UConn’s Braylon Mullins returns to Indiana for Final Four homecoming

GREENFIELD, Ind. — Three days after Braylon Mullins hit a game-winning shot against Duke to send UConn to the Final Four, people are still talking about it.

Before he was knocking down logo threes for the Huskies, Mullins built his reputation as a sharpshooter at Greenfield Central High School.

The Greenfield native scored 2,158 career points while playing for the Cougars. During his senior year, he earned the Indiana Mr. Basketball award, given to the best player in the state every year. He was also named a McDonald’s All-American.

Mullins’ former high school coach Luke Meredith was there every step of the way.

“I met him here in this exact gym at 7:15 a.m., an hour before school every single day,” Meredith said. “So, for him to be able to shoot that shot in front of millions, I saw him make that shot millions of times in front of no one.”

Legacy for young players

The Huskies star freshman is leaving behind a legacy for young players at his high school and across Indiana to look up to and potentially follow in his footsteps.

“There’s hundreds of Greenfield kids that want to grow up and now their hero is Braylon Mullins, because he was on that stage and took that chance and bet on himself, and obviously it paid off dearly for him,” Meredith said. “He deserves all the credit.”

Mullins decided to stay at Greenfield Central instead of attending prep school, a decision he believes had an impact on his ability to make the game-winning shot.

“I was the guy on my team last year and it’s just like, you get into moments like that,” Mullins said. “So, I think it prepared me and also the coaching styles. I think having my dad on the staff kind of pushed me and made the transition easier for Coach Hurley.”

Meredith said the decision to stay home has created a bond between Mullins and the community.

“We’re 30 minutes of Indy, we’re kind of in the middle of nowhere, and for him to be able to not go prep school as a McDonald’s All-American, to want to play with the kids he grew up with, to want to be able to come here and support, now we’ll support him forever,” Meredith said. “He’s Greenfield, he’s one of our own.”

Dream becomes reality

During his recruitment, Dan Hurley and his staff told Mullins they’d bring him back home to Indiana for the Final Four to play inside Lucas Oil Stadium for a national championship. That dream is now a reality for the Huskies, setting the stage for a homecoming party Mullins, his loved ones and the entire state of Indiana have been waiting for.

“I hope to be there in the stands on Saturday and Monday. I’m going to go to the practice on Friday, but the pressure’s off,” Meredith said. “You’ve already done it. You’ve already gotten promised what you wanted to do and get to Indy, and now it’s just go out there and play. And that’s what makes him the most dangerous, when you don’t have to that pressure and you just let it rip.”

“It’s so crazy how this moment has all circled back,” Mullins said.