WILLIAMSBURG — William & Mary men’s basketball head coach Brian Earl announced Thursday the hiring of Max Ginsberg and Alex Mumphard as assistant coaches and the retention of assistant coach Jimmy Fenerty and director of basketball operations Kyle Pope on the Tribe staff.
Ginsberg joins the Green and Gold with extensive Division I experience at Holy Cross and most recently under Earl at Cornell. Mumphard has eight years of Division I coaching experience and most recently spent a season at the University of Denver. Both Fenerty and Pope spent their prime years in Williamsburg during the 2023-24 campaign.
During his three seasons at his alma mater Cornell, Ginsberg helped the program post a 54-20 record, including 25-17 in the Ivy League. Cornell has qualified for the Ivy League tournament, which features only four teams, in all three seasons, and five players have earned All-Ivy League honors, including a first-year player in 2023-24.
“Max has been a part of the great success we have had over the last three years at Cornell and his understanding of the system as well as his knowledge of the game will be beneficial at W&M,” Earl said. “He is a diligent recruiter who will work tirelessly to attract the type of student-athletes who will be successful on the field and in the classroom. »
During his tenure, the Big Red also consistently led the Ivy League and ranked among the national leaders in scoring, 3-pointers made and attempted, field goal percentage, effective field goal percentage , assists, assist ratio, bench points, fast break points and steals.
In 2023-24, Ginsberg played a key role in leading the Big Red to one of its best seasons in school history. Cornell won the second most games in school history with 22 and finished second in the Ivy League with 11-3. The Big Red also received the program’s first bid to the NIT and finished the year among the top 20 nationally in bench scoring, effective field goal percentage, assists, field goals 3-pointers, field goal percentage and scoring.
“I am very honored to join Coach Earl’s team at William & Mary,” Ginsberg said. “There are some special student-athletes here, and I am very excited to work with them and begin building a successful program on and off the field. »
Ginsberg spent three seasons at Holy Cross as director of basketball operations and video coordinator. As an undergraduate, he worked with the Cornell program as the team’s general manager and assistant to the director of basketball operations during the 2017-18 season. He graduated from Cornell with his degree in policy analysis and management in 2018, then earned a master’s degree in communications management from the University of Southern California in 2019.
Last season in Denver, Mumphard helped the Pioneers win 17 games, the program’s most since 2012-13, and advance to the Summit League championship game for the first time in program history . Guard Tommy Bruner earned first-team All-Summit League honors and ranked second in the nation in scoring. As a team, Denver finished 25th nationally with 81 points per game.
“Alex and I have been fortunate to work closely together at Cornell, and he has played an integral role in the success the program has enjoyed over the past several years,” Earl said. “He developed a wealth of basketball knowledge and experience as a member of the teams at Northwestern, Cornell and Denver, and we look forward to collaborating again.”
Mumphard spent five seasons with Earl at Cornell. In his final two seasons with the Big Red, Cornell posted records of 15-11 and 17-11, qualifying for the Ivy League tournament each year. In his freshman season, he helped the Big Red earn their first playoff appearance in nine years, earning a spot in the 2019 CIT. In total, five Cornell players earned All-Ivy League honors during Mumphard’s stay in Ithaca. In his final season with the Big Red, the team ranked in the top 10 nationally in scoring, 3-pointers made and attempted, assists, steals, bench scoring and quick break points.
Mumphard was a graduate assistant coach at Northwestern for two years under head coach Chris Collins. The Wildcats made the program’s first NCAA tournament, advancing to the second round, in 2017. He earned a master’s degree in sports administration in addition to his coaching and graduated in 2018. Mumphard began his coaching career at his alma mater, Greenville University, under the direction of Dr. George Barber and helped the Panthers to the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) in 2016.
Fenerty has nine years of Division I coaching experience, including four seasons at Temple before W&M. He played collegiately at Dickinson College and also spent time as an assistant coach at Lafayette. Pope, who was a two-sport student-athlete at Saint Vincent College, was a graduate assistant at East Stroudsburg University for two years before joining W&M.
“Jimmy and Kyle both came highly recommended after their efforts in the program over the past year,” Earl said. “They have been very helpful in my transition over the past month and will continue to be valued members of our program.” Jimmy has extensive coaching experience and a great playing spirit. Kyle has a bright future. He really understands the program and has done a great job fostering great relationships with our student-athletes.
