Brown: Major Impact in Hoops Resurgence
In celebration of BlackHistory Month, HurricaneSports.com will highlight several African-Americanstudent-athletes that left their mark on the University of Miami. Our final profile focuses on Eric Brown, who was a member of the Miami Hurricanes men’s basketball team when it returned to campus in 1985.
It’s hard to argue that few players have made more of an impact on the University of Miami men’s basketball program than Eric Brown. A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Brown was a part of the basketball resurgence on the Coral Gables campus during the mid-to-late 1980s. After a 14-year hiatus, men’s basketball returned to UM in 1985 and Brown played an integral part in the Hurricanes’ success.
He led the Canes in scoring in each of his four seasons, finishing his career as the second-leading scoring in program history with 2,270 points – 28 points shy of Miami’s all-time leading scorer, Rick Barry. Brown also holds the UM career records for FG percentage (.535) and FT attempts (840), while his name remains scattered throughout the record book.
His 24.7 points-per-game scoring average as a senior in 1989 is still the fifth-highest by a Hurricane in program history. After a successful 16-year international basketball career, he was inducted into the UM Sports Hall of Fame in 2001 and later was honored as an ACC Legend in 2011.
Since his pro career ended, Brown has been a police officer in Miami-Dade County. Away from the force, he serves as the executive director for the Brownsville Basketball Academy, a non-profit youth basketball program serving South Dade.
Brown was one of seven former Hurricanes profiled during HurricaneSports.com’s Black History Month retrospective, joining Ray Bellamy (football), Lauryn Williams (track & field), Charles Johnson (baseball), Desma Thomas Bateast (women’s basketball), Kenny Calhoun (football) and Patrina Allen (track & field).
