Bulls fans recall fondly the times that Kourtney Brown dominated on the court in blue and white. Unfortunately, those times are over. Brown's basketball career, however, is far from finished. The next time fans see Brown on the hardwood she'll be playing forward in Spain.
The recently graduated women's basketball star has signed a professional contract to don orange and white for Femenino Cáceres in the Spanish LF2 League.
In April, Brown was asked by The Spectrum what she plans to do with her life upon graduation.
"I'm looking forward to continuing my basketball career wherever it may be – whether it's here or overseas," Brown said.
Her wish was granted. The forward laughed as she admitted how little she knows about Spain.
"As far as Spain, the most I know is they speak Spanish," Brown said. "I haven't been there yet, but I'm really excited to go."
Brown was the 2010-11 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year. She led the Bulls and the MAC in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage and blocked shots. Her stats weren't only impressive amongst Buffalo players. Brown was among the best in the country; she finished eighth in the nation in scoring, sixth in field goal percentage, and fifth in blocked shots and rebounds.
With stats like those, many around Buffalo expected Brown to move on to the WNBA. But on April 11, as Brown watched with her teammates in Alumni Arena, she went unselected.
Not to be deterred, she decided to play professional ball where she was wanted. "Ultimately I would love to play in the WNBA if I get the opportunity, but things happen for a reason, and I'm really looking forward to going overseas," Brown said. "Such a small pool of people make it to the WNBA. As a rookie coming from a mid-major college, I was excited that I was even being considered."
Brown said UB has become like home to her.
"UB helped me become independent and it taught me how to do things on my own," Brown said. "I've had a lot of great mentors at UB, on and off the court, who really helped me get to the position I'm in today."
Brown is considered a legend at UB. She is the school's all-time leader in scoring, rebounds and blocked shots. She also broke the MAC record for blocked shots in a career with 260.
The season begins for Brown in September. She said that Femenino Cáceres prefers to play a running style, which is the style she enjoyed at UB. Last season, Femenino Cáceres finished tied for 11th in the 14-team league with a 7-19 record.
In her five years on campus, Brown graduated from UB with a degree in computer engineering and also a degree in electrical engineering.
Brown isn't sure how long her professional basketball career will last, but she's looking forward to taking it as far as she can.
"It's going to be hard to say goodbye to everyone, and get used to a new place and make that my home now," Brown said. "We'll see how it goes. I definitely want to play at least three or four years, but if I love it and my body stays okay, I'll probably play until something happens."
Email: sports@ubspectrum.com
