Brandon Crone joined the Nova Southeastern men’s basketball coaching staff as an assistant coach in the summer of 2011. Crone developed his leadership skills on the court as a former student-athlete at Butler University from 2003-07, and as a professional within the European leagues from 2007-10.
“Brandon helped lay the foundation that led to Butler’s recent success and two consecutive appearances in the NCAA championship game,” said head coach
Gary Tuell. “He’s one of the guys who helped start it all at Butler. As captain of Butler’s team in both 2005-06 and 2006-07, he was the leader of the group of players who began the present winning tradition there.”
As a junior in 2005-06, Crone averaged 9.8 points and 5 rebounds a game, helping Butler to a 20-win season. For his senior campaign in 2006-07, Crone averaged 11.4 points and 5 rebounds per game, leading the Bulldogs to a 29-7 record that included wins over Indiana, Purdue, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Gonzaga and opening round NCAA tournament wins over Old Dominion and Maryland. Crone’s collegiate career ended in the Sweet 16 with a hard-fought 65-57 loss to eventual champion Florida.
After playing as an undersized 6-6 center/forward at Butler Crone successfully made the transition to a more perimeter oriented style of play as a small forward for his European professional league career.
“Brandon has experience as a player both in the low post as well as playing on the perimeter as a professional,” said Tuell. “When considering him for the assistant coaching position that was just one of the many things that made him attractive to us.”
Crone returned to Indiana following the 2009-10 European season and began his coaching career, not only staying close to the Butler program, but also serving as an assistant at Indianapolis Park Tudor High School. He helped Park Tudor to the 2010-11 Class 2A State Championship.
“Brandon is a quality individual with a passion for teaching and coaching the game,” said Tuell. “Obviously he’s played at a high level, both at Butler and professionally in Europe. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the position. In addition, he’s an Indiana native and is well-respected in his home state, giving him a number of inroads to recruiting in one of the most fertile basketball regions in the country.”
Crone established the foundation for many of his recruiting contacts within Indiana as a standout at Frankfort High School in Frankfort, Indiana. A three-time captain at Frankfort, Crone holds the school’s career records for scoring average (17.9) and rebounding average (9.0) and twice earned All-State honors. As a senior he averaged a double-double (20.3 points and 10.1 rebounds) and was selected to the prestigious Indiana All-Star squad for their annual two-game summer series against the Kentucky All-Stars.
Tuell expects Crone to work with both post and perimeter players at NSU, but he’s hoping his assistant will also bring fresh ideas that spark a renewed commitment to team defense.
“Nobody defends better than Butler and we think Brandon will be able to bring some of their philosophies and concepts to our program as we look to improve in that area,” Tuell stated. “From day one, we want our guys to buy into ‘The Butler Way’ of defending. Brandon has the ability to communicate and relate well with young players and his input in helping to shape our defense will obviously be important.”
Crone and his wife, Morgan, reside in Coral Springs, Fla.
