MS Coast brothers team up again — now at D-I school for former Kentucky basketball coach

It was a special day for the Krass family.

Fighting Irish guard Matt Krass ceremoniously put pen to paper Monday to celebrate signing a basketball scholarship at Division I Tarleton State University in front of friends, family, coaches and one of his soon-to-be teammates: his older brother, Nick.

The St. Patrick guard officially signed his letter of intent two weeks ago, right around the time Nick made his transfer from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College to Tarleton State official, bringing the two together for the first time since sharing the floor at St. Patrick in 2022.

“I’m looking forward to everything, it’s such a blessing to be able to go play with my brother,” Krass said. “I’m excited to go out there and compete and show what I can do at a high level.”

The brothers led the Fighting Irish to 31 wins and trip to the Final Four their last season together and combined for 36 points a game. Nick was the Sun Herald Player of the Year and Matt made his first of three appearances on the All-South Mississippi basketball team.

Nick would go on to play at Oregon State, while Matt transferred to Gulfport. They both played at their respective schools for one season before returning home, Matt to St. Patrick and Nick to MGCCC. The move brought the two back together and they won’t be separated again anytime soon.

“I’m really proud of him, he deserves everything coming toward him,” Nick told the Sun Herald at Matt’s signing. “He works super hard. It’s really our dream. We’ve been working out with each other since we were super young. We grew up together, watched each other develop, played a whole lot of one-on-one — I won most of those, by the way. It’s going to be awesome. The one year in high school was really fun, but now our games are super developed and have matured a lot.”

The impact the two had on the Fighting Irish program can’t be understated. In Matt’s return to the school as a senior, he led the Coast in scoring with 29 points a game and took the Irish to the Elite Eight.

For their coach, Athletic Director Keith Robinson, the pair represent everything he wants in leaders of his program.

“If a coach were to sit down and choose the kind of player he wants, he would start with something like Matt or Nick,” Robinson said. “Good size, they can handle the ball, shoot the ball, good attitudes, can defend. We had great success with them.”

The winding road to Stephenville, Texas

Neither of the Krass brothers arrived here on a straight path. Nick was originally set to transfer to Southern Miss after OSU, but a knee injury derailed that plan. He only appeared in two games at MGCCC. But Tarleton State coach Billy Gillespie hounded him as he had when Nick was in high school and when he was in the transfer portal.

Nick told Gillespie he’d have to offer his brother, too. Matt had transferred to GHS his junior season, but struggled to find footing after dealing with his own ankle injury. His return to St. Patrick led to a monster year and Gillespie liked what he saw when caught Matt in action.

Once Tarleton State hosted both for a workout, the offer came.

“They’ve always trained together, they’ve always worked out together, so it’s super special,” the brothers’ father, Brett Krass, said. “They really, really wanted to play together so I think it’s going to be fun and exciting.”

“It’s pretty unreal, it’s rare for two kids to be able to go play ball together at the college level,” mother Betsy Krass said. “It’s something we’ve had to be really patient about. This process, you don’t know what to expect until you go through it. I couldn’t be more happy for them and the place they’re going.”

That process shifted dramatically from one brother to the other. Nick was recruited during a time when high school players were still valued as development projects. Then the transfer portal arrived in force and Matt was under-recruited, along with many other talents across the state in the same class, as coaches filled their rosters with older talent out of the portal first.

But the two had a plan that began in elementary school when they battled each other in the garage and out in the driveway on a regular basis. For the brothers, it was meant to be. For the family, it’s been a dream actualized.

“You never think, ‘Oh they’re doing this, they’re going to play D-I basketball,’ you just don’t,” Betsy said. “So many people don’t. They’re very lucky and blessed to be able to live out this dream.”

Built for the future

The road has been twisting and with its bumps, but both are grateful for the journey and the people who have developed their talents.

“Here at the school, they taught me how to play in a system and everything,” Matt said. “With (Community Saved director Kevin Walden), he taught me so much. He transformed my game to another level. I owe him a lot, I truly do.”

Walden coached the Krass brothers on his Community Saved AAU team and saw first-hand why the two were destined to succeed.

“I see success, that’s as simple as I can put it. I see success,” Walden on the Krass’ future. “Their work ethic, their discipline, how they carry themselves as men is going to take them far in life. Basketball is just going to be a byproduct. I do see them getting a lot minutes, a lot of points, all of that. But I see them being successful.”

The lofty goals and expectations encircling the two are not simply a creation of those around them, but the confidence the two exude has done much to bring them to this point.

Now that they’re sharing a jersey again, that confidence hasn’t wavered.

“Me and Matt, we’ve really been underrated our whole lives but we’ve just continued to put the work in and continue to grow and prosper,” Nick said. “Definitely our goal is to bring Tarleton State to the tournament this year. If not March Madness, then definitely NIT. Just be good in college and go play pro. That’s one thing we’ll both do, is go be professional basketball players.”