Former Rutgers guard Corey Chandler and former Fordham and Quinnipiac forward Lance Brown have landed on the basketball team at Division 3 William Paterson University.
They are expected to be on the roster when the Pioneers, led by head coach Jose Rebimbas, open the season Nov. 15 against York College.
“I think me and Corey will bring great experience,” the 6-foot-4, 205-pound Brown told SNY.tv by phone. “Obviously, Corey coming from Rutgers, he [also] went to Binghamton, and me coming from Fordham and Quinnipiac, we got that Division 1 experience that not a lot of people on our team have. We can bring a lot of our past experience to the table.
“Our teammates admire that about us. We’re vocal. If someone does something wrong, we’ll tell them just because we know the game.”
The 6-foot-2 Chandler was recruited out of Newark East Side High School to Rutgers by former coach Fred Hill.
After averaging 11.5 points his freshman year, his playing time and production dipped the following season when McDonald’s All-American Mike Rosario starred as a freshman.
Chandler, who was not made available for this story, started just 11 of 32 games during the 2008-9 season and averaged 7.0 points.
He then spent a brief stint at Binghamton University before being dismissed and ultimately landing at William Paterson, where he will have two years of eligibility left.
Brown starred at Paterson Catholic High School before spending one year at Fordham, where he averaged 6.5 points during the 2009-10 season. He then transferred to Quinnipiac, where he averaged 5.9 points and 4.8 rebounds last year. He also has two years of eligibility left.
“I left Quinnipiac, it was some personal stuff going on back home,” Brown said. “I’m 20 minutes away from home so I get to be close to my family and play. If I went to another D-1 I would have had to sit two years. If I went to a D-2 I would have to sit one year.
“William Paterson’s a good school. I heard Corey was going there. I figured I might as well add another addition to a team that’s going to be good on a team where I can play right away.”
Under Rebimbas, who declined comment, William Paterson has been a Division 3 power. He has guided the Pioneers to five New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) titles (2000-2002, 2006, 2010) and seven NCAA Tournament bids (1997, 1999-2002, 2006, 2010), including spots in the 2001 national championship game, the 1999 Final Four and the 2006 Elite Eight.
