CHARLESTON -
Gary Browne came to his feet Tuesday night in Charleston,
cheering on his new favorite college basketball team as it came away with a
blowout win over Morehead State.
This is Gary Browne Sr. we're talking about. His son was
playing point guard for the Mountaineers in the game.
"I was so excited. It was good," Browne Sr. said after the
game. "I expected him to play better, but he did his best. He probably was
nervous as much as I was."
The WVU guard's father made his first trip to the Mountain
State Tuesday from their home in Puerto Rico for his first glimpse at his son
in action live. He'll be spending the rest of the holiday week in Morgantown
and get one more chance to see Browne when the Mountaineers face Akron on
Monday.
Even though his dad said he'd like to see him play a better
game, it was clear when they embraced outside the team locker room just how
much it meant to each of them to be back in the same building as Browne
continues to pursue his dream.
"It's the first time he'll be here. I love him, that's my
dad," says Browne. "I missed a couple free throws, but still, I always play
hard."
Browne certainly had a strong effort, despite missing five
of his nine free throw attempts. In 25 minutes off the bench, Browne scored 10
points and pulled down six rebounds while adding five assists with just one
turnover.
Through four games, he's the team's third-leading rebounder
behind Kevin Jones and Deniz Kilicli. As a backup point guard.
When Browne first came to West Virginia, Huggins said he may
have been the most ready of his freshmen to compete on the defensive end. He's
currently tied for second on the team with six steals and is noticeably growing
on the court.
For a freshman who played the role of leading scorer on the
Puerto Rico national team, Browne is adjusting quickly to the responsibilities
of playing the point.
"He's changed it a lot because he hasn't played that
position in a long time, so it's different for him," says Browne's father.
"It's no surprise. That's what he's always wanted since he was small. He's got
it in him and he'll put it together little by little, piece by piece."
Browne was asked after the game what was working for him and
if he felt he had just had his best game of the season. Rather than reviewing
what had happened in his first four outings, he looked forward to what lies
ahead.
"Not yet. We've got a lot of games coming, so I just need to
keep playing hard and make my teammates better," he said. "If I feel like I
have a good game but my team lost, it's nothing. It's nothing because it's
about the team. It's not about me."
That's a point guard talking right there. A point guard who
knows that if he hadn't started out the game 4-of-5 on free throws, many of
which were front ends of one-and-ones, his team could have had a more sizeable
lead early.
"That means I need to keep working," says Browne. "I can't
be satisfied with that because that hurt the team. We could have blown them out
from the beginning with my free throws. I just need to keep working out for that."
Maybe a big part of that mindset comes from his father. The
older Browne has watched him son at all levels of his career on the court and
has always told him precisely what he thinks of what he sees.
The first game he got to see his son play this year was the
loss to Kent State on ESPN, and just like everyone involved with WVU, he wasn't
overly pleased. He expected more.
"I said he has to play a little more stronger because he
can't be that weak in the game. He just needs to do his best," says Browne Sr.
He may only be a freshman, but because of his role on the
team, he's already being counted on as a leader.
"Coach [Huggins] has really been on him the last couple of
games, but he's our point guard. He's got to go out there and lead us," says senior
forward Kevin Jones. "He stepped up really good for us tonight and we're going
to need him to keep on improving for us in order for him to lead us."
With a visit from his father and constant guidance from his
coach, there's no reason to believe Browne will not continue working to become
the player West Virginia needs him to be in his freshman season and beyond.
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