Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Penn on February 21, 2025 , Loss , 75, to, 88
Final
Men's Basketball
at Penn
75
88
Photo by: Karl DeBlaker
Mitchell-Day’s Journey From St. Louis to Hanover and Back (This Weekend)
11/24/2023 3:12:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Peak Performance
The Big Green square off with the Saint Louis Billikens on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. locally)
Family means the world to sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day.
This Thanksgiving weekend, Mitchell-Day will experience the best of both worlds.
After spending Thanksgiving Day in Hanover with his Dartmouth men's basketball family, the native of St. Louis will play in front of many family (and friends) on Saturday, as the Big Green square off with the Saint Louis Billikens inside Chaifetz Arena.
Mitchell-Day attended Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School (MICDS). Many with connections to his high school are expected to attend his homecoming.
"There are going to be a lot of people, including my mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, cousin, barber, trainer, high school basketball coaches, family friends and more," he said. "It's going to be neat to see how many people turn out. Word quickly spread that I was coming back over Thanksgiving."
Mitchell-Day is going to college a long way from home in Hanover, New Hampshire, but it was an opportunity for growth.
"At first, it was definitely an adjustment, but I feel like it was also needed," he said. "Being away from home is an experience that everyone should go through. I feel like my first year, I did grow on and off the court in terms of maturity, but also being my own person and not being so reliant on other people."
Now into year two at Dartmouth, Mitchell-Day has already made his mark. How did he become a Division I college basketball player in the first place?
Basketball wasn't always his number one sport.
"Growing up, I played soccer, did a little bit of track, played football and basketball, even tried swimming at one point," said Mitchell-Day. "I loved football and basketball the most; it was actually football that I wanted to pursue."
But as Mitchell-Day said, "life had a change of plays." The year before high school, he got a concussion.
"It was a pretty bad one, too, and my parents said football may not be in my future, especially since I was also getting taller," said Mitchell Day.
Around eighth grade was when basketball started becoming the focus for Mitchell-Day.
"I didn't think I could take basketball into the college setting until sophomore year of high school," he said. "The summer going into sophomore year, I grew seven inches, which was an adjustment."
Mitchell-Day had been a point guard and in no time, was playing power forward. It was a challenge in some ways, but also an advantage in others.
"Taking those guard-like skills to a big man's position was very helpful," he said. "That helped with my recruiting process."
It also helped that Mitchell-Day was surrounded by a strong basketball community in St. Louis.
"When I started playing competitively, I was surrounded by a lot of people who know a lot about basketball," he said. "I got the chance to play with Larry Hughes Jr. and his dad was also our coach. Larry Hughes Sr. is considered a St. Louis legend."
Mitchell-Day also remembers following St. Louis native and current Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum.
"He would come shoot on the sides of our AAU practices," said Mitchell-Day. "Then, when I was looking for high schools, I went to Chaminade, his alma mater, and saw him play. Just seeing how much he's grown has been inspiring."
So many people around Mitchell-Day inspired him to dream big. When his college recruiting process came around, some conversations led him to focus on a high-academic institution that would set him up for life.
"Being an Ivy League student-athlete wasn't something I thought about at first, but my high school coach brought it up and so did my parents," he said. "After a lot of thought and consideration to the idea, it was something I wanted to do. Once that became known, a lot more schools such as Cornell, Princeton and Dartmouth, eventually came calling.
"I started considering it very much."
Mitchell-Day pretty quickly felt a connection with Dartmouth and the coaching staff.
"Coach Mac (Big Green head coach David McLaughlin) and Trot (assistant coach Jabari Trotter) took a lot of time and were very patient with me, taking so much time and consideration to the process," he said. "And when I came on my campus visit, it was nice seeing the camaraderie between teammates."
That camaraderie extended to the Dartmouth community.
"I was walking around campus with Dame [Adelekun '23] and everywhere we went, someone knew who Dame was," said Mitchell-Day. "That speaks to Dame as a person, but also, this program and how tight the people are on campus."
McLaughlin found Mitchell-Day through one of his former players at Stonehill, Marshall Newman, who was a coach and assistant athletic director at Brandon's high school.
"Marshall was able to reach out to us pretty early in the process and send us some video of Brandon… and right away, you could see someone who had a unique skill set, with great size and length," said McLaughlin. "You could tell Brandon played the game hard and played with passion and with energy.
"As we started to recruit Brandon, we were able to evaluate those things live and all those initial evaluations and feelings were very evident," McLaughlin continued. "He played with passion, he played with energy, and he had this great feel and presence on the basketball court."
"You have to watch more film, commit more time in the gym and do things that are outside of your normal routine," he said. "It definitely took a toll on me physically and mentally. But that jump was needed.
"When I first got to Dartmouth, I didn't really talk to anyone," Mitchell-Day continued. "Because for me, when I'm around a new group of people, it takes a while for me to trust you."
That trust was built quickly.
"By the second week, I was laughing and talking a lot," said Mitchell-Day. "Now, everyone knows I'm a very talkative person."
That trust being built so quickly speaks to the camaraderie within the Dartmouth family, which Mitchell-Day saw in the recruiting process.
On the flip side, the first time Mitchell-Day would play a game on his new home court, Leede Arena, he showed all the attributes McLaughlin saw in the recruiting process.
Facing a strong Bryant program, Mitchell-Day scored 19 points (15 in the second half). It was the affirmation he needed that he could play, and succeed, in college basketball.
"To be honest, I didn't even know I was going to play that game," said Mitchell-Day. "Going into the game, I was going to make the most of every opportunity and whatever happens, happens."
It just so happened it was Mitchell-Day's night. The effort got the Big Green back into the game after trailing by 16. Dartmouth even took a late second-half lead after a Mitchell-Day 3-pointer, but Bryant wound up on top.
"That game definitely propelled my confidence, knowing I could definitely play at this level," said Mitchell-Day.
"The term that came up a bunch in recruiting was Swiss Army Knife," said Mitchell-Day. "I can be at almost any position and have some impact on the floor. One night, I may not score a lot of points, but I may have a lot of rebounds and assists."
Mitchell-Day went on to score double-figure points five more times as a rookie, and already posted his first-career 20-point game this year.
Mitchell-Day's game is about much more than simply scoring. Versatile is a word he uses to describe himself, and a word he takes a great deal of pride in.
"I feel like on a really good night, I could have 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 points," he said. "Something I strive for every time we play is to impact the game in multiple ways because I feel If I'm able to do that, I'm doing my job and giving my team a chance to win."
McLaughlin is excited about the start of Mitchell-Day's career, but knows he is only scratching the surface.
"Brandon has a very high ceiling," said McLaughlin. "There are a variety of ways in which he can score and distribute the ball, and a variety of ways in which he can rebound and defend multiple positions. By the time he's done here, I believe he's going to play all five positions on the offensive end, and consistently guard all five positions on the defensive end."
Mitchell-Day's leadership potential is strong as well.
"Brandon has an emergent voice; he has great innate leadership ability," said McLaughlin. "He has not nearly reached the potential with that leadership ability. But because of the way he approaches the game and because of how hard he plays, when he speaks, people listen."
Mitchell-Day's play, and his leadership, will be on display Saturday night.
"I'm so happy that Brandon gets to play in front of family," said McLaughlin. "Family is very important to him and has been a big part of his basketball journey.
"It will be exciting for Brandon and I'm glad his teammates can share the moment with him."
This Thanksgiving weekend, Mitchell-Day will experience the best of both worlds.
After spending Thanksgiving Day in Hanover with his Dartmouth men's basketball family, the native of St. Louis will play in front of many family (and friends) on Saturday, as the Big Green square off with the Saint Louis Billikens inside Chaifetz Arena.
Mitchell-Day attended Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School (MICDS). Many with connections to his high school are expected to attend his homecoming.
"There are going to be a lot of people, including my mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, cousin, barber, trainer, high school basketball coaches, family friends and more," he said. "It's going to be neat to see how many people turn out. Word quickly spread that I was coming back over Thanksgiving."
Mitchell-Day is going to college a long way from home in Hanover, New Hampshire, but it was an opportunity for growth.
"At first, it was definitely an adjustment, but I feel like it was also needed," he said. "Being away from home is an experience that everyone should go through. I feel like my first year, I did grow on and off the court in terms of maturity, but also being my own person and not being so reliant on other people."
Now into year two at Dartmouth, Mitchell-Day has already made his mark. How did he become a Division I college basketball player in the first place?
Basketball wasn't always his number one sport.
"Growing up, I played soccer, did a little bit of track, played football and basketball, even tried swimming at one point," said Mitchell-Day. "I loved football and basketball the most; it was actually football that I wanted to pursue."
But as Mitchell-Day said, "life had a change of plays." The year before high school, he got a concussion.
"It was a pretty bad one, too, and my parents said football may not be in my future, especially since I was also getting taller," said Mitchell Day.
Around eighth grade was when basketball started becoming the focus for Mitchell-Day.
"I didn't think I could take basketball into the college setting until sophomore year of high school," he said. "The summer going into sophomore year, I grew seven inches, which was an adjustment."
Mitchell-Day had been a point guard and in no time, was playing power forward. It was a challenge in some ways, but also an advantage in others.
"Taking those guard-like skills to a big man's position was very helpful," he said. "That helped with my recruiting process."
It also helped that Mitchell-Day was surrounded by a strong basketball community in St. Louis.
"When I started playing competitively, I was surrounded by a lot of people who know a lot about basketball," he said. "I got the chance to play with Larry Hughes Jr. and his dad was also our coach. Larry Hughes Sr. is considered a St. Louis legend."
Mitchell-Day also remembers following St. Louis native and current Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum.
"He would come shoot on the sides of our AAU practices," said Mitchell-Day. "Then, when I was looking for high schools, I went to Chaminade, his alma mater, and saw him play. Just seeing how much he's grown has been inspiring."
So many people around Mitchell-Day inspired him to dream big. When his college recruiting process came around, some conversations led him to focus on a high-academic institution that would set him up for life.
"Being an Ivy League student-athlete wasn't something I thought about at first, but my high school coach brought it up and so did my parents," he said. "After a lot of thought and consideration to the idea, it was something I wanted to do. Once that became known, a lot more schools such as Cornell, Princeton and Dartmouth, eventually came calling.
"I started considering it very much."
Mitchell-Day pretty quickly felt a connection with Dartmouth and the coaching staff.
"Coach Mac (Big Green head coach David McLaughlin) and Trot (assistant coach Jabari Trotter) took a lot of time and were very patient with me, taking so much time and consideration to the process," he said. "And when I came on my campus visit, it was nice seeing the camaraderie between teammates."
That camaraderie extended to the Dartmouth community.
"I was walking around campus with Dame [Adelekun '23] and everywhere we went, someone knew who Dame was," said Mitchell-Day. "That speaks to Dame as a person, but also, this program and how tight the people are on campus."
McLaughlin found Mitchell-Day through one of his former players at Stonehill, Marshall Newman, who was a coach and assistant athletic director at Brandon's high school.
"Marshall was able to reach out to us pretty early in the process and send us some video of Brandon… and right away, you could see someone who had a unique skill set, with great size and length," said McLaughlin. "You could tell Brandon played the game hard and played with passion and with energy.
"As we started to recruit Brandon, we were able to evaluate those things live and all those initial evaluations and feelings were very evident," McLaughlin continued. "He played with passion, he played with energy, and he had this great feel and presence on the basketball court."
Upon arriving to Dartmouth, Mitchell-Day quickly realized he had to do things differently than he had in high school to succeed in college.Presenting your @IvyLeague 𝓡𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓲𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓦𝓮𝓮𝓴‼️
— Dartmouth Men's Basketball (@DartmouthMBB) January 17, 2023
Take a look back to Brandon Mitchell-Day's week that was 🎥#TheWoods🌲 | #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/ropKPsfMLt
"You have to watch more film, commit more time in the gym and do things that are outside of your normal routine," he said. "It definitely took a toll on me physically and mentally. But that jump was needed.
"When I first got to Dartmouth, I didn't really talk to anyone," Mitchell-Day continued. "Because for me, when I'm around a new group of people, it takes a while for me to trust you."
That trust was built quickly.
"By the second week, I was laughing and talking a lot," said Mitchell-Day. "Now, everyone knows I'm a very talkative person."
That trust being built so quickly speaks to the camaraderie within the Dartmouth family, which Mitchell-Day saw in the recruiting process.
On the flip side, the first time Mitchell-Day would play a game on his new home court, Leede Arena, he showed all the attributes McLaughlin saw in the recruiting process.
Facing a strong Bryant program, Mitchell-Day scored 19 points (15 in the second half). It was the affirmation he needed that he could play, and succeed, in college basketball.
"To be honest, I didn't even know I was going to play that game," said Mitchell-Day. "Going into the game, I was going to make the most of every opportunity and whatever happens, happens."
It just so happened it was Mitchell-Day's night. The effort got the Big Green back into the game after trailing by 16. Dartmouth even took a late second-half lead after a Mitchell-Day 3-pointer, but Bryant wound up on top.
"That game definitely propelled my confidence, knowing I could definitely play at this level," said Mitchell-Day.
Mitchell-Day always knew he could make an impact in a number of ways, with his combination of size and abilities.Did you know? Seven of our returning players led the team in scoring in at least one game last season.
— Dartmouth Men's Basketball (@DartmouthMBB) September 21, 2023
Today, we highlight Brandon Mitchell-Day and his career-high 18 points vs. Bryant in his first-career home game. #TBT | #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/rSUbDdMevt
"The term that came up a bunch in recruiting was Swiss Army Knife," said Mitchell-Day. "I can be at almost any position and have some impact on the floor. One night, I may not score a lot of points, but I may have a lot of rebounds and assists."
Mitchell-Day went on to score double-figure points five more times as a rookie, and already posted his first-career 20-point game this year.
Mitchell-Day's game is about much more than simply scoring. Versatile is a word he uses to describe himself, and a word he takes a great deal of pride in.
"I feel like on a really good night, I could have 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 points," he said. "Something I strive for every time we play is to impact the game in multiple ways because I feel If I'm able to do that, I'm doing my job and giving my team a chance to win."
McLaughlin is excited about the start of Mitchell-Day's career, but knows he is only scratching the surface.
"Brandon has a very high ceiling," said McLaughlin. "There are a variety of ways in which he can score and distribute the ball, and a variety of ways in which he can rebound and defend multiple positions. By the time he's done here, I believe he's going to play all five positions on the offensive end, and consistently guard all five positions on the defensive end."
Mitchell-Day's leadership potential is strong as well.
"Brandon has an emergent voice; he has great innate leadership ability," said McLaughlin. "He has not nearly reached the potential with that leadership ability. But because of the way he approaches the game and because of how hard he plays, when he speaks, people listen."
Mitchell-Day's play, and his leadership, will be on display Saturday night.
"I'm so happy that Brandon gets to play in front of family," said McLaughlin. "Family is very important to him and has been a big part of his basketball journey.
"It will be exciting for Brandon and I'm glad his teammates can share the moment with him."
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballMBB Post Game Press Conference versus Brown 3.1.25
Sunday, March 02
MBB Post Game Press Conference versus Yale 2.28.25
Saturday, March 01
MBB Post Game Press Conference vs Cornell 2.15.25
Sunday, February 16
MBB Post Game Press Conference 2.14.25
Saturday, February 15
