The Justice

Media Credit: David Sheppard-Brick

Prior to the seventh game of the 1984 NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, Celtics forward Cedric Maxwell told his teammates to "climb onto my back, boys." Maxwell scored 24 points in the decisive game, helping the Celtics capture their 15th championship.

While men's basketball guard Joe Coppens '08 never spoke those same words, it was Coppens who stepped up and carried his team to the best season in the program's history, even in the absence of two-time all-University Athletic Association selection Steve DeLuca '08, sidelined with a season-ending injury.

"No one really came to one another and no coaches really came to anybody and said, 'You need to put up Steve DeLuca numbers,'" Coppens said. "When Steve DeLuca went down, I said to myself, 'You got to try to fill his role and your own.' It was easy to do with all the guys I had around me."

Coppens responded, leading the team in scoring with a career-best 15.1 points per game as the Judges went 23-6 and advanced to the Final 8 of the NCAA Division III tournament.

Coach Brian Meehan said Coppens had always been a dependable player, steadily increasing his production from season to season, but not even Meehan foresaw Coppens' break-out campaign.

"What we ended up getting was a whole heck of a lot more than we ever expected-not effort- wise and not ability-wise-he just put together a tremendous year," Meehan said. "Everybody played really well this year, but the biggest improvement came from Joe, and it was such a large improvement [that] he allowed us to go as far as we could."

Coppens' season was defined by clutch performances in key moments of the team's games. Against Emory University February 8, Coppens intercepted junior guard John Kresse's inbounds pass, reset and sank a wide-open three-point attempt to give the Judges a 71-68 lead with only three minutes left to play.

"If the result of a game is on the line, you want it to be on your shoulders," Coppens said. "[When] the seconds are ticking off and the game is in the balance, it's a great feeling-a do-or-die type of moment."

For Meehan, Coppens' three-pointer with 2 minutes, 18 seconds left in the Round of 16 NCAA Tournament game at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh stood out most. Coppens received a pass, faked and buried the three to give Brandeis a 64-58 lead.

"I think it was an appropriate play to get us into the Elite Eight," Meehan said. "That sums up the type of year he had."

Coppens finished his career with 1098 points, 21st on the school's all-time scoring list. After posting identical 14-11 records in his first two seasons on the team, Coppens and his senior classmates helped propel Brandeis into the NCAA tournament the last two seasons.

"We grew up a lot as a team, and it translated to success for us on the court. "[We] helped turn a program around." Coppens said.

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