"Downtown" Terry Brown made his mark at KU

Former KU coach Roy Williams called Terry Brown one of the best shooters he’s ever coached. And for good reason. “Downtown” Terry Brown, the former Jayhawk standout, ended his career in 1991 shattering the school record for most career three-point field goals made with 200, despite playing only two years. He currently ranks No. 8 all time at KU in three-point field goals made. His 111 three-point field goals in 1990-91 were a single-season record, which stood for 27 years before Svi Mykhailiuk broke the mark with 115 threes in 20017-18.

Moreover, Brown’s 11 threes (career-high 42 points) against North Carolina State on Jan. 5, 1991 is a KU single-game record. Brown also made seven three-pointers in three other games.

Brown’s 41.2 career three-point field goal percentage ranks No. 10 all time at KU.

After coming off the bench his first season in 1989-90 and averaging 11.0 points per game (he set the single-season three-point field goals made mark at KU with 89) in 16.1 minutes per contest, Brown earned a starting role his senior season and averaged 16.0 points in 25.2 minutes per game.

During the 1991 NCAA Tournament, Brown scored a game-high 22 points in KU’s second-round win over Pittsburgh before following that up with a game-high tying 23 points in KU’s victory over Indiana in the Sweet 16.

Then, the deadly sharpshooter ended his memorable career in the NCAA title game against Duke (KU lost 72-65) with 16 points, six more than future Hall of Famer Grant Hill of Duke.

Brown’s road to KU began at Clyde-Savannah High School in Clyde, N.Y., where he was an All-American and all-state selection in football. He averaged a whopping 35.0 points per game as a senior, while his team went 71-6 in Brown’s three-year career. He then attended Erie Community Community College in Erie, Pa., before transferring to Northeastern A&M in Miami, Okla. 

Brown was a first-team National Junior College Athletic Association All-American in 1989-89, averaging a team-high 22.1 points per game, while second on the team in rebounding at 5.6 boards per contest. He shot a scorching 55.2 percent from the field, 43.0 percent beyond the arc, and 92.0 percent at the free throw line. Brown was selected Most Valuable Player of the NJCAA National Tournament in Hutchinson as his team won the championship. He scored 26 points in the title game.

Brown lit up the nets that season for a season-high 47 points and seven three-pointers in a 106-90 victory over Eastern (Okla.) State. Led by Brown, Northeastern went 36-4 and won its conference and region titles.

I had a wonderful Where Are They Now? interview with Terry in 2003 for Jayhawk Insider, where he talked to me from his home in Minneapolis about honing his hoop skills in New York while practicing all day and night on his unorthodox jump shot. He also fondly remembered his 42-point explosion against N.C. State and the unforgettable experience of playing in the 1991 Final Four in Indianapolis.

Here is that story.

By David Garfield

For Terry Brown, his true makings of greatness began as a seventh grader in Clyde, N.Y. Brown dreamed of being like his brother, Sonny Barnes, who was four years older and turning heads with his own basketball prowess in the New York area.

So Brown went to the playground near his home daily and worked endlessly on his unorthodox shooting form from long range, releasing the ball far back over his head like a slingshot. 

“I told myself I wanted to develop a shot that’s hard to block,” Brown said. “I started shooting like that every day, just shooting around until I got it to the perfect shooting form. That’s pretty much where I came up with that shot. It’s hard to block. The only way you can block it is from behind  Probably like 80 percent of the time you block it from behind, they’re going to call a foul.”

This was his time alone, his little world.

“I used to practice six hours a day in the rain, in the snow, and after football practice,” the former Kansas basketball standout recalled recently from his home in Minneapolis, Minn. “I’d run home and get my ball and go out there and practice until the sun went down.”

And the practice paid off. Brown blossomed into a superstar at Clyde-Savannah High School, averaging a whopping 35 points per game as a senior and earning All-American honors. A versatile athlete, Brown was also an All-American football wide receiver. Due to academics, Brown attended Erie Community College in Pennsylvania for a semester before transferring to Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. He became a first team National Junior College All-American and was named MVP of the NJCAA National Tournament in Hutchinson, Kan., in 1989.

Brown, 35, eventually chose Kansas over Pittsburgh, UNLV, Penn State, and Southwest Missouri State.

“I decided to go to KU because it was close to my junior college, and I felt like I would play a lot my first year,” Brown said. “I liked the campus. They liked to run and shoot, and I felt like I could step in the first year and help them out.”

It certainly didn’t take Brown long to make a name for himself at Mount Oread. Backing up senior Jeff Gueldner at shooting guard, Brown erupted for 31 points (7-10 from 3-point range) in 19 minutes against Kentucky in just his ninth college game. Despite playing only 16.1 minutes per game, Brown (11.0 ppg) finished the season breaking the school record for 3-pointers with 89, which was just two shy of the Big Eight conference mark of 91 set by Oklahoma’s Mookie Blaylock.

The man they called “Downtown” Terry Brown relished shooting the long ball. 

“I loved shooting (outside) because anytime you make a 3-pointer, that’s more than a two-pointer,” Brown said. “I always tried to shoot 3’s. If my game was off, I pretty much tried to get fouled and go to the free throw line. Other than that, I loved shooting the basketball. I looked forward to every game and tried to go out there and make as many 3’s as possible.”

He also loved playing with a winner. Unranked Kansas began the 1989-90 season shocking the basketball world by beating No. 2 LSU, No. 1 UNLV, and No. 25 St. Johns in winning the Preseason NIT title in New York. KU won 19 straight games before concluding the season at 30-5.

“We had a lot of people kind of doubting our team and our talent,” Brown said, “so we set out to prove a point that year, and to prove to people that we can play with those type of teams like LSU and UNLV, the teams that were ranked No. 1, No. 2. That was petty much our mission that year. I think we pretty much proved that by beating the No. 1, No. 2 (teams) on down the line.”

Brown’s own mission took on greater purpose his senior season. Now a starter, KU’s one-man scoring machine opened the 1990-91 campaign with 24 points against Arizona State. And then, nine games later against North Carolina State, the unconscious Brown bombed a career-high 42 points at home versus North Carolina State (KU won, 105-94). He tied a Big 8 record with 11 3-point field goals. It was simply one of the greatest shooting performances in KU history, and indelibly etched 

Brown’s name in Jayhawk lore.

“You feel like you just can’t miss,” Brown said about being in the “zone.” “Every shot you take, you feel like it’s going to go in. That’s something I tried to practice every day, tried to get that type of feeling when I practiced or when I shot around by myself, so when you’re playing in the game, you pretty much get that feeling. It’s a great  feeling. You don’t get it every game. You would like to.  Once you do get in the zone, it’s hard to stop that person. It’s hard to miss. I tried to feel like that every game.”

Brown continued to score and lead the way for the unheralded Jayhawks, who after losing to Nebraska in the Big 8 Tournament, went on a magical five-game winning streak before losing to Duke in the NCAA finals.  

“We came together as team,” Brown said. “We pretty much went out and played hard every night and didn’t leave anything left on the floor. The pressure wasn’t on us. The pressure was on the other teams. We didn’t have anything to lose, so why not just go out and play our hardest and see what happens, and that’s pretty much what we did.”

 

Brown, who led the team in scoring in 1990-91(16.0 ppg), wound up his scintillating career as the all-time 3-point shooter in KU history. Not bad for playing just two seasons. His record has since been broken by four-year players Billy Thomas and Jeff Boschee.

“I feel honored to be up there with those guys,” Brown said.

After leaving his mark in KU history, Brown played a couple months of professional basketball just across the Texas border before returning to Lawrence. He went to school, put on art shows, and worked summer basketball camps until moving to Minneapolis in 1996. Brown began coaching at a youth organization (Minnesota Development Basketball) for two years before accepting a head coaching job of an eighth grade junior high team. He’s been doing that for the past four years, along with running his own basketball program for youth in the summer.  

Brown gets a huge thrill from coaching.

 

“Sometimes you get frustrated,” Brown said. “Other than that, you’re happy to see the kids who love the game and want to learn and move on to the next level. I have a blast. There’s nothing else that I’d rather do than work with kids.”

Brown uses the lessons and values that KU coach Roy Williams instilled in him, and passes them down to the next generation of heroes.

“Just don’t give up,” Brown said. “If you believe in something, just keep working hard and giving 100 percent. Just carry yourself with class and be a gentleman. Pretty much just like on the court. Just work hard.”

In addition to his coaching duties, Brown has worked as a sales rep for a water softener company for the past two years, and is set to begin his second year playing semi-pro football. Brown plays for two teams from March through December.

“I love it,” he said. “I’ve always loved it. I just hate playing in the cold weather. Playing in New York, you play in the snow, so that kind of pushed me into playing basketball because I got tired of playing in the cold weather.” 

Brown said he’s enjoying life 12 years after donning the crimson and blue. He savors his college experience.

“I think I had two great years there,” Brown said. “I loved playing for coach Williams. He’s a great coach, and I loved playing with the guys I played with. I had a great time. You can’t ask for anything better than that. I played in the championship game, one of the biggest games in the country. I played against some great players.”

And so, how would “Downtown” Terry Brown like to be remembered?

"As a great guy and a great shooter,” Brown answered.

There were few ever better. 

A Closer Look at Terry Brown:

Years at KU: 1989-91

Career Notables: Member of 1990-91 Final Four team...UPI Big Eight All-Bench selection in 1989-90...UPI All-Big 8 second team in 1990-91...Career-high 42 points versus North Carolina State on Jan. 5, 1991...11 3-pointers against N.C. State most ever at KU in single game...111 3-point FGs in 1990-91 most in single season...No. 3 all-time career 3-pointers (200)...Led 1990-91 team in scoring (16.0 ppg).

Family: Brown is single.

Education: Majored in Art.

Since Leaving KU: Brown played a couple months of pro ball just across the Texas border before returning to Lawrence. He took classes at KU, put on art shows, and worked summer basketball camps before moving to Minneapolis in 1996. Brown coached at a youth organization (Minnesota Development Basketball) for two years before becoming an eighth grade basketball coach. He’s also ran his own summer basketball program for youth the last five years, worked as a sales rep for a water softener company for the past two and a half years, and is beginning his second year playing semi-pro football.

Currently: Brown is an eighth grade basketball coach in Minnesota, where he also runs his own basketball program in the summer. In addition, Brown works as a sales rep for a water softener company and plays semi-pro football.

Hobbies:Working out, fishing, volunteering with Boys and Girls Club, drawing and painting baby murals (trying to start his own side business).  

Favorite Memories: Scoring 42 points against N.C. State on Jan. 5, 1991. “That whole week before the game, I had some of my teammates and friends kind of teasing me that Rodney Monroe was a better shooter than me,” Brown said. “That kind of got me fired up. I really wanted to prove to them and other people who was the better shooter. That game pretty much set everything straight who was the better shooter. I was hot that game, and felt like I couldn’t miss anything. Actually I had 12 (3-pointers), but they called a moving pick on Alonzo Jamison.”...Playing in the 1991 Final Four. “It was great. My first time being there, I had never practiced in front of 30,000 people. It was unreal. It think every kid should have that experience to get the opportunity to play in a Final Four. It was like a dream come true. ... I was very excited to play in the championship game against Duke, even though we didn’t win it. We got there, so not too many teams can say they got there that year.”...”Playing against some of the great players, such as Grant Hill, Shaq O’ Neal, Chris Jackson, Malik Sealy, Jamal Mashburn.”

On the Jayhawks Today: “I think they got a great team.  They seem like the type of team when I played. They’re always fighting to win and never giving up to the end.”