Joanna Brown,  Paul Burnell, Mike Murphy, James Graffam & '89 Men's Team To Be Honored

GORHAM, Maine – Four standouts from University of Southern Maine Huskies' basketball history and one legendary team will be among the 23 individuals and two iconic teams inducted into the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2023 this summer. 
 
A member of the Husky Hall of Fame, Jim Graffam will be honored in the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame's "Legends of the Game" category, while the 1989 University of Southern Maine Huskies' Men's Basketball Team is one of two teams selected for induction into the hall.  Former Husky men's basketball players Paul Burnell and Mike Murphy will also be inducted into the hall, as well one of USM women's basketball's all-time greats Joanna Brown. 
 
The fourth Husky to earn Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division III All-American honors, after earning WBCA Honorable Mention All-American status consecutively during the 1996-1997 and 1995-1996 seasons, Joanna Brown '00 was a force in the paint for Southern Maine.  During her career (1994-1998), Brown led the Huskies to a record of 92-15 and is currently third in career points scored (1845) and rebounds (962).  The 1998 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Player of the Year, and three-time Little East Conference Player of the Year (1995-96, 1996-97, 1997-98), Brown's Huskies won three Little East Conference Championships, and earned four consecutive trips to the NCAA Division III tournament, reaching the Final Four and advancing the National Championship game during the 1997-98 season.  One of the top players in the country during her career, Brown was a three-time All-LEC, ECAC and New England Women's Basketball (NEWBA) first team selection (1998, 1997 and 1996) and was twice selected to the Maine Women's Basketball Coaches Association (MWBCA) first team (1998, 1996).  She has previously been inducted into the Husky Hall of Fame, Little East Conference and the New England Basketball Hall of Fame. 
 
A standout player for Coach Bob Brown at South Portland High School, and then again at USM, Paul Burnell '84 is entering the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame as a two-time Bangor Daily News All-State player that helped South Portland to a pair of Class A State Titles in 1979 and 1980.  After transferring to Southern Maine following two seasons at Bentley College, Burnell finished out his playing career as a Husky. Burnell's ability to put up big points is still evident in the Husky record books as his 38 points against Curry College on November 27, 1982 is still in the top 10 of single-game records. Since his playing days, Burnell has been a top high school referee for the last 20 years and has officiated in six state final games.
 
Another Bangor Daily News All-State selection during his high school career at Cheverus, Mike Murphy '86 played his final two collegiate seasons at the University of Southern Maine, transferring from Merrimack College.  In his senior year, Murphy earned All-New England honors. Inducted into the Husky Hall of Fame in 2001, Murphy is among the program's career leaders in assists per game and free throw percentage.  Now in his 40^th season as a coach, Murphy spent 26 years at Westbrook High School and the last 14 at Deering High School.  Murphy also was an assistant coach for the Huskies' women's program in the late 90s.
 
With more than four decades of involvement at all levels of basketball in New England and beyond, Jim Graffam '71 played his collegiate years at the University of Southern Maine and was inducted into the Husky Hall of Fame in 1991.  After his playing days at Southern Maine, Graffam began his long-term coaching career, starting out as an assistant men's basketball and head baseball coach at St. Joseph's College (Maine), and later became the head basketball coach at Westbrook College earning Maine Basketball Coach of the Year honors twice.  He was inducted into the Westbrook College Hall of Fame for his coaching career.   
 
The Huskies' 1989 men's basketball team coached by Maine Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Bob Brown and loaded with a roster full of Mainers will also be enshrined for its history-making season.  During the 1988-1989 season, Southern Maine compiled a record of 24-7 and captured the program's only Little East Conference Tournament Championship defeating Plymouth State 84-66.  Earning the LEC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament, the Huskies defeated North Adams State 88-80, Western Connecticut 90-88 and Franklin & Marshall 79-71 to advance to the Final Four.  The Huskies dropped their national semifinal game 84-62 to Trenton State (NJ) but bounced back to win the third place game 81-70 over Centre College (Kentucky).  
 
Founded in 2013, the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame seeks to identify and honor the elite participants in the more than 100 years history of basketball at every level in the State of Maine.  It's first induction class, the Class of 2014, included USM great Matt Donahue, former Husky men's basketball coach Bob Brown.  The first Huskies' women's player was inducted into the hall as part of the Class of 2015 when USM's all-time leading scorer and two-time WBCA All-American Maureen Burchill Cooper was selected.  Since its creation, the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame has included a member of the USM basketball community in each of its induction ceremonies. `