Men's Basketball, Men's Sports

Tommy Bruner on Cusp of Historic Achievement

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Oscar Robertson, ‘Pistol’ Pete Maravich, Elvin Hayes, and Larry Bird. DU’s Tommy Bruner may join their elite club. Bruner (25.3 PPG) holds a 2.0 points-per-game lead over his nearest rival heading into his last three conference games this season. The NCAA individual scoring title still hangs in the balance. Can Bruner, a fifth-year graduate student, hold on to the scoring title down the stretch as the Pioneers also battle for Summit League Tournament seeding?

What we are witnessing from Bruner this season is something so rare that it is a safe bet that it will never happen again at the University of Denver or the State of Colorado for that matter. Consider this – there are 351 Division I men’s basketball teams with typically 12 scoring contributors on each team for a total of 4,212 possible scoring leaders in a given season. Add Denver’s at-best limited access to the top basketball talent from the available recruiting pool and we are witnessing the nearly unfathomable.

Bruner’s high-flying scoring feats can only be witnessed personally one more time this season when Denver returns to the Hamilton Gym floor for their final home contest against UMKC on senior night (Thursday, February 29th), when Bruner will play his last home game in Crimson and Gold. That game is sandwiched between two very tough road games.

Bruner has piloted a top-10 scoring offense for most of the season. Bruner had a 49-point outburst against South Dakota and a 41-point game against North Dakota State, both exciting Hamilton Gym victories. He is shooting 38% from three-point range. The diminutive Bruner, known for aggressive drives into the paint, has also taken a beating along the way – going to the free throw line 232 times, 5th in the country.

The six-foot-one guard from Columbia, S.C. plays 34 minutes per game. Program insiders claim his athletic base for this season was built during the summer as Bruner cut his body fat down to 7% through grueling training sessions and practice. In the prior season, Bruner averaged 15.9 points per game in 34.5 minutes per game. This season, he has bolstered his scoring by more than 35%, a remarkable increase for an already excellent offensive player.

Two teammates, Drake Muller and Ben Bowen, interviewed Bruner for their new student-run podcast Glue Guys. “Growing up I didn’t have the best attitude going into practices and games,” said Bruner. “This season I approached it with a better attitude. You guys know (Muller & Bowen), I changed my mindset this season and how I look at the game. I try to make the most out of every practice, game, shoot around – every day.  I’m grateful for what I have this year- team, family and this opportunity.”

The other factor in his meteoric rise has been the relationship between Tommy Bruner and head coach Jeff Wulbrun. Both are each other’s biggest cheerleaders. Wulbrun has been able to direct Bruner’s relentless competitive nature and channel his efforts toward consistent on-court production. Wulbrun told The Denver Post, “We’d meet in my office, we’d go to lunch, we’d walk around campus,” Wulbrun said. “Our conversations didn’t have a lot to do with basketball. It was all about his growth as a person…We talked a lot about being a leader, and how you can’t have off-days (in that role), and he took that responsibility to heart. And we also spent a lot of time talking about responding to adversity. I think Tommy realized there were times his frustration got the best of him a year ago, and he was determined to improve that.”

Bruner now faces hostile crowds, taunting on the road (‘overrated, overrated’) double teams, and a physical game every time he steps on the floor in an attempt to take him out of his game. This season, due to nicks and bruises, he has had to spend extra time with trainers to get ready for games and reduce his practice time. Still, Bruner continues to deliver for the Pioneers.

During the first 5-7 minutes of games, Bruner is looking for teammates and doling out assists and rarely looks to score.  His scoring picks up late in the first half and early in the second. The second half, usually near the end of games, has become known as ‘Tommy Time’ when Bruner goes into a ‘zone’ and nails step-back jumpers, driving layups and three-point shots.

The task in front of Bruner is sure to be challenging. His next game is this Thursday night at Summit League power South Dakota State in Brookings against the second-place Jackrabbits. SDSU will be looking to avenge an earlier 19-point beatdown at Hamilton Gym. The following Thursday, Tommy returns home for DU’s senior night against UMKC, a team that held Bruner to just 12 points in Kansas City earlier this season. The regular season finale is a trip to St. Paul against St. Thomas, a well-coached defensive squad which will conclude the conference regular season NCAA scoring title race. When the smoke clears, the University of Denver and Tommy Bruner may hold one of the most impressive and prized individual records in DU school history.

If you want to support outstanding players like Tommy, the Crimson & Gold Collective needs your help. The goal is to support & provide our basketball players with an outstanding campus experience, commensurate with other Denver students – not lifetime wealth. Please consider a gift HERE.

Do you want to contribute to Tommy Bruner’s 501(c)3?  You can contact Tommy at therealbedifferent@gmail.com.

Top photo of Tommy Bruner courtesy of BYU Athletics

2 thoughts on “Tommy Bruner on Cusp of Historic Achievement”

  2. Loved the interviews with Bruner and Wulburn talking about their relationship. That’s college sports at their best right there.

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