Michael Paul Brey (born March 22, 1959) is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach. Currently an assistant coach for the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

, he was previously the men's head basketball coach at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. Brey served as the coach for 23 seasons from his hiring in 2000 until his resignation at the end of the 2022–23 season.

Early life and education

Brey, the son of Olympic swimmer Betty Brey, graduated from DeMatha Catholic High School in

Hyattsville, Maryland Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. It is an urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States census. History Before Europeans reached the area, the upper Anacostia ...

in 1977. As a two-year letter winner under coach Morgan Wootten, Brey helped the team to a 55–9 mark. He enrolled at

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSULA) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport, Louisiana, Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville, Louisiana, Leesville/Fort Jo ...

, where he played varsity basketball for three years (1977–1980). He played one season at George Washington in 1981–82 after sitting out the 1980–81 season as a transfer. He served as team captain and was named most valuable player with 5.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game for the Colonials. In 1982 Brey graduated from

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

with a bachelor's degree in

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

Coaching career

Brey returned to his former high school, becoming an assistant coach under Morgan Wootten. In 1987, he was hired by

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

to assist

Mike Krzyzewski Michael William Krzyzewski ( , ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980–81 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team, 1980 to 2021� ...

, and in 1995 he took over his first head coaching job at the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially known as UD, UDel, or Delaware) is a Statutory college#Delaware, privately governed, state-assisted Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Newark, Delaware, United States. UD offers f ...

. Brey guided the Fightin' Blue Hens to a 99–51 record over five years, leading the team to two

America East Conference The America East Conference (AmEast) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I whose members are located in the Northeastern United States. The conference is headquartered in Boston, Massachu ...

Championships and subsequently two trips to the NCAA Tournament. In 2000, Brey became the head coach at the University of Notre Dame.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

In 2000, Brey succeeded Matt Doherty as head coach of the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball The Notre Dame Fighting Irish Men's Basketball team is the college basketball, intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. The program competes in the Atlantic Coast Co ...

team. Notre Dame had not been to the NCAA tournament since 1990. Brey led the Irish to the NCAA tournament in his first three years as head coach (2001–2003), notching a Sweet Sixteen appearance in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. He has since led the team to tournament appearances in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

and 2021. On December 29, 2017, Brey tied Digger Phelps for most wins by a Notre Dame coach with 393.

2007–08 season

During the 2007–08 season, Brey led the Irish to a 24–6 regular-season mark. He was named the Big East Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season on March 11, 2008. Notre Dame had a 45-game home winning streak between February 2006 and February 2009 – the second-longest in school history. By completing the 2007–2008 regular season 18–0 at

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...

, Brey coached the first team in Big East history to have consecutive undefeated seasons at home. On June 19, 2012, Brey signed a 10-year extension to remain the head coach of the Notre Dame Irish up until 2022. The financials were not released.

2014–15 season

During the 2014–15 season, Brey's Notre Dame team went 32–6 and won the ACC conference tournament. The squad advanced to the Elite Eight, losing a close game to Kentucky. The 32 wins were the most by a Notre Dame men's team since 1908–09. He also passed Hall of Famer

George Keogan George E. Keogan (March 8, 1890 – February 17, 1943) was an American football, basketball, and baseball coach, most known for coaching basketball at the University of Notre Dame from 1923 to 1943. Keogan never had a losing season in his 20 ye ...

for second place on Notre Dame's all-time wins list, trailing only Digger Phelps.

2015–16 season

Notre Dame advanced to the Elite Eight for the second consecutive season, defeating Michigan, Stephen F. Austin, and Wisconsin as the 6 seed in the East region. Notre Dame lost to North Carolina 88–74 in the Elite Eight.

2016–17 season

During the 2016–17 regular season, Brey's team went 23–8. They finished the season in a three-way tie with Florida State and Louisville. The Irish were given a 3-seed in the ACC tournament which guaranteed them a double bye. Notre Dame dominated its first two games against Virginia and Florida State and sparked another ACC tournament final appearance for the second time in three years. The Irish went on to lose in the tournament final to Duke, 75–69. Notre Dame received a 5-seed in the West Region of the NCAA tournament, and defeated Princeton in the first round before falling to West Virginia in the second round.

Resignation from Notre Dame

With his 2022–23 team struggling to stay out of the basement of the ACC standings, on January 19, 2023, Brey announced that the 2022–23 season would be his last as head coach at Notre Dame, although he said that he was definitely not done coaching.

Atlanta Hawks

On June 15, 2023, Brey was hired as assistant coach for the

. He reunited with head coach

Quin Snyder Quin Price Snyder (born October 30, 1966) is an American professional basketball coach who is the head coach for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After being named a McDonald's All American as a high school player i ...

, who played his junior and senior seasons at Duke while Brey was an assistant under Mike Krzyzewski. The two then coached at Duke together during the 1994–1995 season.

Head coaching record

References

External links

Notre Dame Fighting Irish profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brey, Mike 1959 births Living people American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Maryland Basketball players from Maryland College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens men's basketball coaches DeMatha Catholic High School alumni Duke Blue Devils men's basketball coaches George Washington Revolutionaries men's basketball players High school basketball coaches in Maryland Northwestern State Demons basketball players Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball coaches Sportspeople from Bethesda, Maryland 20th-century American sportsmen