Boys Basketball: Two Stone Bridge Players Transfer to Middleburg Academy including Liberty District Player of the Year Nik Brown

(July 24, 2010) - Liberty District Player of the Year Nik Brown, a first team all-Northern Region pick and one of the top scorers in the Washington DC metro area with a 22.2 points per game average last season, has officially transferred, along with teammate Jimmy Paige, from Stone Bridge High School to Middleburg Academy.

Brown, a rising senior, and Paige, a promising rising sophomore, become the first two high-profile transfers to Middleburg Academy -- formerly known as Notre Dame Academy -- since former Herndon High School coach Gary Hall took over the boys basketball program in April.

"I felt like at Stone Bridge I did all I could do .. the move is nothing against Stone Bridge or coach (Sonny) Green," said Brown on Friday as he was in Las Vegas preparing for a showcase basketball tournament.

Brown, a 6-foot-3 guard, said Middleburg's strength of schedule was a big factor in his decision.

"The competition we will be playing will give me a chance to play against the best guards, not only in this area, but in the entire DC metro area," said Brown. "Jimmy is like my little brother so it makes (the move) easier."

Hall said the 6-foot-5 Paige will benefit from getting three full years at Middleburg. Hall, who coached Villanova All-American Scottie Reynolds at Herndon, said the two Bulldogs remind him of Reynolds in their character.

"They remind me of Scottie in that they are better people than they are at being basketball players," said Hall.

Hall admitted that the transition from public to private high school coach has had its ups and downs thus far for him.

"It has been exciting and at times frustrating. It has been a roller coaster of emotions," said Hall. "The relationship between the public and private schools ... that is tough."

Hall envisions Brown as a point guard at the college level, and thinks that Paige has NCAA Division I potential as well.

"They had to weigh the pro's and con's and the families made the decision that Middleburg Academy gives their sons the opportunity to reach their goal," said Hall.

Paige, along with two returning sophomores at Middleburg -- Drew Henry and Stephen Sheppard -- give Hall something to build on but Brown immediately gives the school scoring power as he finished in the top 10 in scoring last season in the Metro area.

"This gives the program some legitimacy and credibility," said Hall.

While the former Notre Dame Academy athletic program was at odds with the public high schools in Loudoun, Hall, who was an assistant at Briar Woods over the past several years after stepping down at Herndon, stressed that he hoped to have a good relationship with the local Loudoun schools and that his team would play in a Briar Woods holiday tournament. He said that effort to schedule defending AA Division 4 state champion Potomac Falls did not work out but that Middleburg Academy will open at Herndon next season.