One of my all-time favorite baseball cards from the 1980 Topps set, issued the same year Arizona State alum Reggie Jackson authored my favorite Immaculate Grid cheat code by hitting .300 for the only time in his career. It works everywhere!
Ahh well, perfect seasons are for losers. The Flying Dutchmen will look to bounce back from their stunning last-minute loss to Princeton tonight, when they trek all the way to Tempe to battle Arizona State (of the Big 12, not the Pac 12, because progress or something) in their semi-annual attempt to topple a power four foe.
As will hopefully remain the routine following all games this year, I ran down the boilerplate material from Thursday’s loss in Keep It Perky last night. This is all about the individual news and notes from that defeat as well as a preview of the Sun Devils. Enjoy!
DOUBLE DIGITS NOT ENOUGH (part one)
The Dutchmen, who took their biggest lead at 43-31 on Tanner Thomas’ 3-pointer with 13:36 left, squandered a double-digit lead in a loss for the first time this season (obvs) and the first time since Mar. 20, when they led Alabama by 10 points in the first half of a 90-70 loss in the NCAA Tournament, So the Dutchmen have blown a double-digit lead in their last two losses. If these trends continue…anyway, the Dutchmen have lost 17 games in which they held a double-digit lead since Speedy Claxton became head coach for the 2021-22 season.
DOUBLE DIGITS NOT ENOUGH (part two)
The Dutchmen squandered a 10-point lead in the final 1:31 last Thursday night — the latest in a game they have blown a double-digit lead in a loss since at least 2005-06, which is as far back as the game-by-game logs go at the Hofstra website. History! And speaking of which…
WIN PROBABILITY, SCHWIN PROBABILITY (part one)
Princeton’s win probability, per KenPom.com, bottomed out at 0.9 percent when the Dutchmen led 55-45 with 1:31 left. That’s the lowest an opponent’s win percentage has ever dropped in a win over the Dutchmen since the 2009-10 season, when KenPom.com began tracking win probability. The previous low win probability for a Hofstra opponent was established on Nov. 19, 2010, when Western Kentucky’s win probability bottomed out at 1.1 percent when the Hilltoppers trailed by 13 points with a little more than four minutes left in their 62-60 win. Welp.
WIN PROBABILITY, SCHWIN PROBABILITY (part two)
The loss Thursday marked the first time a CAA team lost a game in which its opponent’s win probability slipped below 1.0 percent since Jan. 11, 2018, when James Madison fell to William & Mary 89-82 in overtime after the Tribe’s win probability bottomed out at 0.5 percent when they trailed 73-64 with 50 seconds left in regulation. However, that’s not the most recent game involving a CAA team in which the victor’s win probability dipped below 1.0 percent. UNC Wilmington stormed back to beat Drake 76-75 in the CBI on Mar. 21, 2022, when the Seahawks’ win probability bottomed out at 0.9 percent upon trailing 64-45 with 10:31 left.
TOO MANY TURNOVERS
The Dutchmen committed 18 turnovers in Thursday night’s loss, their most turnovers since collecting 20 turnovers against Florida State in a 79-61 loss on Nov. 19, 2024.
NOT A BLOCK PARTY
Neither the Dutchmen nor Princeton had a blocked shot Thursday night. It was the first game in which neither the Dutchmen nor their opponent registered a blocked shot since Dec. 19, 2022, when the Dutchmen fell to South Florida, 77-70.
A GOOD DEFENSE NOT ENOUGH
The Dutchmen lost Thursday night despite limiting Princeton to 30.5 percent shooting (18-of-59). That’s the lowest shooting percentage for a Hofstra opponent in a loss since Dec. 29, 2024, when the Dutchmen fell to Quinnipiac 75-69 in overtime despite limiting the Bobcats to 29.3 percent shooting (22-of-75).
STILL NO DOUBTING THOMAS
Graduate student Tanner Thomas, the younger brother of former Hofstra star Tyler Thomas, flirted with a double-double for the second straight game Thursday night, when he finished with 14 points and nine rebounds in 36 minutes. The nine rebounds and 36 minutes were each the most for Thomas since Feb. 8, 2025, when he recorded his most recent double-double by collecting 14 points and 10 rebounds over 37 minutes for Sacred Herat in a 77-71 win over Fairfield.
NICK MOVIN’ ON UP
Sophomore Nick Jefferson had another solid game off the bench Thursday night, when he racked up 10 points, four rebounds and two assists in 29 minutes. Jefferson, a transfer from Salt Lake Community College, has scored in double figures in each of his first two games with the Dutchmen.
MOORE MOORE MOORE
Senior Justin Moore had an up-and-down game Thursday night, when he finished with 12 points, eight rebounds and four assists but also committed four turnovers in 36 minutes. Moore shot 5-of-16 from the field, including 0-for-6 from 3point land. The eight rebounds tied a career-high for Moore, who had two eight-rebound games for Drexel, most recently on Feb,. 1, 2024 in a 67-62 loss to Monmouth.
TREYS FOR TREY
Senior Sideshow Trey Boyd III scored six points while going 2-of-3 from 3-point land and 2-of-6 from the field overall Thursday night. Boyd III is 6-of-11 from beyond the arc in his first two Division Games.
DECADY DANCE
Junior Joshua DeCady, the lone returnee from last year’s CAA champions, finished with four points and four rebounds over 24 minutes Thursday night. Since the start of last season, the Dutchmen are 18-7 when DeCady starts and 6-4 when he comes off the bench.
PERFECT SPENCE
Junior Spence Wewe drew the start at center Thursday night, when he had four points on 2-of-2 shooting to go along with three rebounds and one steal in 14 minutes. Wewe, a transfer from Quinnipiac, is 4-of-4 from the field this season. Speaking of which…
PERFECT IMANUEL
The sun will rise, I’ll have lunch and the Flying Dutchmen will find a pretty good center rotation. Graduate student Imanuel Zorgvol also had a second straight perfect game from the field Thursday night, when he scored seven points on 3-of-3 shooting over 18 minutes. Zorgvol, who was also 1-of-2 form the free throw line Thursday night, is 6-of-6 from the field this season.
YOU CAN’T SPELL STEPHEN GORCHOV WITHOUT GOAT
I’d be remiss to not acknowledge the departure of the great Stephen Gorchov, a great friend to and supporter of I’ll Be Quirky (as well as Mrs. IBQ and Molly IBQ), even when I should have renamed this exercise I’ll Be Pessimistic (not anymore though!).
Gorchov left Hofstra last week after more than 25 years in the sports information department — the last 13 as the men’s basketball contact — and more than 30 years as a member of the Hofstra athletic community.
He began his tenure as an undergrad, when he spent four seasons as the student manager of the men’s basketball team for Butch van Breda Kolff and Jay Wright. Following a brief detour to Drexel University (located in his hometown of Philadelphia, so we’ll forgive him), Gorchov returned to Hofstra as an administrator with the volleyball team in 1998 before joining the sports information department in 1999.
Because I’ll Be Quirky, I figured out that the Flying Dutchmen basketball team was 267-191 (.583) during his tenure as the men’s basketball contact and 562-447 during his career within the athletic department. The latter figures mean he has been at Hofstra for 40.7 percent of all men’s basketball games and witnessed, as a University employee or administrator within the team, 39.7 percent of the Dutchmen’s wins! Now that’s quirky! He has also worked alongside half of the 14 head coaches in program history and been a part of five conference champions (including the 1994 ECC bunch).
Gorchov also witnessed innumerable other major events while contributing immeasurably throughout the department, especially as the contact for and champion of the volleyball and men’s and lacrosse programs. Nobody cares about Hofstra or loves it more than him. Thanks to Stephen for his friendship and help over the years and best of luck in the future!
OVER THE AIR
Tonight’s game is slated to be carried live on ESPNPlus, which you have if you have the Disney Bundle, which you have if you have a child under 18. (Alas mine mostly watches Max, Netflix and YouTube, sigh) Hofstra will provide a radio feed as well as live stats at the Pride Productions hub.
ARIZONA STATE AND THE BIG 12
Arizona State, under first-year head coach Randy Bennett, is 2-0 after beating Northern Colorado, 90-63, on Friday night. Bennett spent the previous 25 seasons (!!) building Saint Mary’s into a mid-major powerhouse in the West Coast Conference.
Arizona State was picked to finish 12th in the 16-team Big 12. Math remains hard. Senior guard Bryce Ford is the only returnee for the Sun Devils.
Senior Paulius Murauskas, who was selected the Big 12’s preseason newcomer of the year after spending the previous two seasons playing for Bennett at Saint Mary’s, leads the Sun Devils with 27.0 ppg while ranking second with 7.0 rpg. Sophomore Joel Foxwell, who opened his career at Portland, is averaging 11.0 ppg and a team-high 6.5 apg per game. Sophomore Dillan Shaw, who also accompanied Bennett from Saint Mary’s, is averaging 10.5 ppg and a team-high 9.0 rpg. Freshman Filip Malesevic is averaging 9.0 ppg and 8.5 rpg.
The Dutchmen and Sun Devils have one common foe this season. Arizona State faces LSU as part of The Acrisure Series in Palm Springs, CA on Nov. 25 while the Dutchmen will visit Will Wade’s renegade bunch on Dec. 5.
Hofstra and Arizona State have never faced each other in men’s basketball.
This marks just the sixth all-time meeting between the schools in any sport. The wrestling team lost to Arizona State 42-4 on Dec. 20, 2021 while the women’s basketball team fell to the Sun Devils, 80-54, on Nov. 28, 2008. The Flying Dutchwomen softball team is 1-3 all-time against Arizona State with a 2-1 win in the 2005 NCAA Tournament (at Hofstra!)
The Dutchmen are facing a Big 12 team for the third straight season. Houston earned an 80-44 win on Nov, 22, 2024 before Central Florida edged the Dutchmen, 82-78, on Nov. 3, 2025.
Hofstra is 0-9 all-time against current Big 12 schools with two losses to Houston and single defeats to Central Florida, Cincinnati, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, TCU and Utah. However, only five of those defeats — the last two losses to Houston and Central Florida as well as losses to Kansas, Kansas State and Oklahoma State — happened when the victors were actually members of the Big 12.
At KenPom.com this afternoon, Hofstra is ranked 143rd while Arizona State is ranked 70th. KenPom.com predicts a 75-63 loss for the Dutchmen. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 18 1/2-point underdogs. Holy smokes that’s a big difference. Can’t remember a KenPom/wise guy gap like that. The Dutchmen are 1-0 against the spread after managing to cover as a 2 1/2- point underdog against Princeton. Remember: Winners win, champions cover.
THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER (OR BLUESKY) IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY
Why can’t Arizona State get World Series-winning managers like Pat Murphy bias! (The loquacious Brewers skipper was Arizona State’s baseball coach from 1995 through 2009)
Jake Plummer bias! (Jake the Snake led Arizona State to just its second Rose Bowl ever in 1996)
Reggie Jackson bias! (The guy the Mets didn’t take with the first overall pick of the first Major League Baseball LOL Mets draft played at Arizona State)
Rick Monday loves the American flag bias! (The guy who went first overall in the first MLB draft also played at Arizona State)
Justin Toscano bias! (Our old pal from the Mets beat is an Arizona State grad)
