The remaining vacancy among Sumner County boys prep basketball head coaches has shifted, as Pope John Paul II High’s Kip Brown accepted the same position at Beech this week.
Brown, who met with Buccaneer players on Thursday, took the job at his alma mater after making “a hard decision” to leave PJP II.
“I love JPII, and I’ve loved working there and coaching there,” Brown said. “We’ve built a good program, and the toughest part was (leaving) the kids we’ve got now. I really enjoyed those kids, and it’s hard to leave them.”
PJP II posted a 21-9 record this past season, suffering a 63-43 loss at Ensworth in a Division II-Class AA state quarterfinal contest.
Brown’s record at PJP II was 90-57 over five seasons, including state quarterfinal appearances in each of the past two seasons. The Knights lost three seniors to graduation – Ryan Hatten, Nick Nixon and Trent Griffin.
Kip Brown gets an explanation from an official during a game earlier this year. Brown – who compiled a 90-57 record over five seasons at Pope John Paul II High – has accepted the head-coaching position at his alma mater, Beech High.
Brown succeeds Darrin Joines, who resigned on Feb. 29 after 16 seasons of leading the Buccaneers. Beech went 308-189 during Joines’ tenure, which included back-to-back Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) State Tournament appearances (in 2008-09 and 2009-10).
Beech’s Joines resigns after 16 years
The Buccaneers compiled a 16-16 record this season and earned the program’s first Region 5-AAA Tournament appearance since the 2011-12 season. Beech had three graduating seniors – forward Noah Chatman, center Caleb Walton and guard Ben Buhrow.
Brown said the close proximity between the two schools should help make the transition easier.
“It’s right down the road, and I already know a few of the kids at the school and on the team,” Brown said. “It should be a fairly easy transition.”
Brown is a 1991 graduate of Beech, having played for head coach Billy (Boots) Scott, the school’s first head coach. Beech advanced to the 1990 state tournament and finished 27-6, while the 1991 squad won 32 consecutive games, but ultimately finished 33-3 after a substate loss.
Beech
“(Beech) was really the only school that I would have considered leaving JPII for,” Brown said. “I know a lot of people there, friends and family. Obviously, when that job became available, it gave me something to think about.”
Brown assisted former boys head coaches John Sneed and Andy Bradshaw for three years each at PJP II before ascending to the head-coaching position prior to the 2011-12 season.
Brown’s teams have operated offensively at a quick pace, and he says that will be the case at Beech as well.
“I just hope to have an exciting brand of basketball that they’ll love to play,” Brown said. “As a coach, I like to play as fast as possible within reason. I like having guys to push it up the court and run the lanes.”
Defensively, Brown said he would likely deploy a number of defenses, including the 1-3-1 (which has been a staple during Joines’ tenure at Beech).
“The 1-3-1 is going to be in our repertoire,” Brown said. “I like to play many defenses, and it just depends on what I think this particular team succeeds at the most. We’re start building our man-to-man defense, but we’ll have just about every kind of defense there is and see which one works best for us.”
Coaching against District 9-AAA competition is something Brown is looking forward to in the coming season.
“The challenge of Brentwood Academy, Ensworth and McCallie is very exciting and competitive, and it can be very stressful,” Brown said. “At the same time, Station Camp, Mt. Juliet and Lebanon and everybody else (in District 9-AAA) is going to bring its own set of challenges.”
Brown said he would finish the school year at PJP II and join the team in late May before summer camps begin.
“Before the dead period (in July), you get 10 days of team competition, so we’ll get those in after we have tryouts and a few practices,” Brown said.
PJP II also loses a returning starter as Brown’s oldest son, Jayson – a 6-foot-2 rising junior guard who averaged eight points, 2.5 rebounds, two assists and one steal per game as a sophomore – will make the move with him to Beech. The Buccaneers have two returning starters – rising junior guards Ty Dean and Nelson Smith – along with classmate A.J. Robertson, who contributed heavily off of the bench.
Brown is the second coach to announce his departure from PJP II in less than a week. Head baseball coach Michael Brown announced last Friday that he would be leaving at the end of the season.
Michael Brown to resign at season’s end
Reach Chris Brooks at cbrooks@tennessean.com or at 615-575-7118. Follow him on Twitter @CB_SumnerSports.