Miles Wright ’18, co-captain of the men’s basketball team, scored his 1,000th career point against Cornell University this past Friday, making him the 29th Dartmouth player to reach the milestone. Wright, a Boston native and a sociology modified with African and African American Studies major, averages 12.1 points per game, putting him at 14th place in the Ivy League and second at Dartmouth.
What got you started in basketball?
MW: Basketball is something that’s been a part of my life as long as I can remember. I don’t remember when I first started, but there are baby pictures of me with a basketball. I started playing when I was four or five and have been playing ever since.
What made you choose Dartmouth?
MW: After my visit, when I got on campus and saw what it was like, in my mind, it was ideal. It’s what I imagined college to be — a community. I have definitely made some lifelong friends here, and it’s something that’s very important to me. It was also my best bet for a combination of a great level of basketball and education.
What is your favorite part about playing at Dartmouth?
MW: It’s the people, my teammates, the coaching staff. It’s just a group of guys, especially this year, more than ever, that come in with the same mentality and purpose which isn’t something that always happens or happens everywhere, so I really appreciate that.
What do you think it is about this year that’s making things different?
MW: Everyone on the team is just so close. There’s no one or two people on the team that are really not part of the team. We’re all friends on and off the court, and I think this is something that is very important for a team — that chemistry and those connections.
What are some of the team’s goals for the rest of the season and for the future of the program?
MW: Our goal for the rest of the season is not only to win but also to keep growing. Our last few games have all come down to the last minute of the game, last 30 seconds or overtime. Those losses are pretty tough, but they are also learning experiences. Especially with the younger guys — five freshmen and five sophomores — it’ll be a learning experience because we’re definitely going to be in those situations again and knowing what we have to do to finish and execute will be important to pull out a close win rather than come out on the short end of it.
How did scoring your 1,000th career point feel?
MW: I didn’t even know that I had scored it; I just didn’t really think about it. One of my teammates congratulated me after the game, and that’s when I realized it had happened. It didn’t really set in until the next day just because it was such a tough loss. Losing by one point on the road in a game we should have won kind of takes away from it a little bit, but after I had some time to myself to think about it the next day, I had some time to be proud. It feels pretty good to know I’m in elite company when it comes to that.
You were named Ivy League Rookie of the Year your freshman year and have come a long way since. What advice would you give a first-year now that you have the knowledge and experience that you do?
MW: Looking back on freshman year, I didn’t really expect to get Rookie of the Year. I didn’t know about it until I checked my phone and saw all of the “Congratulations” texts I had gotten. That was obviously a great moment that I got to share with my teammates and my family, but between then and now there have been some up and downs, like some high scoring games and then a coaching change. I would tell my freshman self to remain confident through the good and the bad. We’ve lost a lot of tough games and a lot of close games, so I’d say to stay confident and not just focus on the end result.
What’s next? Do you have any plans to continue playing after graduation?
MW: I hope to play professionally in Europe. Ideally, I’d say Spain — I’ve heard great things about Spain. They have a great league over there, so I think that would be a great fit for me.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.
