Ralph Wiggum, pictured here before his magnificent star-making turn as George Washington.
It took almost 36 years, but the Flying Dutchmen finally beat a team coached by Rick Pitino. Tyler Thomas’ 3-pointer with 35.2 seconds left snapped a tie and lifted the Dutchmen to an 83-78 win over Iona. The Dutchmen will look to improve to 3-0 tonight, when they are slated to host George Washington at the Arena. Here’s a look back at the win over the Gaels and a look ahead to the Colonials.
THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH
Tyler Thomas had quite the coming out party Friday, when he scored a game-high 26 points and drained six 3-pointers while sparking the runs that began and ended an exciting back-and-forth home opener. Thomas and Darlinstone Dubar combined to score the Dutchmen’s first 17 points and 20 of their first 22 in a 22-15 run. Iona responded by scoring the next 12 points and 14 of the next 17 before a 3-pointer by Thomas fueled an 11-0 run. The teams swapped the lead over five straight possessions early in the second half but a 10-0 run by the Dutchmen gave them a 60-51 lead with 12:08 left. Iona responded with a 14-5 lead but Dubar drained a 3-pointer with 4:48 left. The Dutchmen took a trio of seven-point leads before Iona scored seven straight, a run that Thomas ended with a go-ahead layup. Quinn Slazinski hit two free throws on the other end to tie the game again before Thomas took a kickout from Aaron Estrada to put the Dutchmen ahead 79-76. Nelly Junior Joseph put back a miss by Daniss Jenkins with 17 seconds left, but Estrada hit two free throws and Jenkins missed the potential game-tying 3-pointer with three seconds remaining. Dubar scored 22 points, his most ever against a Division I opponent, and had six rebounds. Jaquan Carlos (12 points, seven assists in 40 minutes) had another impressive all-around game. Estrada, double-teamed most of the night, was limited to 10 points but chipped in with six rebounds and six assists. Nelson Boachie-Yiadom played 36 minutes — by far a career-high — and had four assists while containing Joseph. German Plotnikov, the only player to see sizable minutes off the bench, had nine points in 17 minutes.
3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. Iona, 11/11)
3: Tyler Thomas
2: Darlinstone Dubar
1: Jaquan Carlos
SEASON STANDINGS
Tyler Thomas 3
Darlinstone Dubar 3
Jaquan Carlos 3
Aaron Estrada 3
A four-way tie! Neat!
WAS THIS A UNICORN SCORE?
Yes! Despite being off by just one point from the 83-77 season-opening win over Princeton last Monday! What were the odds of that? (No idea) In addition to the three previous 83-77 wins, the Dutchmen had seven previous victories within three points of an 83-78 final, including an 83-79 overtime win over Ohio Wesleyan during the 1953-54 season. But no 83-78 finals until Friday.
This is the Flying Dutchmen’s first unicorn score victory of the season. The Dutchmen recorded 11 unicorn score victories last season after recording no unicorn scores in 2020-21, 13 unicorn scores in 2019-20 and 10 unicorn scores in 2018-19. The term unicorn score was coined by Mets superfan, historian and blogger Greg Prince to describe a score by which the Mets had never previously won. You may also know it as a “Scorigami,” a term popularized in the NFL.
WHO HAD THE KEITH HERNANDEZ?
As you may have surmised by now, Tyler Thomas hit the basket that put the Dutchmen ahead for good by sinking that 3-pointer with 35.2 seconds left in the game. It is the latest a Hofstra player has ever hit a known Keith Hernandez dating back to *flips calendar* when we began this feature last week.
Jaquan Carlos tie-breaking 3-pointer vs. Princeton, 11/7/22 (1:11 left 2H)
Tyler Thomas tie-breaking 3-pointer vs. Iona, 11/11/22 (:35.2 left 2H)
The Keith Hernandez is bestowed upon the player who scores the points that put the Dutchmen ahead for good in a victory. The stat pays homage to Hernandez, the World Series-winning Cardinals and Mets first baseman who had a record 129 game-winning RBIs when the stat was inexplicably discontinued after the 1988 season.
THE FLYING DUTCHMEN AFTER TWO GAMES
As you may have gathered by now, the Dutchmen are 2-0. This ties the 2022-23 team for the best record in school history through two games! Twenty-seven other teams began 2-0, most recently the 2017-18 squad. Here is how some notable Hofstra teams have fared through two games:
NCAA TOURNAMENT TEAMS
1975-76: 1-1
1976-77: 2-0
1999-2000: 1-1
2000-01: 2-0
2019-20 (IT COUNTS TO US): 1-1
NIT TEAMS
2005-06: 1-1
2006-07: 0-2
2015-16: 2-0
2018-19: 1-1
NCAA DIVISION II TOURNAMENT TEAMS
1958-59: 1-1
1961-62: 1-1
1962-63: 1-1
1963-64: 2-0
Some other notable two-game starts:
2021-22: 1-1 (Win in second game was Speedy Claxton’s first as head coach)
2020-21: 1-1 (Win in second game was Mike Farrelly’s first as head coach)
2010-11: 1-1 (Loss in second game was Mo Cassara’s first as head coach)
2001-02: 2-0 (Tom Pecora improves to 2-0)
1994-95: 1-1 (Win in second game was Jay Wright’s first as head coach, guess we’ll keep him)
1988-89: 1-1 (Loss in second game was Butch van Breda Kolff’s first in his second stint as head coach)
1980-81: 2-0 (Dick Berg improves to 2-0)
1979-80: 1-1 (Win in second game was Joe Harrington’s first as head coach)
1962-63: 1-1 (Loss in second game was Paul Lynner’s first as head coach)
1955-56: 2-0 (Butch van Breda Kolff improves to 2-0)
1947-48: 2-0 (Frank Reilly improves to 2-0)
1946-47: 1-1 (Loss in second game was Jack McDonald’s first in his second stint as head coach)
1943-44: 1-1 (Win in second game was Jack Smith’s first as head coach)
1936-37: 0-2 (Will we ever win a game?)
This feature is inspired by Mets superfan and blogger Greg Prince, who measures how the current Mets compare, record-wise, to previous teams through the same point in the season.
RIP DICK BERG
Sad news was shared prior to the opening tip Friday, when a moment of silence was held in honor of former Hofstra men’s basketball coach Dick Berg, who died in Florida at the age of 82 last month. Berg directed the Dutchmen to a 102-122 record over eight seasons — a tenure exceeded at Hofstra by only Butch van Breda Kolff, Paul Lynner and Tom Pecora — from 1980 through 1988. His 1982-83 team won the East Coast Conference regular season title and the 1985-86 team reached the ECC finals, where the Dutchmen fell to Drexel, 80-76. Berg capped his impressively lengthy career as a coach, educator and administrator by serving as the athletic director at the University of West Florida from 1988 through 2007. Please read more about Berg in his obituary as it appeared in the Pensacola News Journal. Thanks to loyal reader Amy Spintman, a student at Hofstra while Berg was the head coach, for sending over the obituary.
A LONG TIME COMING
The Flying Dutchmen beat a Rick Pitino-coached team for the first time in five tries dating back nearly 36 years Friday night. I’m just going to assume that’s the longest any Hofstra team has waited to beat any coach in any sport. Pitino’s Final Four-bound Providence team rolled to a 97-61 win over the Flying Dutchmen (who really WERE nicknamed the Flying Dutchmen back then!) on Dec. 29, 1986 before defending national champion (sorta) Louisville handed the Dutchmen a 97-69 loss in Joe Mihalich’s third game at the helm on Nov. 12, 2013. Iona then beat the Dutchmen 82-74 on Dec. 5, 2020 and…82-74 on Nov, 16, 2021. While the Hofstra-Iona series has been extended for two years, my guess is it’s a good thing the Dutchmen beat Pitino now! Meanwhile, speaking of same or similar scores…
SECOND TIME ALMOST LIKE THE FIRST TIME
The Dutchmen beat Iona 83-78 one game after beating Princeton 83-77. It’s the first time the Dutchmen have recorded consecutive wins in which the final scores were so close to the same since Jan. 17-19, 2019, when the Dutchmen beat UNC Wilmington 87-72 and defeated Charleston 86-72. Those were the 13th and 14th wins of the Joe Mihalich-era record 16-game winning streak.
NO DOUBTING THOMAS
The 26 points by Tyler Thomas were his most since he scored 30 points for Sacred Heart against Rhode Island last Dec. 7. He also became the second Hofstra newcomer in as many years to score 25 points at least once in his first two games with the Dutchmen. Zach Cooks scored 26 points in his debut against Houston on Nov. 9, 2021 before scoring 29 points against Duquesne four nights later.
BIG NIGHT FOR D-STONE
Darlinstone Dubar’s 22-point effort Friday marked his third 20-point game as a collegian and the most points he’s scored against a Division I opponent. Dubar had 24 points against Division III John Jay last Dec. 12 before scoring 20 points against UNC Wilmington on Feb. 7.
MARATHON MAN, PART ONE
Jaquan Carlos, who played just 15 minutes off the bench but hit the game-winning shot against Princeton last Monday, not only made his first career start Friday but played all 40 minutes. Prior to Friday, Carlos had never played more than 21 minutes in any game and played as many as 40 combined minutes over just one two-game span. He played 20 minutes against Monmouth last Dec. 22 and 21 minutes against William & Mary on Dec. 29.
MARATHON MAN, PART TWO
Nelson Boachie-Yiadom, manning the five with Warren Williams sidelined, played a career-high 36 minutes Friday. He played just 10 minutes against Princeton and entered Friday having played more than 25 minutes just once in his first 95 games with Davidson and Hofstra. Boachie-Yiadom played 27 minutes against La Salle on Feb. 25, 2020.
THE FIVE DISHING OUT DIMES
Nelson Boachie-Yiadom, touted by Speedy Claxton as a distributor at the five, had four assists Friday night, one shy of the career-high he set for Davidson against St. Bonaventure on Feb. 14, 2020. He is the first five to collect at least four assists in a single game for the Dutchmen since Jacquil Taylor had four assists in a 104-99 overtime loss to James Madison on Feb. 23, 2019.
EVERYTHING ESTRADA
Aaron Estrada had just 10 points Friday night, his fewest since he was held to nine points in an 81-55 loss to Elon on Feb, 24 and the sixth-fewest points he’s had in 32 games with Hofstra. But he still added six assists and six rebounds, which made Friday the seventh time he’s had at least 10 points, six assists and six rebounds in a game for the Dutchmen. Only Juan’ya Green (11) has more such games since the start of the 2010-11 season, the first season of the Play Index Era at College Basketball Reference.
HONORS FOR AMAR’E
Redshirt freshman Amar’e Marshall was named the CAA’s rookie of the week for the week ending Sunday. Marshall, who scored 15 points off the bench against Princeton last Monday, is the first Hofstra freshman to win the rookie of the week award since Kvonn Cramer earned his second and final honor for the week ending Feb. 1, 2021.
NUMBER TEN THROUGH THIRTY-FOUR
With Friday night’s win, Speedy Claxton improved to 23-11 (.676) as head coach. That’s tied for the third-best winning percentage for a Hofstra coach through his first 34 games at the helm.
Paul Lynner 26-8 (.765, 34th game was the fourth game of his second season in 1963-64)
Butch van Breda Kolff I 26-8 (.765, 34th game was the eighth game of his second season in 1956-57)
Frank Reilly 23-11 (.676, 34th game was the 15th game of his second season in 1948-49)
SPEEDY CLAXTON 23-11 (.676, 34th game was the second game of his second season in 2022-23)
Mo Cassara 22-12 (.647, 34th game was the first game of his second season in 2011-12)
Jack McDonald I 18-16 (.529, 34th game was the third game of his third season in 1938-39)
Dick Berg 16-18 (.471, 34th game was the seventh game of his second season in 1981-82)
Butch van Breda Kolff II 15-19 (.441, 34th game was the fifth game of his second season in 1989-90)
Jack Smith 13-21 (.382, 34th game was the 15th game of his second season in 1944-45)
Tom Pecora 12-22 (.353, 34th game was the second game of his second season in 2002-03)
Jay Wright 12-22 (.353, 34th game was the sixth game of his second season in 1995-96)
Joe Mihalich 11-23 (.324, 34th game was the first game of his second season in 2013-14)
Roger Gaeckler 9-25 (.265, 34th game was the 10th game of his second season in 1973-74)
Three coaches had one-season tenures lasting fewer than 33 games at Hofstra. Jack McDonald went 18-6 in the lone season of his second stint in 1946-47 while Joe Harrington went 14-14 in 1979-80 and Mike Farrelly went 13-10 in 2020-21.
ONCE, TWICE, THREE TIMES A VICTORY?
The Dutchmen are looking to improve to 3-0 for the first time since the 2017-18 season and the 19th time in program history.
OVER THE AIR
Tonight’s game is slated to be carried live on FloHoops.com (subscription required). Hofstra will provide a radio feed as well as live stats at the Pride Productions hub.
GEORGE WASHINGTON AND THE ATLANTIC 10 CONFERENCE
George Washington, under first-year head coach Chris Caputo (whom you may remember from being one of the assistants to SAAAAAYTAN at George Mason), is 2-0 this season after beating Howard 85-75 on Friday night. Caputo is the fourth coach at George Washington since the Colonials beat the Dutchmen in the first round of the NIT in 2016 (more on that shortly).
George Washington was picked to finish 12th in the 15-team Atlantic 10 (math is hard). Senior guard James Bishop IV, who was named to the preseason all-Atlantic 10 second team, leads the Colonials with 16.0 points per game. Maximus Edwards (15.0 ppg), Brendan Adams (14.5 ppg), Ricky Lindo Jr. (11.5 ppg) and Hunter Dean (11.5 ppg) are also averaging in double figures in the early going while Lindo is averaging 9.5 rebounds per game.
The Dutchmen and Colonials have one common opponent this season. Remember George Mason? Hofstra visits the Patriots on Nov. 30 while George Washington will play Mason twice in conference play.
George Washington leads the all-time series, 3-1. The Dutchmen earned their lone win in the first game between the schools during the 1982-83 season, when Hofstra beat the Colonials 82-67 in the Juice Bowl at Florida Southern.
The last two meetings have been memorable for less-than-memorable reasons for the Dutchmen. An 80-56 loss on Nov. 24, 2012 was the final game for the Dutchmen before four players were arrested and the bottom fell out of the season. And the Juan’ya Green era ended Mar. 16, 2016, when George Washington beat Hofstra, 80-78, at the buzzer of a first-round NIT game. The Colonials went on to win the championship, but Mike Lonergan was fired months later following an investigation into his conduct and the two men to stroll the sidelines — Maurice Joseph and Jamion Christian — lasted just three seasons apiece. Good luck, Chris!
This marks the 10th straight season in which Hofstra has faced at least one A-10 school. Hofstra is 38-107 all-time against current Atlantic 10 schools, a membership that includes former conference foes George Mason as well as La Salle (ECC) and VCU (CAA).
At KenPom.com this afternoon, Hofstra is ranked 130th while George Washington is ranked 212th. KenPom.com predicts a 79-70 win for the Dutchmen. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 8-point favorites. The Dutchmen are 2-0 against the spread this season.
THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY
Chris Caputo never should have made the Final Four bias! (Caputo was on Jim Larranaga’s staff in 2006, I’d like to say I’m not holding it against him)
Mike Jarvis bias! (The erstwhile St. John’s/Boston University/Florida Atlantic head coach guided George Washington to the Sweet 16 in 1993)
Ralph Wiggum played you bias! (Because he loves Lisa)
First President bias! (Guess we had to schedule someone from America’s early era with James Madison gone)
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