teams finished above .500 and was just a game out of first place this season in the tough Ivy League.
“I see, from a distance in my years at Princeton (as assistant coach) and Cornell, (William & Mary) is a name you come up against in recruiting,” Earl said before pointing to his former Cornell recruiting target Lowe and joking, “He’s here.” A large gathering of alumni, administration and others in attendance erupted in laughter.
“I’m enthusiastic about the prospects of this basketball program here at William & Mary,” he added. “I was wowed and lost my poker face when I walked into (recently renovated) Kaplan Arena.”
He said he is looking forward to offering basketball scholarships as a head coach for the first time (Ivy League schools do not offer athletic scholarships). He will also use the transfer portal to bolster W&M’s program.
“It’s the way things are, now,” he said. “Its something you have to deal with.”
With Earl in Williamsburg, CAA opponents will likely have to deal with a deeper, faster-paced team. Cornell, whose substitution patterns were described as “ice hockey-like” by Ivy League Hoops Online, ranked 17th nationally at 82.1 points per game this season and was 10th nationally at 10 3-pointers per game.
“It’s a new moment in the history of William & Mary basketball,” Tribe Director of Athletics Brian Mann said, adding that he’s told people to “use the bathroom beforehand because you’re going to miss out if you get out of your seats.”