Andrew Milner was the first player Damian Gay recruited when he became basketball coach at Rothesay Netherwood School.
“We are the only prep basketball team in Atlantic Canada and it’s all because of Andrew Milner,” Gay said. “I always credit him for being responsible for starting my coaching career because he was the first kid to ever believe in me as a coach.”
From Sept. 25 to 27, RNS is hosting the Milner Invitational basketball tournament, a tribute to the young man who helped start the transformation of the school’s basketball program.
Milner died in a canoeing accident in British Columbia in 2019. He was just 19, playing for the University of Calgary Dinos, and seen as a rising star.
“He had quite a legacy for someone that was barely 20 years old,” Gay said. “He had won three national championships.”
RNS had always had a pre-season tournament, but changed the name to honour Milner after his death.
The tournament has continued to be a part of growing the basketball program. Gay said the calibre of teams participating is testament to that growth.
RNS will play games against three teams from the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association: Crandall University, St. Thomas University and the University of New Brunswick Saint John.
“Our level of basketball is not like high school level in Atlantic Canada,” Gay said, adding the level he strives for is closer to the level of those universities.
“My big thing for our guys is they’re looking to go to the next level, either in the (United) States or in Canada,” he said. “So my thing is always trying to find the best strength of schedule for these guys.”
The tournament also brings four U Sports teams to Rothesay, each with some connection to Milner, RNS, or both.
“Toronto Metropolitan University is coming and Greg Dorsey who played with us last year is on that roster,” Gay said.
St. Francis Xavier University’s captain is Matthew Pennell, a former captain of the RNS team who graduated in 2021.
Acadia University’s head coach, Mike Leslie, knew the Milner family, and once coached Andrew Milner’s mother.
The final team will be the University of Calgary Dinos, the team Andrew Milner was part of when he died.
“There’s so many connections that are on the U Sports side,” Gay said. “It is easier to get the four top U Sports teams here than it is for me to fill out the other bracket because of the impact that Andrew’s had.”
The U Sports division’s role is largely as a fundraiser for the RNS team. Gay said the travel gets expensive to complete the team’s schedule.
But they also raise money to support a scholarship operated by some of Milner’s friends.
The 4AM Basketball Camp operates in Halifax, and proceeds from the camp are used to fund the 4AM Award. The scholarship is given every summer to one male player and one female player who are trying to play with provincial teams in Nova Scotia.
Tournament welcomes special guest
On Sept. 27, the tournament is offering a special treat, when Gay will sit down for a fireside chat with Adrian Wojnarowski.
“Woj,” as he has come to be known, is perhaps best-known for his years as an NBA reporter with Yahoo Sports and ESPN. In his reporting career, he broke countless blockbuster NBA trades. In September 2024, he retired from journalism and became the general manager of the men’s basketball team at St. Bonaventure University, his alma mater.
“We have a kid that committed to St. Bonaventure this year, John Ikpotokin, who was with us last year,” Gay said.
Gay said he’d been talking to Wojnarowski as part of the recruitment process, and accompanied Ikpotokin on his recruiting trip to western New York.
“When I went down to campus … I mean, Woj is just a good dude and I got to know him really well,” Gay said.
The conversations continued as Gay checked up on Ikpotokin, leading to Gay making the request.
“I just asked him if he’d be interested and he said absolutely,” he said. “It’s just all about networking. I’ve learned a long time ago it’s really about who you know and not necessarily what you know.”
Tournament, program continue to grow
“I am not necessarily a dreamer,” Gay said when asked if he ever anticipated the tournament would become what it is today. “I’m kind of a planner. I never really imagined what it would ever turn into.
“But I never ever thought that it would ever stop. Every year that we’ve been doing anything RNS basketball-wise, every year has gotten a little bit better and a little bit better.”
He said Milner’s commitment to the program early on, to playing against smaller schools around New Brunswick as they were building the prep team was a big part of the success RNS has had.
“I’d be lying to you if I said, ‘Oh yeah, I knew for sure this was going to all happen,’” Gay said. “But, you know, it goes right back to 2014 in a gym in Antigonish, (N.S.), recruiting a young kid named Andrew Milner.”
