Coach Kranthi 鈥淜runch鈥� Senadhi sits in his office in Hubbell Gymnasium, talking about the sport he loves. The sound of basketballs bouncing on the polished wood of the gym floor echoes down the halls and through the door. 鈥淭his was always a dream job in the sense that I knew I wanted to be a head coach one day,鈥� says Senadhi. 鈥淭here isn鈥檛 any place better than 越南直播. I was an assistant here and grew a lot during that time.鈥�
鈥淜runch鈥� has been Senadhi鈥檚 nickname since fourth grade and he keeps it amongst his players as a sort of 鈥渟tage name鈥� on the court. He played for Pennsylvania鈥檚 Lock Haven University from 2003-2007, then served as assistant coach at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, earning his master鈥檚 degree in Sport Management and helping take their men鈥檚 basketball team to the NCAA Division II national championship. In 2011, he arrived as assistant coach at UB and stayed for nine seasons, serving under Coach Mike Ruane. He loved the diversity of the students, loved Seaside Park, and loved how close Bridgeport was to New York and other great places to live and work. 鈥淚 kind of fell in love with Bridgeport,鈥� he admits. 鈥淚 loved the way Coach Ruane ran the UB team, which was very different than most Division II college basketball coaches.鈥�
That early impression was reinforced by experiences with micro-managing coaches, demonstrating to Senadhi the obvious flaws in that approach. Influenced by Coach Ruane, the system that he has his team run is fast-paced, emphasizing communication and decision-making amongst the players. The style forces his athletes to be disciplined in their actions, but also creative in their gameplay. 鈥淲e play something like old school basketball,鈥� says Senadhi. 鈥淭he guys are making decisions and playing at a fast pace, handling the ball in the perimeter, receiving, reversing, touching the ball hundreds of times during the game.鈥�
The 2023-2024 season began with many ups and downs, falling to schools like Dominican University and defeating others like American International College. 鈥淟osing is discouraging,鈥� says Senadhi. 鈥淏ut losing is a part of winning.鈥� Their victory over the historic basketball program, the Cheyney University Wolves, saw the Purple Knights scoring the most points since before the pandemic in an 118-72 rout. The many three-pointers and rebounds gathered are both a tribute to UB鈥檚 style of play. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a new team, with a lot of moving parts,鈥� Senadhi continues. 鈥淲e have great student-athletes who are trying to revive and renew the culture here.鈥�
Hailing from Brooklyn, with Guyanese roots, Sam Desouza, 鈥�22, transferred to UB to earn his master鈥檚 in Business Administration (MBA) , and to play as a forward on the team. Against Cheyney University, he totaled 10 points, six rebounds, three assists, and one steal. He scored 19 points against both Dominican and American International College. 鈥淏asketball is all I鈥檝e known,鈥� he admits. 鈥淚 just fell in love with the game and willed myself to keep going.鈥�
Reflecting on what brought him to Bridgeport, Desouza says, 鈥淚 came to UB because it has a winning history and it鈥檚 close to home. I needed to be in an environment where I felt I could learn. And I鈥檝e been learning from Coach Krunch.鈥� DeSouza loves the fast-paced UB system and how it helps him to think on his feet, literally and figuratively. 鈥淚 feel like the system itself helps you to grow as a player on and off the court,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou have to be disciplined 鈥� more disciplined than the other teams 鈥� in order to succeed.鈥�
Twenty-three-year-old Bobby Sullivan is from nearby Trumbull, Connecticut, and is also getting his MBA, with a focus on marketing and data analytics. 鈥淐oach Krunch was a guest speaker at a basketball camp I attended, and through that I started a conversation with him, coming to games at 越南直播,鈥� said Sullivan. 鈥淗e says that he will teach us how to play but that we are the ones on the floor. He gives us the opportunity and the freedom to choose.鈥漇ullivan, DeSouza, and Coach Krunch all speak of the diversity of UB and its proximity to Seaside Park. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a miniature melting pot like you鈥檇 expect from big universities that have tens of thousands of students,鈥� says Sullivan. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very different from a Division I school. It鈥檚 a tight-knit community.鈥�
Coach Krunch鈥檚 philosophy of empowerment leading to success is one reason that the athletic community remains a vital part of the school’s broader campus community and academic experience. Senadhi explains, 鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to get them to make decisions like NBA players in a lot of ways, and that鈥檚 really the way we鈥檙e trying to change the program and in the long run develop our players.鈥� Through discipline and an emphasis on decision-making, he is helping his players succeed now, in their classes, and in their future beyond college.
鈥淕ood teams are coach-driven,鈥� says Senadhi . 鈥淕reat teams are player-driven.鈥� A fitting punctuation to a thoughtful conversation, Senadhi walks back into the gymnasium, where his players are already practicing, the rhythmic sound of a dozen basketballs echoing to the rafters.
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