Brown Steps Down
By Ken Peterson
Pilot Sports
NORTH JUDSON � In a community that takes the success of its basketball teams very seriously, Kevin Brown set a standard his successor may have a hard time to match.
The longtime North Judson girls basketball coach submitted his resignation to the North Judson-San Pierre School Board Tuesday night, closing a chapter on one of the most successful basketball coaching careers � boys or girls � not only in Starke County, but in Indiana.
In 21 years, the 1971 North Judson graduate compiled an incredible 348 wins against only 105 losses.
And some of those wins weren�t against the Sisters of the Poor.
Brown�s teams traditionally took on any and all challengers. His teams beat Crown Point when the Bulldogs� program was strong and the Bluejays were very competitive against Michigan City, Lake Central and West Lafayette.
�We always played good competition,� Brown said. �I think that�s the biggest thing. For the most part, we played the better competition. If we had not played Portage, Chesterton, Valparaiso, we probably would have had at least four more undefeated teams. I wasn�t afraid to take the loss knowing our kids would play the best competition there is.�
He led the Bluejays to seven 20-win seasons. In addition, North Judson won 12 Northwest Hoosier Conference titles, 11 sectional titles, five regional titles and advanced to the Class 2A Final Four in 2000 and �02. Judson lost those games to Fort Wayne Bishop Luers and Shenandoah, respectively.
Brown was named Northwest Indiana IBCA Coach of the Year in 1986 and �88, ICGSA Class 2A Coach of the Year in 1998, ICGSA District 1 Coach of the Year in 2000 and �02 and was an assistant coach on the Indiana All-Star team.
He never had a losing season in his career, a remarkable statistic for a school of close to 500 students in grades nine through 12.
In fact, since North Judson started a girls basketball program in 1975-76, the program has suffered just two losing seasons. Those came in 1980-81 and 81-82, both before Brown became coach.
The decision to step down was something Brown had thought about for a while.
�In 2000, with the semistate team, I was thinking about (retiring) then,� he said. �And then I got charged up again and I was excited about continuing and doing it for a few more years. And I stuck with it for a few more years. I said to myself I would know when the time was (to step down). It just seemed the right time to do it.�
Brown said his decision had nothing to do with this season or the future. He noted the JV and freshmen programs both posted undefeated seasons and there is plenty of talent at the junior high level to keep the program solid for years to come.
�We have some kids coming,� he said. �We�re really going to have some good teams.�
Brown said the success of the program has been a result of hard work and dedication from those in the community that wanted to be a North Judson girls basketball player.
�All of the kids have been to my camp since the first grade,� Brown said. �And we have started a winning tradition and that winning tradition started building in those first few years.�
After graduating from Ball State University, where he played on the freshman basketball team, he returned home and spent five years as an assistant coach on the boys basketball team. He took the 1981-82 season off before becoming head coach.
The program really began to take off under Brown in the mid-1980s. During a three-year stretch, the Debbie Bolen-led Bluejays went 64-5, won three conference titles, three sectional titles and two regionals.
Those regional wins came against Valparaiso and Michigan City, a remarkable feat in the one-class system.
�I think it really started snowballing from then on,� Brown said. �And just having those kids in our camp consistently and me being a junior high teacher and being around them and talking to them. Everybody wanted to be better than the next group. And when they got to the high school, they really wanted to be really good players just like a previous class or better than that class.�
Brown credited the entire coaching staff for instilling a work ethic into making North Judson an area power.
�It took a lot of hard work from our coaching staff and fundamentals, it just blossomed into the fact that we were pretty good every year,� he said.
With the success in the 80s, there�s no telling how many titles North Judson would have won had their been class basketball.
�I was talking about that the other day with (Debbie) Bolen,� Brown said. �She was talking and she said, �Man, if we would have had class back then.�, I said, �Yeah, you probably would have had three state championships.��
When class basketball was implemented in 1997-98, the Bluejays were on the verge of a trip to the state finals, but couldn�t get over the hump.
�In each of those years, our big post player tore her ACL,� Brown said. �You�ve got to have a little luck in those situations, too.�
Brown thanked his wife, Mary, and all the assistant coaches and the players who�ve been a part of the program through the years.
But with all the success, Brown emphasized there was more to the games than the final score.
�Our kids won with class or lost with class,� he said. �It�s more than winning games.�
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