I'll Be Quirky: Duquesne

This guy doesn't have any college eligibility left, right?

Well, that was almost an awesome way to begin the Speedy Claxton era. The Flying Dutchmen, playing without Jalen Ray (ankle), didn’t trail for the final 37-plus minutes of regulation against no. 15 Houston and led by 13 points with fewer than 10 minutes left Tuesday night before the Cougars showed off the championship mettle of a team that made the Final Four last season by storming back to earn an 83-75 overtime victory. Rats. The Dutchmen will look to earn their first win with Claxton strolling the sidelines tonight, when they’re scheduled to visit Duquesne. Here’s a look back at the loss to Houston and a look ahead to *double checks, that’s really their nickname, why mess with direct and to the point* Dukes.

THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH

The Dutchmen appeared primed to pull off the biggest win in program history when Darlinstone Dubar hit a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 62-49 with 8:30 left, but everyone other than Zach Cooks went ice cold as Houston finished the game on a 34-13 run. Cooks, who produced the biggest debut by a Hofstra player in almost exactly 30 years, scored nine of his 26 points in the final 3:49 of regulation and overtime, a stretch in which everyone else went a combined 1-for-9 with two turnovers. Jamal Shead’s steal of a Caleb Burgess in-bounds pass set up the 3-pointer by Taze Moore that tied the game at 69-69 with 24 seconds left before Aaron Estrada missed a contested 3-pointer just before the buzzer. Marcus (not Mickey) Sasser scored to open overtime for Houston and the Dutchmen never led again. Estrada had 15 points on 6-of-17 shooting — including 2-of-9 from 3-point land — and seven rebounds while Omar Silverio had 13 points but went 5-of-20 from the field, including 3-of-15 from beyond the arc. Dubar had nine points and seven rebounds while Abayomi Iyiola scored six points and pulled down 11 rebounds. Fellow big Jarrod Simmons exited with an injury after playing just five minutes.

3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. Houston 11/9)

3: Zach Cooks

2: Aaron Estrada

1: Darlinstone Dubar

SEASON STANDINGS (duh)

Zach Cooks 3

Aaron Estrada 2

Darlinstone Dubar 1

COACHSPEAK: “We played a Final Four team, a previous Final Four team, down to the wire and without arguably our best player. So I would say the future is bright for this team, man. Once we get J-Ray back and we start building that chemistry with him in the lineup, then we’ll be a really good team.”--Speedy Claxton

THE FLYING DUTCHMEN AFTER ONE GAME

As you may have gathered by now, the Dutchmen are 0-1. This ties the 2021-22 team for the 49th-best record through one game. Thirty-seven other teams began 0-1, most recently last year’s squad. Here is how some notable Hofstra teams have fared through one game.

NCAA TOURNAMENT TEAMS

1975-76: 1-0

1976-77: 1-0

1999-2000: 0-1

2000-01: 0-1

2019-20 (IT COUNTS TO US): 0-1

NIT TEAMS

2005-06: 1-0

2006-07: 0-1

2015-16: 1-0

2018-19: 1-0

NCAA DIVISION II TOURNAMENT TEAMS

1958-59: 0-1

1961-62: 1-0

1962-63: 1-0

1963-64: 1-0

Some other notable, uhh, one-game starts:

2020-21: Mike Farrelly loses his debut

2013-14: Joe Mihalich loses his debut

2010-11: Mo Cassara wins his debut

2001-02: Tom Pecora wins his debut

1994-95: Jay Wright loses his debut, retires in shame

1988-89: Butch van Breda Kolff wins his re-debut

1980-81: Dick Berg wins his debut

1979-80: Joe Harrington loses his debut

1972-73: Roger Gaeckler loses his debut

1962-63: Paul Lynner wins his debut

1955-56: Butch van Breda Kolff wins his debut

1947-48: Frank Reilly wins his debut

1946-47: Jack McDonald wins his re-debut

1943-44: Jack Smith loses his debut

1936-37: Jack McDonald loses his debut in Hofstra’s first 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.

GETTING TO THE WORKING OVERTIME PART

The Flying Dutchmen went to overtime in a season debut for the first time ever Tuesday. History! Prior to this year, the earliest the Dutchmen played an overtime game was game no. 2, which they did in three straight years under Tom Pecora from 2006-08. With the loss Tuesday, the Dutchmen fell to 21-17 in overtime games in the CAA era (2001-present). The Dutchmen are the first CAA team to go to overtime in a season debut since UNC Wilmington fell to Campbell, 97-93, on Nov. 6, 2018.

FOR STARTERS

The Dutchmen have lost three straight seasons openers. It’s the longest opening night losing streak since the Dutchmen dropped four in a row from 2006 through 2009. The Dutchmen are now 48-38 all-time in season openers. 

THE FIRST TIME

With the loss in Speedy Claxton’s debut, Hofstra head coaches fell to 6-8 in their first game at Hofstra. This doesn’t count the second “debuts” for Jack McDonald and Butch van Breda Kolff, each of whom had two tenures as head coaches.

HAND OUT SOME NAME TAGS

Claxton’s first starting lineup featured four newcomers to the program, with a quartet of transfers — graduate student Zach Cooks (NJIT), senior Abayomi Iyiola (Arkansas), junior Aaron Estrada (Oregon) and sophomore Darlinstone Dubar (Iowa State) — joining junior holdover Caleb Burgess on the floor for the opening tip. It marked the most program newcomers in the starting lineup on opening night since 2014-15, when four transfers — juniors Juan’ya Green, Malik Nichols and Ameen Tanksley and sophomore Brian Bernardi — joined senior Moussa Kone in the lineup for the first game of Joe Mihalich’s second year against Jacksonville.

ZACH REALLY COOKS

Zach Cooks’ 26 points were the most by a Hofstra player in his debut since the late great Demetrius Dudley, who was also a transfer from a New Jersey school, scored 33 points for the Flying Dutchmen in an 85-62 victory over Navy on Nov. 23, 1991. Over the last 30 years, only three newcomers have scored at least 20 points in each of their first two games. Dudley scored 32 points against Lehigh on Nov. 27, 1991 while Lawrence Thomas scored 20 points against Villanova on Dec. 28, 1995 and 32 points against Army on Jan. 3, 1996. The only freshman to open his career with back-to-back 20-point efforts over the last 30 years is Eli Pemberton, who collected 20 points against Coppin State on Nov. 11, 2016 before scoring 23 points against Sacred Heart four days later.

COMPLETING THE TRANSFER

In addition to Cooks, fellow transfers Aaron Estrada, Darlinstone Dubar, Abayomi Iyiola and Jarrod Simmons all made their Hofstra debuts Tuesday. While Simmons exited due to injury after five minutes, the other four players combined to score 56 of the Dutchmen’s 75 points. Estrada (15 points, seven rebounds) Dubar (nine points, seven rebounds) and Iyiola (six points, 11 rebounds) all flirted with double-doubles. Here are some notable debuts by transfers since 1991: 

2020: Shawndarius Cowart: 2 pts/2 assists/2 steals vs. Rutgers**

2019: Isaac Kante: 8 pts/11 rebs vs. San Jose State

2018: Jacquil Taylor: 6 pts/10 rebs vs. Mount St. Mary’s

2018: Dan Dwyer: 3 pts/6 rebs/2 blks vs. Mount St. Mary’s

2018: Tareq Coburn: 2 pts/2 rebs vs. Mount St. Mary’s

2017: Joel Angus III: 13 pts/6 rebs vs. Army-West Point

2017: Kenny Wormley: 3 pts/2 rebs/4 assists vs. Kennesaw State

2016: Deron Powers: 12 pts/5 assists/4 rebs vs. Coppin State

2016: Hunter Sabety: 2 pts/5 rebs/1 blk vs. Coppin State

2015: Denton Koon: 14 pts/5 rebs/1 steal/1 blk vs. Canisius

2014: Juan’ya Green: 14 pts/9 assists/5 rebs vs. Jacksonville

2014: Ameen Tanksley: 16 pts/3 assists/2 assists/1 blk vs. Jacksonville

2014: Brian Bernardi: 22 pts/3 assists/2 rebs/1 steal vs. Jacksonville (6-8 3PT)

2014: Malik Nichols: 15 pts/3 assists/2 rbs/1 blk vs. Jacksonville**

2013: Zeke Upshaw: 22 pts/3 assists/3 rebs vs. Monmouth (2-8 3PT)

2013: Dion Nesmith: 10 pts/5 assists/2 rebs vs. Monmouth

2012: Taran Buie: 14 pts/2 assists/2 rbs vs. South Dakota State

2012: [name redacted]: 12 pts vs. Monmouth

2012: Daquan Brown: 2 pts/1 assist vs. Tulane

2011: Stevie Mejia: 7 pts/1 rb/4 assists/1 steal vs. Long Island

2011: Bryant Crowder: 13 pts/6 rbs/1 steal vs. Rhode Island**

2010: Mike Moore: 13 pts/4 rbs/4 assists vs. Farmingdale State

2010: Dwan McMillan: 15 pts/2 rbs/6 assists/1 steal vs. Farmingdale State**

2010: Brad Kelleher: 2 pts vs. Florida Atlantic**

2008: Tony Dennison: 5 pts/4 rbs/1 assist vs. Clemson**

2008: Cornelius Vines: 12 pts/3 rbs/3 steals vs. Clemson**

2008: Miklos Szabo: 4 pts/11 rbs/2 assists/1 steal vs. E. Tennessee State**

2007: Darren Townes: 5 pts/5 rbs/1 steal/1 blocked shot vs. Holy Cross**

2007: Dane Johnson: 3 pts/1 rb/3 blocked shots vs. Holy Cross**

2004: Kenny Harris: 3 pts/1 rb/1 assist/2 steals vs. Florida International**

2004: Adrian Uter: 0 pts/2 rbs/1 block vs. Florida International**

2000: Osei Miller: 2 pts/2 rbs vs. Northern Illinois

1999: Greg Springfield: 7 pts/5 rbs/10 blocked shots vs. New Mexico State***

1998: Jason Hernandez: 7 pts/ 2 rbs/1 assist/2 steals vs. Maryland

1998: Abdul Sylla 0 pts/3 rbs vs. Youngstown State

1997: Mike Renfro 6 pts/3 rbs/1 assist/1 steal vs. Bucknell**

1996: Lance Dunkley 2 pts/3 rbs/1 assist vs. Stony Brook**

1996: Duane Posey 8 pts/4 rbs/1 assist/2 blks vs. Stony Brook

1995: Seth Meyers 14 pts/5 rbs vs. Stony Brook

1995: Lawrence Thomas 20 pts/4 rbs/2 assists vs. Villanova

1994: Jamil Greene 1 pt/2 rbs/1 assist vs. New Hampshire**

1993: Chris Johnke 0 pts/5 rbs vs. Iona**

1991: Demetrius Dudley 33 pts/7 rbs vs. Navy

**--junior college transfer

***--10 blocked shots are a school record

THE FRESHMAN FOUR

None of the four freshmen on the Dutchmen’s roster — Griffin Barrouk, Jaquan Carlos, Amar’e Marshall and Christian Tomasco — played Tuesday night. It marked the first time since the 2008-09 opener, when the Dutchmen had no freshmen, that no true rookies saw the court in the season’s first game. Here are some notable debuts by Hofstra freshman since 1991:

2020: Kvonn Cramer: 8 pts/4 rebs/3 steals vs. Rutgers

2020: David Green: 0 pts/1 reb vs. Rutgers

2020: Vukasin Masic: 0 pts/1 reb vs. Rutgers

2019: Caleb Burgess: 0 pts vs. San Jose State

2019: Jermaine Miranda: 0 pts/2 rebs vs. San Jose State

2018: Kevin Schutte: 0 pts vs. Mount St. Mary’s

2017: Jalen Ray: 10 pts/2 assists vs. Army-West Point

2017: Matija Radovic: 5 pts/5 rebs vs. Army-West Point

2017: Stafford Trueheart: 0 pts/1 reb vs. Kennesaw State

2016: Eli Pemberton: 20 pts/4 rebs/1 steal vs. Coppin State

2015: Justin Wright-Foreman: 0 pts/1 reb vs. Canisius

2015: Desure Buie: 2 pts/2 assists/1 steal vs. Canisius

2014: Rokas Gustys: 4 pts/10 rebs vs. Jacksonville

2014: Andre Walker: 4 pts/11 rebs/6 blks vs. Jacksonville

2013: Chris Jenkins: 17 pts/2 rebs/1 blk/1 steal vs. Monmouth

2013: Jamall Robinson: 8 pts/4 rebs/2 assists vs. Monmouth

2012: Jordan Allen: 2 pts/1 reb vs. Monmouth

2011: Moussa Kone: 6 pts/2 rebs/1 steal vs. Long Island U.

2010: Shemiye McLendon: 16 pts/4 rbs/2 assists vs. Farmingdale State

2010: Stephen Nwaukoni: 8 rebs vs. Farmingdale State

2010: Roland Brown: 4 pts/5 rebs/1 steal/1 blk  vs. Farmingdale State

2009: Chaz Williams: 7 pts/6 assists/5 rebs/37 mins vs. Kansas

2009: Halil Kanacevic: 12 pts/12 rebs/3 blks 31 mins vs. Kansas

2007: Charles Jenkins: 5 pts/9 rebs/1 assist/1 steal vs. Holy Cross

2007: Nathaniel Lester: 2 rebs vs. Holy Cross

2007: Greg Washington: 2 rebs/2 blks/1 assist/1 steal vs. Holy Cross

2005: Arminas Urbutis: 6 pts vs. Florida International

2005: Greg Johnson: 12 pts vs. Florida International

2004: Antoine Agudio: 20 pts vs. Florida International 

2003: Loren Stokes: 2 pts vs. Marist

2003: Carlos Rivera: 10 pts vs. Marist

2001: Kenny Adeleke: 10 pts vs. Florida Atlantic

2000: Joel Suarez: 22 pts vs. Northern Illinois

1999: Rick Apodaca: 5 pts/2 assists vs. New Mexico State

1999: Danny Walker: 0 pts vs. New Mexico State

1998: No freshmen

1997: Roberto Gittens: 15 pts/6 rebs vs. Bucknell

1997: Norman Richardson: 2 pts/3 rebs vs. Bucknell

1996: Speedy Claxton: 13 pts/9 rebs vs. Stony Brook

1996: Joe Brown: 4 pts/3 rebs vs. Stony Brook

1995: Tim Beckett: 6 pts/7 rebs vs. Stony Brook

1995: Anthony Davis: 7 pts/2 assists vs. Stony Brook

1995: Ahmad Jackson: 2 pts/4 rebounds vs. Stony Brook

1993: James Parisi: 23 pts/7 rebs vs. Lehigh

STINGY WITH THE FREE THROWS

The Dutchmen were 5-for-5 from the free throw line Tuesday (something something Houston bias). Remarkably, that’s only tied for the second-fewest free throw attempts by the Dutchmen in a game since 2010-11, the first season of the Play Index era at CollegeBasketballReference.com. The Dutchmen were 2-of-3 from the line in the 61-43 win over Drexel in the CAA quarterfinals on Mar. 8, 2020 and were 2-of-5 from the line in a 76-72 loss to Charleston on Feb. 16, 2017.

THREE FOR ALL

On the other hand, the Dutchmen took plenty of 3-point attempts — a school-record 43, as a matter of fact. The Dutchmen finished 12-of-43 from beyond the arc. The previous single-game high for 3-point attempts was set Feb. 21, 2019, when the Dutchmen were 14-of-40 from 3-point land in a 91-82 double-overtime win over Towson. The Dutchmen have never hoisted 40 3-point attempts in a game that ended in regulation. 

SHOOTING SILVERIO

Omar Silverio took the lion’s share (Get it? Lion’s share? Pride? Tip your waiter) of 3-pointers Tuesday, when he was 3-for-15 from 3-point land. That was the most attempts and fewest makes from beyond the arc by a Hofstra player in the Play Index era. Justin Wright-Foreman was 2-of-14 from 3-point land in a 93-90, triple-overtime win over William & Mary on Jan. 10, 2019.

DON’T FALL TWO UNDER .500!

The Dutchmen’s loss Tuesday imperils one of the neatest streaks we’ve discovered here at DD HQ. The Dutchmen haven’t been two games under .500 since ending the 2016-17 season at 15-17. Only 54 other Division I teams — including tonight’s opponent, Houston — have gone as long or longer without falling two games under .500, including 45 programs whose streak predates the 2016-17 finale and eight others who were last two games under .500 as of the end of their ’16-17 season.

Among true mid-majors (defined by me as schools outside the Power 6, AAC, A-10, West Coast and Mountain West), Hofstra’s streak is exceeded by just 11 schools and matched by two more. Two mid-majors are putting their streaks on the line over the next few days. Belmont is 0-1 heading into this afternoon’s game against Evansville and Buffalo is 0-1 going into Monday night’s game at North Texas.

(Once again, dear Dutchmen: Please win tonight so this stat remains current, thank you in advance)

SEEKING A SPLIT

The Dutchmen lost their season opener for the 10th time this century. They won the second game to get back to .500 six times, most recently last season, when the Dutchmen beat Fairleigh Dickinson, 73-58.

OVER THE AIR

Tonight’s game will be carried on ESPN+, which you have if you have the Disney Bundle, which you have if you have a child under the age of 18 because every single one of those homes has to have Disney+. Hofstra will provide a radio feed as well as live stats at the Pride Productions hub.

DUQUESNE AND THE ATLANTIC 10 CONFERENCE

Duquesne, under fifth-year head coach Keith Dambrot, is 1-0 this season after beating Rider, 73-61, on Tuesday night. In what is like looking into a mirror, four newcomers scored in double figures for the Dukes, led by redshirt sophomore Kevin Easley, who had 16 points in his Duquesne debut after playing previously for Chattanooga and Texas Christian. Transfers Tre Williams (Indiana State) and Leon Ayers III (Mercer) had 14 points and 12 points, respectively, while freshman Primo Spears scored 14 points.

Duquesne was picked to finish 11th in the Atlantic 10 after going 9-9 last season and falling to eventual champion St. Bonaventure in the second round of the A-10 tournament. The Dukes, who haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 1977, appeared to have an outside shot at ending that drought in 2020 before the pandemic forced the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament. Duquesne finished the season 21-9 and tied for fourth in the A-10 at 11-7.

The Dutchmen and Dukes have two common opponents. Duquesne is scheduled to play the CAA’s Northeastern on Nov. 19 while Hofstra is slated to visit the A-10’s Richmond on Nov. 22.

Hofstra won the lone previous meeting against Duquesne in men’s basketball way back on Dec. 10, 1976, when the Flying Dutchmen — who really were the Flying Dutchmen back then! — earned a 76-70 victory over the NCAA Tournament-bound Dukes.

This marks just the third all-time meeting between Hofstra and Duquesne in any sport. The Flying Dutchwomen volleyball team recorded a 3-1 win over Duquesne on Aug. 28, 2015. That means Hofstra is unbeaten all-time against Duquesne!

This marks the ninth straight season in which Hofstra has faced at least one A-10 school. Hofstra is 37-106 all-time against current Atlantic 10 schools, a membership that includes former Dutchmen conference foes George Mason (CAA), La Salle (ECC) and VCU (CAA). In their most recent game against an A-10 foe, the Dutchmen upset no. 23 Richmond, 76-71, last Dec. 22.

At KenPom.com this afternoon, Hofstra is ranked 159th while Duquesne is ranked 178th. KenPom.com predicts a 71-69 loss for the Dutchmen. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 2.5-point underdogs. The Dutchmen are 1-0 against the spread this season after shutting up the doubters Tuesday night. 

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

LeBron James’ high school coach bias! (Dambrot coached St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron to back-to-back state tiles during James’ junior and senior years)

Ron Everhart took everything but the basketballs with him to Duquesne bias! (Everhart didn’t exactly leave Northeastern for Duquesne on the finest of terms) 

At least you still play I-AA football bias! (And hey, maybe we will too someday…hi President Poser!)

Joe Beimel bias! (Beimel, who attempted a comeback this year at 44, played at Duquesne before the Dukes dropped their baseball program and is the only big leaguer to ever wear no. 97)

I'll Be Quirky: Houston

 

The ultimate if you know, you know moment.

Good afternoon to you and good afternoon to college basketball’s 2020-21 season! It’s not quite the normalcy we all vaguely recall, but let’s hope the season looks somewhat familiar and is played sans the interruptions of the unprecedented and let’s-never-do-that-again 2020-21 campaign.

And while we’re at it, let’s hope the Flying Dutchmen can win that second CAA championship and make that first NCAA Tournament appearance in 21 years. Whatever happens this season, it’s going to be wildly interesting as the Dutchmen retool on the fly under head coach Speedy Claxton a quarter-century after he arrived on campus as the program-defining recruit. Pretty bonkers, huh?

And the hope here is to put my obsessive knowledge about Hofstra hoops (we all have gifts, some are just more easily monetized than others) while presenting whatever happens — the wins, the losses, the stats and the trends — in a fun and engaging way. As always, I want to acknowledge Islanders statistician Eric Hornick, whose blog “The Skinny” was the inspiration to start this in 2016. Thanks again to him as well as to you for reading. What are we waiting for? Those PHI SLAMA JAMA BIAS rants aren’t going to write themselves!

WE DON’T KNOW WHERE WE’RE GOING BUT WE SURE KNOW WHERE WE’VE BEEN

This season marks the 86th season in which the Flying Dutchmen have played basketball. The program is 1,294-975 all-time. No one has played in each of the previous 85 seasons, not even Desure Buie. 

Under interim head coach Mike Farrelly, the Flying Dutchmen went 13-10 last season and 8-6 in regular season CAA play to earn the fourth seed in the conference tournament. After beating Delaware in the quarterfinals, the pursuit of a second straight CAA title ended with a 76-58 loss to Elon.

The 23 games played were the fewest played by the Flying Dutchmen since the 1957-58 team also played 23 games. Only 11 other teams — all prior to 1950 — played fewer than 23 games. And yet the 23 games and 14 conference tilts were easily the most of any CAA team. The Dutchmen did not have a league-related coronavirus cancellation until the final two weekends of the regular season were cancelled due to a positive test within the program.

Senior Jalen Ray earned first-team All-CAA honors after ranking second in the league in scoring at 19.3 points per game. Junior Isaac Kante was named to the all-CAA second team after finishing second in the CAA in rebounding (10.1 rebounds per game). Senior Tareq Coburn was named to the all-CAA third team after ranking 10th in scoring (15.1 points per game). Freshman Kvonn Cramer finished sixth in the CAA in rebounding (6.7 rebounds per game) and made the all-rookie team. Sophomore Caleb Burgess led the CAA with 5.6 assists per game.

FINAL 3 STARS OF THE GAME STANDINGS

Jalen Ray 45

Isaac Kante 32

Tareq Coburn 24

Caleb Burgess 20

Kvonn Cramer 13

Omar Silverio 3

Kevin Schutte 1

A FOND FAREWELL

The Dutchmen bid goodbye to eight members of last year’s team. Coburn graduated and will play his free fifth year at St. John’s, where he is enrolled in the school’s physician assistant master’s program. Kante, who was an academic senior, also graduated and will play his fifth year at Long Island University. Kevin Schutte, also an academic senior, graduated and transferred to Incarnate Word. Freshmen David Green (Louisiana Tech) and Vukasin Masic (Maine) transferred while Stafford Trueheart, a graduate senior last season, and walk-ons Cole Eiber and Carl Gibson Jr. also exited.

Coburn played in 90 games over three seasons following his transfer from St. Bonaventure and finished with 971 points — the closest a Hofstra player has come to 1,000 points without reaching the mark since Jason Hernandez collected 986 points from 1998-2001. Coburn was also the player who dribbled out the final seconds in the 2020 CAA title game victory. Memories. Kante played two seasons following his transfer from Georgia and collected 682 points and 494 rebounds.

Schutte played in 64 games as a backup center and had 95 points with 149 rebounds. Trueheart played in 92 games (22 starts) and collected 256 points, 217 rebounds and 49 blocks over four years. Green averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 18 games (eight starts) while Masic averaged 2.7 points per game in 20 games (three starts). Neither Eiber nor Gibson Jr. played a second last season. Gibson played six minutes over four games as a freshman in 2019-20.

WELCOME BACK

The Flying Dutchmen return three starters in graduate senior Jalen Ray, junior Caleb Burgess and sophomore Kvonn Cramer. In addition, reserves Omar Silverio and Zion Bethea are back. The returnees combined to score 903 points, which represented 53.7 percent of the Dutchmen’s total last year, and played 2,474 minutes, which represented 53.5 percent of the Dutchmen’s total playing time.

RAY OF LIGHT

Jalen Ray returns for a fifth season with an eye on at least two notable Hofstra milestones. As long as he remains healthy, Ray should break former teammate Desure Buie’s record for most games played at Hofstra (141). Ray has played 123 games, the eighth-most in school history.

Ray also enters this season with 1,334 points, the 17th-most in school history. With the Dutchmen slated to play at least 32 games (let’s hope), Ray would need to average just shy of 20.9 points per game to become the ninth Hofstra player to reach 2,000 points…and 21.3 points per game to exceed Speedy Claxton’s total of 2,015 points. In the shorter term, Ray is 11 points away from surpassing Barry White for 16th place.

16.) Barry White 1,344 (1966-69)

17.) JALEN RAY 1,334 (2017-present)

18.) Dave Bell 1,330 (1969-72)

19.) Kenny Adeleke 1,296 (2001-04)

20.) Mike Tilley 1,286 (1963-66)

CRAMER CAN DO

Kvonn Cramer scored 205 points as a freshman last season, the 10th-most by a Hofstra freshman in the CAA era (2001-present). He finished with four double-doubles, the most by a freshman since Halil Kanacevic had six in 2009-10.

CALEB AT THE FIVE AND DIME

Caleb Burgess, who played just 145 minutes over 23 games as a freshman, started all 23 games last season and led the CAA in assists while finishing with at least 10 points and five assists eight times. He twice flirted with recording just the second triple-double in school history, first by finishing with nine points, seven assists and seven rebounds against William & Mary on Jan. 2 and then by collecting 11 points, eight assists and nine rebounds in the CAA quarterfinals against Delaware on Mar. 7.

MY NAME IS…

The Dutchmen welcome a whopping nine new players in the first season in which first-time transfers are allowed to play immediately for their new school. Zach Cooks (NJIT) and Jarrod Simmons (Pennsylvania) will each play their graduate seasons at Hofstra. Three other transfers — senior Abayomi Iyiola (Arkansas), junior Aaron Estrada (Oregon) and sophomore Darlinstone Dubar (Iowa State) — all have multiple years of eligibility remaining.

Four freshmen — guards Griffin Barrouk, Jaquan Carlos and Amar’e Marshall as well as forward Christian Tomasco — also join the program. Hmm. Tomasco, you say?

THANKS MIKE

We would be remiss if we didn’t acknowledge the job Mike Farrelly did in almost impossible circumstances last season, when he was named interim head coach in August when Joe Mihalich went on medical leave and steered the Dutchmen through a pandemic-wracked campaign. Best of luck to Farrelly, who was named an assistant at Penn State on Apr. 12.

THANKS JOE

And we would be particularly remiss if we didn’t acknowledge the Hofstra Hall of Fame-bound tenure of Joe Mihalich, who retired Mar. 19 and became a special advisor to athletic director Rick Cole Jr.

Mihalich overtook a program in turmoil following the 2012-13 season and did what he said he’d do — rebuild it, brick by brick, into a consistent winner of whom Hofstra could be proud. The Dutchmen went 141-92 in Mihalich’s eight seasons, during which they won three CAA regular season titles and made two trips to the NIT before finally winning the CAA championship and bid to the NCAA Tournament on Mar. 10, 2020, two days before, well, you know.

Mihalich recruited eight 1,000-point scorers — more than 20 percent of the 39 players to surpass 1,000 points in school history. Justin Wright-Foreman was drafted by the Utah Jazz in 2019 while three more alums — Desure Buie, Eli Pemberton and the late great Zeke Upshaw — played in the G-League.

SPEEDY COMES HOME

Of course, the biggest “newcomer” this season is the most familiar face of all. Speedy Claxton, who spent the last eight seasons as an assistant to Mihalich and Farrelly, became the first Hofstra alum to coach his alma mater when he was named head coach Apr. 7.

Claxton’s first season as head coach begins 25 years after he arrived as the star freshman recruit for a third-year coach named Jay Wright. After four sensational seasons at Hofstra in which Claxton racked up 2,015 points and a school-record 660 assists while leading the Flying Dutchmen (who really WERE the Flying Dutchmen back then!) to the school’s first NCAA Tournament appearance in 23 years in 2000, Claxton was drafted in the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2000 and embarked upon a 10-year NBA career. 

Claxton is already joining some select company as a head coach. He is one of just seven Division I head coaches who played in the NBA before serving as a head coach at his alma mater:

SPEEDY CLAXTON, Hofstra

Hubert Davis, North Carolina

Patrick Ewing, Georgetown

Penny Hardaway, Memphis

Aaron McKie, Temple

Juwan Howard, Michigan

Mike Woodson, Indiana

Claxton is also one of 25 Division I coaches to play in the NBA or the ABA prior to the NBA-ABA merger:

SPEEDY CLAXTON, Hofstra

Steve Alford, Nevada

Hubert Davis, North Carolina

Johnny Dawkins, Central Florida 

Juan Dixon, Coppin State

Bryce Drew, Grand Canyon

Kim English, George Mason

Patrick Ewing, Georgetown

Penny Hardaway, Memphis

Aaron McKie, Temple

Steve Henson, Texas-San Antonio

Fred Hoiberg, Nebraska

Juwan Howard, Michigan

Lindsey Hunter, Mississippi Valley State

Bobby Hurley, Arizona State

Mark Madsen, Utah Valley State

Cuonzo Martin, Missouri

Fran O’Hanlon, Lafayette (ABA)

Lorenzo Romar, Pepperdine

Jerry Stackhouse, Vanderbilt

Damon Stoudamire, Pacific

Reggie Theus, Bethune-Cookman

Darrell Walker, Little Rock

Mo Williams, Alabama State

Mike Woodson, Indiana

Overall, there are 45 Division I head coaches directing their alma maters:

SPEEDY CLAXTON, Hofstra

Casey Alexander, Belmont

Chris Beard, Texas

Rodney Billups, Denver

Jeff Boals, Ohio

Jim Boeheim, Syracuse

Alvin Brooks, Lamar

Matt Crenshaw, IUPUI

Dan D’Antoni II, Marshall

Hubert Davis, North Carolina

Travis DeCurie, Montana

Jamie Dixon, Texas Christian

Patrick Ewing, Georgetown

Quinton Ferrell, Presbyterian

Joe Gallo, Merrimack

Anthony Grant, Dayton

Penny Hardaway, Memphis

Stan Heath, Eastern Michigan

Mitch Henderson, Princeton

Juwan Howard, Michigan

Michael Huger, Bowling Green

Bob Huggins, West Virginia

Ben Johnson, Minnesota

LaVall Jordan, Butler

Brian Katz, Sacramento State

Andy Kennedy, Alabama-Birmingham

Rob Krimmel, Saint Francis (PA)

Kevin Kruger, UNLV

Jay Ladner, Southern Mississippi

Todd Lee, South Dakota

Carmen Maciariello, Siena

Mike Martin, Brown

Aaron McKie, Temple

LeVelle Moton, North Carolina Central

Dan Muller, Illinois State

Bryan Mullins, Southern Illinois

Matt Painter, Purdue

Keith Richard, Louisiana-Monroe

David Richman, North Dakota State

Sam Scholl, San Diego

Patrick Sellers, Central Connecticut

Tubby Smith, High Point

Danny Sprinkle, Montana State

Mike Woodson, Indiana

IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME (since the Dutchmen were two under .500)

The Dutchmen extended an impressive streak last season, when they never fell more than one game under .500. The Dutchmen have not been two or more games under .500 since finishing the 2016-17 season at 15-17. Only 54 other Division I teams — including tonight’s opponent, Houston — have gone as long or longer without falling two games under .500, including 45 programs whose streak predates the 2016-17 finale and eight others who were last two games under .500 as of the end of their ’16-17 season.

Among true mid-majors (defined by me as schools outside the Power 6, AAC, A-10, West Coast and Mountain West), Hofstra’s streak is exceeded by just 11 schools and matched by two more. Here’s the full list and the date the programs were most recently two games under .500:

Louisiana Tech: 2/16/12

New Mexico State: 1/3/15

UAB: 1/17/15

Furman: end of ’14-15

Vermont: 12/8/15

Loyola Chicago: end of ’15-16

Georgia Southern: 11/22/16

Belmont: 11/25/16

Liberty: 1/3/17

Buffalo: 1/31/17

South Dakota State: 2/18/17

HOFSTRA: end of ’16-17

Hawaii: end of ’16-17

Western Kentucky: end of ’16-17

HOW MANY UNICORN SCORES WERE THERE LAST SEASON?

Would you believe none? That's what happens when all your wins are by 15 points or fewer (and none of the losses were by more than 18 points). The Dutchmen have recorded 23 unicorn scores since we first started tracking them in 2018-19 — 10 in ’18-19 and then 13 in 2019-20. 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. 

THE FIFTH ELEMENT

The Dutchmen’s streak of being predicted to finish first in the CAA ended at two seasons when they were picked fifth in the CAA’s preseason poll of league coaches, sports information directors and media members.

1.) Delaware (19 1sts)

2.) Northeastern (7)

3.) Drexel (5)

4.) James Madison (3)

5.) HOFSTRA (1)

6.) Elon (1)

7.) Charleston

8.) Towson

9.) UNC Wilmington

10.) William & Mary

I wasn't the one to pick Hofstra first, I swear.

This is the fourth time the Dutchmen have been picked to finish fifth in the CAA. The 2001-02 team finished 10th, the 2007-08 team finished eighth and the 2010-11 squad finished third. 

SEASON OPENERS

Hofstra is 49-36 all-time in season openers. The Flying Dutchmen dropped their season opener for the second straight time last Nov. 29, when they fell to Rutgers 70-56. The Dutchmen haven’t lost three straight openers since a four-game skid from 2006 through 2009. 

Most lopsided season-opening win: 95-53 over Puerto Rico, 1949-50

Most lopsided season-opening win over DI foe: 94-61 over Jacksonville, 2014-15

Most lopsided season-opening loss: 96-57 to St. Joseph’s 1965-66, 60-21 to NYU, 1936-37

THE FIRST TIME

Hofstra head coaches are 7-6 in their debuts. (The Flying Dutchmen have had 15 head coaches, but Jack McDonald and Butch van Breda Kolff each had two tenures at the helm)

FINAL FOUR FOE

Houston reached the Final Four last season, where the Cougars lost in the semis to eventual national champion Baylor, 78-59. This marks the seventh time Hofstra has faced a team that made the Final Four the previous season — yet only the fourth time the Dutchmen have done so in non-conference play.

1/10/83: North Carolina State*** L 82-56

2/10/07: George Mason W 68-60

11/17/09: Connecticut L 76-67

2/2/12: VCU L 80-63

2/23/12: VCU L 61-49

11/12/13: Louisville*** L 97-69

***defending national champions

HOFSTRA VS. TOP 25 TEAMS

Houston is ranked no. 15 in the preseason AP poll. This will be the 21st time Hofstra faces a top 25 team in the DD Era (1993-present). The Dutchmen are 2-18 in the previous 18 games but have a one-game winning streak over top 25 opponents following a 76-71 win over no. 23 Richmond last Dec. 22. The other win, of course, was the NCAA Tournament-sealing 77-68 victory over no. 25 George Mason on Feb. 23, 2006. That’s what happened, right?

12/22/20: no. 23 Richmond 76-71 W

11/29/20: no. 24 Rutgers 70-56 L

12/22/17: no. 1 Villanova 95-71 L

12/11/16: no. 6 Kentucky 96-73 L

11/12/13: no. 3 Louisville 97-69 L 

11/18/10: no. 8 North Carolina 107-63 L

11/13/09 no. 1 Kansas 101-65 L

11/17/09 no. 12 UConn 76-67 L

12/22/06 no. 23 Syracuse 85-60 L

2/23/06 no. 25 George Mason 77-68 W

12/30/04 no. 7 Syracuse 80-75 L

11/22/02 no. 21 Gonzaga 69-61 L

12/4/01 no. 9 Syracuse 91-65 L

3/15/01 no. 15 UCLA 61-48 L***

3/17/00 no. 14 Oklahoma State 86-66 L***

11/20/98 no. 6 Maryland 89-59 L

12/2/98 no. 25 St. John’s 70-49 L

11/27/97 no. 19 Louisville 75-66 L

12/14/96 no. 19 Xavier 79-43 L

12/28/95 no. 8 Villanova 91-57 L 

***NCAA Tournament

HOUSTON AND THE AMERICAN CONFERENCE

This marks the first meeting between Hofstra and Houston in men’s basketball and just the fifth all-time meeting between the schools in any sport. The Flying Dutchwomen basketball team fell to Houston, 54-44, at the Fordham Holiday Classic on Dec. 29, 2019 while the volleyball team is 0-3 against Houston with its most recent loss in the 1990 National Invitational Volleyball Championship.

Houston, which is in the home stretch as a member of the American Athletic Conference after accepting an invitation to join the Big 12 Conference as soon as the 2023-24 season, was picked to finish first in the American. Junior Marcus Sasser (not Mackey Sasser, he’s 59 years old) was named to the preseason all-conference team.

Sasser is the Cougars’ top returning scorer (13.7 points per game last season). Senior Fabian White Jr., who was limited to 13 games by a knee injury, is the top returning rebounder (4.1 rebounds per game). Houston added three transfers, including graduate senior guard Taze Moore, who was named to the all-Big West first team after posting 12.2 points per game at Cal-State Bakersfield last season.

At KenPom.com this morning, Hofstra is ranked 167th while Houston is ranked 11th. KenPom.com predicts an 81-62 win for the Cougars. So many haters, so little time. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 19-point underdogs. The Dutchmen went 10-13 against the spread last season. Don’t bet, kids. No matter what every sporting league is telling you these days.

The Flying Dutchmen are 7-19 all-time against schools currently in the American. The Dutchmen last played a team from the American on Nov. 25, 2014, when South Florida mounted a late comeback in a 71-70 win.

More importantly, the Dutchmen are 0-5 all-time against schools I associate with Houston’s classic old home, the Southwest Conference. I mention this because Hofstra is scheduled to play another classic Southwest Conference foe, Arkansas, on Dec. 18.

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

Phi Slama Jama bias! (If you of a certain age, you’re a college basketball fan because of Clyde Drexler, Hakeem Olajuwon & Co.)

Carl Lewis bias! (Lewis was a track and field star at Houston before collecting arm loads of Olympic gold medals)

Run and shoot bias! (Andre Ware and David Klinger put up monstrous numbers in Joe Gardi’s favorite football system)

Hello friends bias! (Jim Nantz graduated from Houston)

Defiantly Dutch Q&A: Speedy Claxton

Remember Speedy Claxton? He's back! In head coaching form!

Thirteen days shy of the 25th anniversary of his first game with the Flying Dutchmen, Speedy Claxton will officially begin authoring the next chapter in one of the most remarkable stories in the history of Hofstra athletics tonight, when the Dutchmen visit Houston in Claxton’s first game as head coach.

Claxton took a few minutes Sunday to discuss what the first few months as head coach have been like, including the transition from sympathetic assistant coach to demanding head coach as well as the mindset heading into tonight and whether or not he’ll have any superstitions. Thanks to Claxton for his time.

On if there’s anything he’s experienced over the last few months he couldn’t have understood until becoming head coach: 

Not really. The biggest thing is, I would say, managing different personalities. Now you’ve got to kind of have a relationship with everybody on the team when you’re the head coach, whereas when I was an assistant coach, I had a relationship with everybody, but not an in-depth one. For the most part, the guys that I recruited, I was closer with. Not saying I wasn’t close with the other guys, but obviously you’re going to have more of a relationship with the guys that you bring in, naturally. But now that I’m the head coach, I really have to have a really good relationship with everybody. And that’s the kind of head coach that I want to be. I want them to know that I love them first and I coach them second.

On adjusting to the change from the “good guy” assistant coach to the stern head coach:

It's true (laughs). Some days, they’re not going to like you and I’m not used to that. Because (when) I was an assistant coach, they loved me everyday (laughs). I’m the one they came to bitch to about the head coach. And it’s different now. Some days, they’re gonna hate me. They probably hated me on Thursday, because I kicked them out of practice. But some days, it's gonna be like that. You’ve just got to know that as a head coach, they’re not going to like you (everyday). But I think if they know they love you, they respect you more. They might hate you for the moment, but not overall.

On the difficulty of that transition: 

To be honest, yes. It’s different for me. Jay Ray, for one. He used to always come to me when he had a problem with coach or whomever., Had to talk him off the ledge. And now, those problems turn to me. And we got into it last Thursday. We got face-to-face during practice, But this is where it’s different: When I got home, in the back of my mind, I was like ‘All right, now what can I do with this kid? We had a blowup in practice.’ But to his credit, he texted me and he apologized and that’s the thing. I think if they know that you love them first, then they know that you’ve really got their best interests at heart. And he knows that I really only jumped him to get him to play. And you know what? That next day at practice, he had a great practice. So he needed that moment to go forward, probably. 

On trying to be more of a “CEO” type of coach, a la Joe Mihalich: 

You have to approach it that way. You can’t be everywhere, or else you’re going to be all over the place. You have to have the confidence in your assistant coaches that they know what they’re doing and trust in them that they’re relaying your message. So you have to kind of have a overall view of the program in practice, because you can’t be involved in everything. So you’ve got to have trust in your coaching staff.

On learning that from Mihalich: 

It’s definitely easier. That’s my mentor. I think he’s done a tremendous job of not only preparing me but all of his assistant coaches to one day be a head coach. He really knows how to prepare you for the moment.

On the rotation: 

The rotation’s going to be based on performance. We’re a talented, very deep team. So one night it might be somebody’s night. The next night, it might be somebody else. It’s who’s playing well that night, that’s who we’re going to ride and that’s who we’re going to go with.

On the preparedness of the Dutchmen heading to Houston: 

It’s definitely going to be different. It counts. It’s for real now. And I think these guys are locked in. They’re very eager to play. They’re ready. man. These last two days of practice have really, really been good — especially today. You know, in the preseason here, we had off yesterday. And that first day of practice after an off-day has been terrible. Like, aw-ful. (Claxton really did extend out the pronunciation of awful) And it’s every single one after an off-day. This was probably the first time after an off-day we had a really good practice. And I think it’s because they’re really locked in and they’re ready to play.

On his nerves tonight: 

I’m sure I’ll be nervous, just like anything I do. When I was playing, if we played a team for the second time, we could have beat the team by 50 the first time, I’m still going to be nervous to come out. But once the game starts, I get into my element and I’m good. It’s just before — I’m a nervous person (laughs), so I get nervous before everything. But then it starts, I’m locked in and I’m good.

On any pregame rituals/superstitions: 

I thought about that, but I don’t think I really need one. I’m just going to be all over the place. I’ll be focused, locked in, but all the work is in preparation leading up to the game, man. I’ll be fine. I don’t think I’m going to need a routine, per se. But who knows? Maybe I’ll get into one. For right now, I don’t have anything planned. Come out, watch warmup a little bit, kill some time. There’s no way — I would go crazy if I just sat in the damn locker room the whole warmups. Probably come out, spend some time on the court watching warmup and then get ready to go.