By: Mike Cingiser, Brown Men's Basketball Legend
What comes to mind when you think about the Ivy League?
When I think of Ivy League sports, I see one of the last vestiges of participating in collegiate athletics for the sheer enjoyment of the game. Both of my experiences at Brown—student-athlete and coach—made me aware of Brown's calling to teach students how to learn.
How do you feel your Ivy League experience helped prepare you for your career?
My chosen path after Brown was to become a teacher. The preparation for that was being exposed to extraordinary teachers at Brown like John Rowe Workman and Elmer Blistein who clearly had fun teaching while ensuring that we had fun learning. I like to think that I succeeded in replicating that in my classrooms.
What athletic accomplishment are you the most proud of?
As a player, I am most proud of having been selected by the League coaches as a First-Team All-Ivy player in each of my three varsity seasons. At that time, only the great Johnny Lee from Yale and my contemporary Pete Campbell from Princeton had been so honored. Coaching the fabulous 1986 team to Brown's first Ivy League championship is my proudest basketball accomplishment. Being with that group of terrific young men and our great staff through that journey was the highlight of my association with basketball.
What is your most memorable experience from your time as an Ivy League student-athlete?
Because of the success I had as an Ivy League student-athlete, I was invited to try out for the United States team that played in the 1961 Maccabiah Games in Israel. Winning a gold medal in Israel is my most memorable experience.
How has Ivy League basketball evolved since your time as a student-athlete?
When I was matriculating at Brown there may have been 10 African-American basketball players in the League. When I returned to Brown to coach in 1981, the League and the country had gone through the sixties and come out the other side a whole lot more inclusive. Therefore, from a basketball standpoint, the pool of potential Ivy League athletes was considerably larger and the level of play vis-a-vis other Division I leagues was more competitive.
What would you share with a prospect deciding on attending either an Ivy or non-Ivy League school?
An Ivy education is an investment, and my very successful stock broker has told me often: "The two things that matter most in investing are diversity and time." Ivy League schools exude diversity and over time an Ivy League education will serve you well in all your endeavors.
What does it mean to you to be a Legend of Ivy League Basketball?
It is a wonderful honor, especially because I played during the League's infancy, coached during its adolescence and now sit back and enjoy its adulthood.
Are you still involved with your alma mater, and if so how?
Living as far away from Providence as I do, I am not closely involved with Brown's goings-on. But—as two of my daughters graduated from Brown; Sarah Behn, the terrific women's coach, is the daughter of my three-year Brown teammate and roommate; and Coach Mike Martin has done great work with the men's program—I continue to have an emotional attachment to Brown and especially Brown basketball.
_____________________________________________________________________
Mike Cingiser was a Brown men's basketball student-athlete from 1959-62 and coached the Bears from 1981-91. He is a member of the 2018 Class of Legends of Ivy League Basketball that will be formally honored during the 2018 Ivy League Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments on Saturday, March 10, at The Palestra in Philadelphia. Purchase tickets at IvyMadness.com.
ABOUT AUTHENTIC IVY:
Authentic Ivy is Ivy League student-athletes, coaches and alumni, in their own words. Stay tuned to IvyLeague.com for more Authentic Ivy features throughout the 2017-18 year.