I’ll Be Quirky: Columbia

Hey whippersnappers, this is a real World Series Game 7 for the ages.

The Flying Dutchmen concluded a reasonably successful Gulf Coast Showcase on Friday, when they cruised to an 89-56 win over Division III Medaille College in what amounted to an opening round game (don’t ask) at the Arena. The Dutchmen will see if their new defense is A Real Thing tonight, when they board a bus and head to upper Manhattan to face Columbia (reminder: previous foe Manhattan College is actually located in the Bronx). Here’s a look back a the win over Medaille and a look ahead to Columbia.

THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH

The Dutchmen gave up fewer than 60 points for the second straight game and only the fifth time in the last two seasons. Medaille shot just 32 percent, the lowest percentage by a Hofstra opponent since Charleston shot 23.1 percent in the Dutchmen’s 73-40 win on Feb. 25, 2015. Justin Wright-Foreman scored 18 points, including 13 in the second half, to pace the Dutchmen, to lead four players in double figures. Brian Bernardi had 17 points while Ty Greer added 13 points and eight rebounds and Deron Powers chipped in with 11 points. Freshman Eli Pemberton had eight points but a team-high six assists and Rokas Gustys pulled down 14 rebounds while adding eight points. Hunter Sabety had seven points, six rebounds and five blocks in just 12 minutes.

3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. Medaille 11/25)

3: Justin Wright-Foreman

2: Ty Greer

1: Brian Bernardi

SEASON STANDINGS

Eli Pemberton 10

Justin Wright-Foreman 8

Brian Bernardi 8

Rokas Gustys 7

Deron Powers 5

Ty Greer 4

PRESEASON TOURNAMENTS

The Dutchmen finished 3-1 in the Gulf Coast Showcase, their best record in a preseason tournament since going 3-1 during one of the “You Are Playing In This Because You Hosted A CBI Game” tournaments “run” in 2012-13 by Gazelle Group. Hofstra is now 22-25 in preseason tournament play in the CAA era.

GETTING IN THE BOXSCORE

Junior Andre Walker and freshmen Connor Klementowicz and Tommy Ros each played for the first time this season on Friday. Walker had three blocks and two rebounds in four minutes while Klementowicz drained his only field goal attempt, a 3-pointer with 44 seconds left that served as the Dutchmen’s final points. Ros missed his lone shot.

THE DEFENSE DOES NOT REST

The Dutchmen improved to 17-1 under Joe Mihalich when allowing fewer than 60 points in a game. The 56 points allowed are tied for the fifth-fewest surrendered by a Mihalich-coached team at Hofstra. 

vs. Charleston 2/25/15: 73-40 W

vs. Appalachian State 12/7/14: 68-51 W

vs. UNCW 2/8/14: 61-52 W

vs. Florida Atlantic 12/22/15: 68-54 W

vs. Jackson State 11/28/14: 86-56 W

vs. Central Connecticut State 12/31/14: 84-56 W

vs. UNCW 1/3/15: 68-56 W

vs. Medaille 11/25/16: 89-56 W

TWICE AS NICE

The Dutchmen allowed 60 points or fewer for the second straight game — only the third time they have achieved that during the Mihalich era. The Dutchmen have surrendered 60 or fewer points in three consecutive games just once under Mihalich.

vs. UNCW 2/8/14: 61-52 W

vs. James Madison 2/10/14: 59-53 L

vs. Central Connecticut State 12/31/14: 84-56 W

vs. UNCW 1/3/15: 68-56 W

vs. Delaware 1/5/15: 71-58 W

vs. South Dakota 11/23/16: 65-57 W

vs. Medaille 11/25/16: 89-56 W

AN INTERESTING QUOTE THAT PROVIDES A SEGUE TO TONIGHT

“I know it was a Division III team. Still second game in a row where we held a team in the 50s. I don’t know if we can do that all the time. We can be better defensively, So we’ll see what we can do Tuesday.”—Joe Mihalich

OVER THE AIR

The Ivy League Digital Network will carry the live video from Columbia while the Hofstra radio feed can be found at the Pride Productions hub. 

PLEADING FOR A FIFTH

Hofstra is looking to start 5-3 for the first time since 2010-11 and the fourth time in the CAA era.

Joe Mihalich-coached teams have opened 5-3 three times (2004-05, 2007-08, 2009-10)

COLUMBIA AND THE IVY LEAGUE

Hofstra is 10-2 all-time against Columbia. The Lions won the most recent meeting between the teams on Dec. 20, 2014, when they edged the Dutchmen 82-77 at Levien Gymnasium.

At KenPom.com today, Hofstra is ranked 178th while Columbia is ranked 206th.

Columbia, which won the College Insider Tournament last season under former coach Kyle Smith, is 3-2 this season under Jim Engles, who spent the previous eight seasons building the program at New Jersey Tech. The Lions and Dutchmen have one mutual foe, Stony Brook. Columbia beat the Seawolves, 73-66, in the season opener for both schools on Nov. 11. 

Hofstra is 28-17 all-time against Ivy League schools. Columbia is the only Ivy League school Hofstra has faced in the last six seasons.

WRIGHT-FOREMAN AS THE CLOSER

Sophomore Justin Wright-Foreman continued thriving in the second half on Friday, when he scored 13 of his team-high 18 points in the final 20 minutes. Wright-Foreman has scored 80 points this season, including 59 in the second half.

PEMBERTON HITS 100

Eli Pemberton scored fewer than 10 points for the second straight game Friday, when he finished with eight points in the win over Medaille. But Pemberton, who was the first Hofstra freshman since Antoine Agudio (2004-05) to open his career by scoring in double digits in his first five games, is already the 19th Dutchmen freshman in the CAA era to score at least 100 points in his debut season. He  is five points away from surpassing Woody Souffrant for 17th place on the CAA-era freshman scoring list.

1.) Antoine Agudio, 452 (2004-05)

2.) Charles Jenkins, 436 (2007-08)

3.) Kenny Adeleke, 433 (2001-02)

4.) Loren Stokes, 374 (2003-04)

5.) Chaz Williams, 325 (2009-10)

6.) Jamall Robinson, 312 (2013-14)

7.) Halil Kanacevic, 294 (2009-10)

8.) Carlos Rivera, 226 (2003-04)

9.) Nathaniel Lester, 189 (2007-08)

10.) Shemiye McLendon, 178 (2010-11)

11.) Wendell Gibson, 153 (2001-02)

12.) Jordan Allen, 152 (2012-13)

13.) Chris Jenkins, 151 (2013-14)

14.) Rokas Gustys, 140 (2014-15)

15.) Mike Radziejewski, 138 (2001-02)

16.) Aurimas Kieza, 126 (2002-03)

17.) Woody Souffrant, 110 (2001-02)

18.) ELI PEMBERTON, 104 (2016-17)

19.) Moussa Kone, 100 (2011-12)

GUSTYS IS LUCKY 13

With his 14 rebounds on Tuesday, junior Rokas Gustys moved past Gerald King into 13th place on Hofstra’s all-time list. He is just the third Dutchmen in the CAA era to record at least 700 rebounds.

11.) Jim Boatwright, 751

12.) Ed Moor, 746

13.) ROKAS GUSTYS, 702

BERNARDI THIRD FOR THREES

Senior Brian Bernardi hit three 3-pointers Friday and now has 197 in his two-plus seasons at Hofstra. He is just fur behind Carlos Rivera for second on the school’s all-time list.

1.) Antoine Agudio, 357

2.) Carlos Rivera, 201

3.) BRIAN BERNARDI, 197

THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY

Hamilton bias! (The subject of Donald Trump’s favorite play founded Columbia)

Obama bias! (The current President graduated from Columbia)

Gene Larkin bias! (The infielder who delivered the World Series-winning hit for the Minnesota Twins in 1991 graduated from Columbia)

You can’t end Gilmore Girls like that bias! (Lauren Graham, i.e. Lorelai Gilmore, graduated from Columbia)

I’ll Be Quirky: Medaille

The Flying Dutchmen saved their best game of the season for their last day in Florida on Wednesday, when Rokas Gustys pulled down a whopping 26 rebounds in a 65-57 win over South Dakota in the third-place game of the Gulf Coast Showcase. The Dutchmen will finish the Gulf Coast Showcase with an opening round game today (don’t ask) against Division III Medaille at 4 PM at the Arena. Here’s a look back at the South Dakota win and a look ahead at Medaille.

THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH

The Dutchmen, who gave up at least 80 points in each of their previous four games, allowed fewer than 60 points for just the third time in the last two seasons and led throughout the second half.  They led by more than a possession for the final 16:59. Gustys snapped out of his mini-slump — he had “only” 31 rebounds in the previous three games — by recording the most rebounds by a Division I player this season and the most by a Hofstra player since the 1975-76 season. He added 10 points while Deron Powers had 18 points and Brian Bernardi added 15 points, including the 1,000th of his career, during a milestone-filled day.

3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. South Dakota 11/23)

3: Rokas Gustys

2: Brian Bernardi

1: Deron Powers

SEASON STANDINGS

Eli Pemberton 10

Rokas Gustys 7

Brian Bernardi 7

Justin Wright-Foreman 5

Deron Powers 5

Ty Greer 2

THE DEFENSE DOES NOT REST

The Dutchmen improved to 12-1 under Joe Mihalich when allowing fewer than 60 points in a game. The 57 points allowed are tied for the eighth-fewest surrendered by a Mihalich-coached team at Hofstra. 

vs. Charleston 2/25/15: 73-40 W

vs. Appalachian State 12/7/14: 68-51 W

vs. UNCW 2/8/14: 61-52 W

vs. Florida Atlantic 12/22/15: 68-54 W

vs. Jackson State 11/28/14: 86-56 W

vs. Central Connecticut State 12/31/14: 84-56 W

vs. UNCW 1/3/15: 68-56 W

vs. Drexel 2/15/15: 81-57 W

vs. James Madison 3/7/15: 74-57 W

vs. South Dakota 11/23/16: 65-57 W

ROK NATION

Rokas Gustys broke his own record for the most rebounds in a Division I game this season by finishing with 26, a total which also broke the Gulf Coast Showcase single-game record of 16. With one game left to play in the tournament, Gustys already has a Showcase-record 48 rebounds.

The 26 rebounds were tied for the sixth-highest single-game figure in program history and the most since John Irving had 27- and 28-rebound games during the 1975-76 season.

1.) Bill Thieben, 43 rebounds vs. Springfield, 1954-55

2.) Bill Thieben, 38 rebounds vs. Ohio Wesleyan, 1953-54

3.) Bill Thieben, 33 rebounds vs. Wilkes, 1955-56

4.) John Irving, 28 rebounds vs. Long Island University, 1975-76

5.) John Irving, 27 rebounds vs. Bucknell, 1975-76

6.) Quinas Brower, 26 rebounds vs. West Chester, 1971-72

6.) ROKAS GUSTYS, 26 rebounds vs. South Dakota, 2016-17

BERNARDI’S BIG DAY

Brian Bernardi reached a pair of milestones by scoring 15 points and draining 3-of-7 3-pointers against South Dakota. His second 3-pointer of the game was Bernardi’s 193rd at Hofstra, which moved him past Norman Richardson into third place on the school’s all-time list. He is now just seven behind Carlos Rivera for second place.

1.) Antoine Agudio, 357

2.) Carlos Rivera, 201

3.) BRIAN BERNARDI 194

In addition. Bernardi’s 3-pointer with 4:27 left gave him 1,000 career points in his collegiate career dating back to his freshman season at SMU (2012-13). Bernardi is now at 1,004 career points and has scored 894 points at Hofstra, where he is aiming to become the 34th player in school history to reach the 1,000 point mark.

OVER THE AIR

Hofstra will air both a video and radio feed at the Pride Productions hub. 

BEST-OF-SEVEN?

Hofstra is looking to start 4-3 for the first time since 2010-11 and the fourth time in the CAA era.

Joe Mihalich-coached teams have opened 4-3 four times (1998-99, 2000-01, 2007-08, 2009-10)

MEDAILLE COLLEGE AND HOFSTRA VS. NON-DIVISION I FOES

Medaille College is a Division III school located in Buffalo. The Mavericks play in the Alleghany Mountain Collegiate Conference and were picked to finish fourth in the league this season. Medaille is 1-2 this season with a win over Utica College and losses to SUNY-Geneseo and Baruch College. 

The Flying Dutchmen have won their last 16 games against non-Division I foes dating back to a 70-54 loss to Florida Southern during the 1988-89 season. The Dutchmen last faced a non-Division I opponent last season, when they beat Division II Molloy, 96-64

PRESEASON TOURNAMENTS

Hofstra is 21-25 in preseason tournament play in the CAA era. The Dutchmen have won two games in a preseason tournament for the first time since they went 3-1 during one of the “You Are Playing In This Because You Hosted A CBI Game” tournaments “run” in 2012-13 by Gazelle Group.

PEMBERTON’S STREAK ENDS

Eli Pemberton scored seven points in Tuesday’s 65-57 win over South Dakota as his career-opening streak of double-digit games came to an end at five. Antoine Agudio is the only Hofstra freshman in the CAA era to open his career by scoring at least 10 points in each of his first six games. Agudio scored 20 points against Florida International, 13 points against LaSalle, 22 points against Binghamton, 14 points against James Madison and 16 points against Longwood and 19 points against St. John’s.

Pemberton has 96 points in six games and needs just four points today to become the 19th Hofstra freshman in the CAA era to score at least 100 points. 

GUSTYS CLOSING IN ON LUCKY 13

With his 26 rebounds on Tuesday, junior Rokas Gustys moved past Mike Pollock into 14th place on Hofstra’s all-time list. He is just three rebounds away from moving past Gerald King into 13th place. 

13.) Gerarld King, 690

14.) ROKAS GUSTYS, 688

THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY

Goo Goo Dolls bias! (The Goo Goo Dolls are from Buffalo)

Bills bias! (Buffalo, duh)

We should not be having this much trouble bias! (Division III you guys)

I’ll Be Quirky: South Dakota

Not the Badlands you expected, was it?

The good vibes generated by Monday’s last-second win over Bradley disappeared Tuesday afternoon, when the Flying Dutchmen were routed by former North Atlantic Conference/America East foe Vermont, 87-73, in the semifinals of the Gulf Coast Showcase. The loss drops the Dutchmen into the third-place game this afternoon against South Dakota, which lost to Houston 85-58 later Tuesday, at 5 PM. Here’s a quick look back at the Vermont loss and a look ahead to today’s game.

THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH

The Dutchmen trailed for the final 37-plus minutes in falling to Vermont. Any suspense was removed when Rokas Gustys picked up his second foul with 9:01 remaining in the first half. With Gustys sidelined, Vermont ended the half on a 30-13 run. The Dutchmen trailed by as many as 24 in the second half and got as close as 12 with 8:19 left before the Catamounts went on a 12-2 run to end any hopes of the miracle comeback. Eli Pemberton led the Dutchmen with 21 point while Justin Wright-Foreman added 16 points, including 14 in the second half. Deron Powers had 10 points while Gustys finished with eight points and 11 rebounds.

3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. Vermont 11/22)

3: Eli Pemberton

2: Justin Wright-Foreman

1: Rokas Gustys

SEASON STANDINGS

Eli Pemberton 10

Justin Wright-Foreman 5

Brian Bernardi 5

Rokas Gustys 4

Deron Powers 4

Ty Greer 2

THE DEFENSE RESTS

The Dutchmen have given up at least 80 points in each of their last four games. during which they are 1-3. The last time the Dutchmen allowed at least 80 points in four straight games was last season, when they went 3-1 against St. Bonaventure (89-83 win), LaSalle (84-80 win), Appalachian State (86-80 win) and Siena (81-68 loss).

OVER THE AIR

The Gulf Coast Showcase will air the game on its YouTube account. Hofstra will also air the WRHU feed here.

BACK TO .500?

Hofstra is looking to start 3-3 for the first time since 2012-13 and the seventh time in the CAA era.

Joe Mihalich-coached teams have opened 3-3 three times (2000-01, 2001-02, 2011-12).

SOUTH DAKOTA AND THE SUMMIT LEAGUE

This is the first time Hofstra has faced South Dakota in any sport. South Dakota plays in the Summit League, whose membership includes Fort Wayne, which stunned no. 3 Indiana, 71-68, on Tuesday night. 

South Dakota is 5-1 this season though just 3-1 against Division I foes. The Coyotes beat Kent State, 80-77, in the Gulf Coast Showcase opener on Monday (hooray!).

Hofstra is 1-5 against current Summit League schools. The Dutchmen beat South Dakota State, 66-63, on Nov. 16, 2012 during one of the “You Are Playing In This Because You Hosted A CBI Game” tournaments “run” by Gazelle Group. The previous meeting against a Summit League school came in the actual CBI on Mar. 17, 2010, when IUPUI led wire-to-wire in a 74-60 win in Tom Pecora’s final game at Hofstra.

PRESEASON TOURNAMENTS

Hofstra is 20-25 in preseason tournament play in the CAA era. The Dutchmen are looking to win multiple games in a preseason tournament for the first time since 2012-13, when they went 3-1 in one of the “You Are Playing In This Because You Hosted A CBI Game” tournaments “run” by Gazelle Group. 

DOUBLE VISION

Eli Pemberton scored a team-high 21 points in Tuesday’s 87-73 loss to Vermont. He is just the second Hofstra freshman in the CAA era to score at least 10 points in each of his first five games. In 2004-05, Antoine Agudio opened his career by scoring 20 points against Florida International, 13 points against LaSalle, 22 points against Binghamton, 14 points against James Madison and 16 points against Longwood. Agudio also reached double digits in his sixth game, when he scored 19 points against St. John’s.

GUSTYS HITS THE TOP 15

Junior Rokas Gustys pulled down 11 rebounds Tuesday afternoon to move up two more spots on Hofstra’s all-time list. Gustys surged past Loren Stokes and Myles McPartland into 15th place and is now just 12 rebounds away from sole possession of 14th place.

14.) Mike Pollock, 673

15.) ROKAS GUSTYS, 662

BERNARDI CLOSING IN ON THIRD FOR THREES

Senior Brian Bernardi hit two 3-pointers Monday afternoon to move past Rick Apodaca for fourth place on Hofstra’s all-time list. He is just one behind Norman Richardson for third place.

3.) Norman Richardson, 192

4.) BRIAN BERNARDI, 191

THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY

Mount Rushmore bias! (The monument honoring Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt was built in 1925)

Badlands bias! (The Badlands Natural Park is located in South Dakota)

You don’t pronounce the letter E bias! (“Coyotes” is pronounced “Ki-yots”)

I’ll Be Quirky: Vermont

I have no idea what this song is. Vermont needs more hair metal.

The Flying Dutchmen got back to .500 in entertaining, only-the-Dutchmen-could-pull-this-off type of fashion Monday with a dramatic 92-90 win over Bradley in the opening round of the Gulf Coast Showcase. The Dutchmen advance to the semifinals today against Vermont at 5 PM. Here’s a quick look back at the Bradley victory and a look ahead to the clash with a long-ago conference foe.

THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH

Deron Powers channeled his inner Danny Ainge by driving the length of the court and hitting a layup with less than a second left to give the Dutchmen the win. Powers also channeled his inner Juan’ya Green by scoring 11 of the Dutchmen’s final 13 points and finishing with a team-high 19 points overall. Six Dutchmen scored in double figures, including Ty Greer (17 points) and Brian Bernardi (15 points, including 11 in the second half). The Dutchmen won despite allowing Bradley to shoot a whopping 60 percent from the field and surrendering baskets on each of the Braves’ final five trips down the floor.

3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. Bradley 11/21)

3: Deron Powers

2: Ty Greer

1: Brian Bernardi

SEASON STANDINGS

Eli Pemberton 7

Brian Bernardi 5

Deron Powers 4

Justin Wright-Foreman 3

Rokas Gustys 3

Ty Greer 2

SIX IN DOUBLE FIGURES

The Dutchmen had six players in double figures on Monday for the first time this season, the third time under Joe Mihalich and the fourth time in the CAA era.

vs. Bradley 11/21/16 (Powers, Greer, Bernardi, Wright-Foreman, Gustys, Pemberton)

vs. LaSalle 12/2/15 (Bernardi, Koon, Tanksley, Buie, Green, Gustys)

vs. Canisius 11/13/15 (Bernardi, Green, Koon, Gustys, Nichols, Tanksley)

vs. District of Columbia 11/17/12 (Nwaukoni, Buie, Imes, Mejia, two who shall not be named)

OVER THE AIR

The Gulf Coast Showcase will air the game on its YouTube account. Hofstra will also air the WRHU feed here.

BEST-OF-FIVE

Hofstra is looking to start 3-2 for the third straight season and the fifth time in the CAA era.

Joe Mihalich-coached teams have opened 2-2 six times (1998-99, 2000-01, 2007-08, 2009-10, 2014-15, 2015-16).

VERMONT AND THE AMERICA EAST

Hofstra is 10-10 all-time against Vermont. The Dutchmen lost the most recent game between the teams on March 18, 2015, when the Catamounts led wire-to-wire in an 85-81 victory at Hofstra Arena in the That Which We Shall Not Name Tournament. Sixteen of the games between the teams came during Hofstra’s seven seasons in the North Atlantic Conference/America East from 1994-95 through 2000-01. Each team won eight games in that span. 

Vermont is 4-1 this season and advanced to the Gulf Coast Showcase with a 60-59 win over Wofford on Monday afternoon. The Catamounts and Dutchmen have three common opponents this season: Northeastern (whom Vermont plays on Dec. 10), Siena (whom Vermont plays on Dec. 29) and Stony Brook (whom Vermont plays on Jan. 28 and Feb. 25).

Hofstra is 79-32 all-time against current America East schools. Since joining the CAA in 2001-02, the Dutchmen have faced at least one America East opponent every season except 2012-13.

PRESEASON TOURNAMENTS

Hofstra is 19-25 in preseason tournament play in the CAA era. The Dutchmen are looking to win multiple games in a preseason tournament for the first time since 2012-13, when they went 3-1 in one of the “You Are Playing In This Because You Hosted A CBI Game” tournaments “run” by Gazelle Group. 

DOUBLE VISION

Eli Pemberton scored 10 points in Monday’s 92-90 win over Manhattan. He is just the second Hofstra freshman in the CAA era to score at least 10 points in each of his first four games. In 2004-05, Antoine Agudio opened his career by scoring 20 points against Florida International, 13 points against LaSalle, 22 points against Binghamton and 14 points against James Madison. Agudio also reached double digits in his fifth game, when he scored 16 points against Longwood.

GUSTYS HITS THE TOP 20

Junior Rokas Gustys pulled down 12 rebounds Monday afternoon to move up two more spots on Hofstra’s all-time list. Gustys surged past Percy Johnson and Rich Laurel into 17th place and is now just seven rebounds away from sole possession of 15th place.

14.) Mike Pollock, 673

15.) Myles McPartland, 658

16.) Loren Stokes, 657

17.) ROKAS GUSTYS, 651

BERNARDI CLOSING IN ON FOURTH FOR THREES

Senior Brian Bernardi hit three 3-pointers Monday afternoon and now has 189 in his two-plus seasons at Hofstra. He is just one behind Rick Apodaca for fourth place all-time and three behind Norman Richardson for third place.

3.) Norman Richardson, 192

4.) Rick Apodaca, 190

5.) BRIAN BERNARDI, 189

HOFSTRA/VERMONT CONNECTIONS

Vermont senior Darren Payen played his first two seasons at Hofstra, during which he averaged 2.3 points and 1.8 rebounds over 53 games. This marks the second straight season the Dutchmen have faced a former teammate. Jordan Allen, who transferred to Sacred Heart following his sophomore season at Hofstra, played agains the Dutchmen last year.

THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY

Phish bias! (The band formed while members were students at Vermont)

Ben and Jerry’s bias! (The ice cream company was founded in Vermont)

Eddie Benton bias! (He was the best player on Vermont’s teams during the Hofstra A-East era)

Bernie Sanders bias! (C’mon, it’s 2016, no need to explain that, right?)

In which Hofstra wins an exciting game and I look for the anvil above

This is a preview of Wednesday.

That was a fun way to spend a Monday afternoon, wasn’t it? The Flying Dutchmen moved into the winner’s bracket of whatever the heck the Gulf Coast Showcase is (it’s not a Gazelle Group tournament, but it sure feels like one—the Dutchmen play Division II Medaille College in an opening round game on Friday, which is two days after the tournament ends, I don’t even know) when Deron Powers pulled a Danny Ainge and drove the length of the court to hit the tie-breaking layup with less than a second left to lift the Dutchmen to a 92-90 win over Bradley.

The much-needed win--look, I could point out Bradley hit its last five shots and nearly doubled the points it produced in a loss against supposed CAA bottom-feeder Delaware, but beggars can't be choosers—evens the Dutchmen’s record at 2-2 and provides some momentum after a rough week.

Of course, since I’m a Hofstra fan, I didn’t waste much time until I began anticipating our next misery. Not tomorrow, when the Dutchmen face old NAC/America East friend Vermont (and former Dutchmen Darren Payen, who is now a senior at Vermont) at 5:30 PM.

I’m talking Wednesday, when the Dutchmen are sure to play, in either the championship game or third-place game, an opponent guaranteed to dredge up terrible memories we’d hoped were repressed forever.

I suppose I should point out that technically, the Dutchmen could face Houston or South Dakota, a pair of opponents Hofstra has never played in men’s basketball. But come on. You’ve been doing this long enough to know we’re not going to have an agita-free foe on Wednesday night.

You’ve been doing this long enough to know the Dutchmen are going to face George Mason or Kent State.

George Mason is the name that makes Hofstra fans of all ages and demeanors spew Tarantino-esque profanities. Look, we all know what happened 11 seasons ago. No need to revisit it. Nah let’s revisit it. No let’s not. Yeah let’s revisit it HELL DAMN FART THAT FINAL FOUR RUN WAS A FRAUD AND WE ALL KNOW IT WE WOULDN’T HAVE MADE THE FINAL FOUR BUT WE DESERVED THEIR SPOT 

But while facing George Mason Wednesday would drum up bad memories, they’d be more of the long-ago bad breakup variety. Time has lessened some of the throb. Losing to George Mason would sting in the way it stings a mayor when his team loses The Big Game and he has to send 1,000 pounds of the finest local delicacy to the mayor of the winning team’s town. (None of you Mason frenemies are getting 1,000 pounds of bagel, or even one bagel, so forget about it)

We’ll always hate George Mason then, but it’s hard to be mad at George Mason now. Jim Larranaga and Tom O’Connor are thankfully long gone, preceded of course by all the players from the 2006 team, all of whom we loathe except Lamar Butler, who is too damn nice to loathe.

In proof that society was off the rails long before 2016 unfolded, Tony Skinn—the most loathsome member of that team, the one who made such unvarnished contempt possible—is actually coaching college basketball at Louisiana Tech under former Larranaga assistant Eric Konkol. Turns out Tony is thin-Skinned enough on Twitter to run for President.

I did a good thing on Twitter.

Plus, not only are the Patriots not even in the CAA anymore, they are a giant that has been completely cut down. They were ground into dust post-Larranaga by Paul Hewitt and are now trying to climb out of the bottom of the A-10, which, ask Fordham, is hard to do, even under a coach who seems to elicit universal respect like Dave Paulson.

And in one of the great unexpected plot twists of all-time, I probably get along with more George Mason fans than fans of any other school Hofstra’s ever competed against. I can’t tell you how many Mason fans told me they were rooting for the Dutchmen in the CAA title game (hmm, maybe they were reverse hexing me?). Given Hofstra’s all-too-recent struggles, the bottoming out of the Patriots has elicited far more sympathy than schadenfreude.

Speaking of Hofstra’s all-too-recent struggles and schadenfreude, there’s Kent State. And more specifically, since we otherwise have nothing against a program that gave the world Hall of Fame-bound tight end Antonio Gates and has faced the Dutchmen just once before, there’s Jimmy Hall.

At least the George Mason screw job was perpetuated from the outside (nearby outsiders, but outsiders nonetheless). Former Dutchmen power forward Jimmy Hall was a “the call is coming from inside the house” villain.

I’ve avoided writing his name here for almost four years, but for the sake of putting my SEO skills to use, and maybe drawing some people unfamiliar with the true #narrative of how Jimmy Hall iPad thief ended up at Kent State, this is a reminder that Hall and three other teammates not worth mentioning were arrested Nov. 30, 2012 for stealing every Apple product not locked down at Hofstra. 

The scandal made Hofstra a national punchline, decimated the program in a way that was previously unimaginable and got a bunch of good men fired. The Dutchmen are back to being at least pretty good, but those scars will never fully heal. 

The three friends of Jimmy Hall arrest saw their college basketball careers peter out the way they should have after squandering a terrific Division I opportunity. One is still playing NAIA ball. One played one year of Division II ball. The other one, amazingly, played at two more Division I schools and got two more Division I coaches fired. Usually players that do that are pretty good on the court, alas.

Hall, by far the best player of the four, landed on his feet at Kent State, where he has apparently made the most of his second chance by staying out of trouble, twice being named to the All-MAC team and leading the Golden Flashes to a 3-0 record thus far this season.

That’s all well and good, I suppose. If you are an impartial observer, it’s probably a nice story of how Hall rebuilt his life and put himself in position to get a degree and play professional basketball.

But you’ll forgive me and the rest of us Dutchmen fans for having no interest in watching Hall’s redemption play out in real time against the same program he left in ashes. I would much rather face George Mason and run the risk of absorbing that loss than face Kent State and run the risk of absorbing THAT loss.

So you know what’s happening. Look skyward. Here comes the other shoe, except it’s probably an anvil.