Noted Hofstra fan Mike Damone, hoping he can make some money scalping tickets to make up for Monday's complete unraveling.
The Flying Dutchmen pulled a Mike Damone Monday afternoon, when they got off to a great start and then were left wondering what the hell happened in a 68-47 loss to CAA preseason favorite Towson. The task during this season-defining stretch gets no easier tonight, when oh-no-they’re-really-good-again UNC Wilmington is slated to visit the Arena. Here’s a look back at the loss to the Tigers and a look ahead to the Seahawks.
THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH
The Dutchmen hit five of their first six shots in racing out to an 11-1 lead before Towson left the court, resulting in a 2-0 forfeit win for Hofstra. (We’re still a country where we can declare lopsided losses are actually lopsided wins, right?) The start evaporated almost as fast as it appeared for the Dutchmen, who were 0-for-8 from the field with four turnovers during a 17-0 (NICE FOOTBALL SCORE) by Towson that turned a 13-3 deficit (ALSO A NICE FOOTBALL SCORE) into a 20-13 lead (STILL A NICE FOOTBALL SCORE). Tyler Thomas briefly stopped the slide with a 3-pointer but Towson scored the next five points as the Dutchmen went 0-for-8 with a turnover. Towson led 30-20 at the half and the Dutchmen got within single digits with each of their first four baskets in the second half before the Tigers removed any doubt by mounting a 19-3 run to take their biggest lead at 55-31 with 8:21 left. The Dutchmen got no closer than 18 the rest of the way. Aaron Estrada scored 10 points as the only player in double figures but shot a historically rough 0-for-10 from 3-point land for the Dutchmen, who were 14-of-53 from the field after opening 6-of-8. Nelson Boachie-Yiadom (seven points, a season-high nine rebounds) flirted with a double-double while Jaquan Carlos had nine points, five assists and four rebounds. Darlinstone Dubar had seven points — five points in the first 2:10 and the first basket of the second half.
3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. Towson, 1/16)
3: Jaquan Carlos
2: Nelson Boachie-Yiadom
1: Darlinstone Dubar
SEASON STANDINGS
Aaron Estrada 37
Tyler Thomas 24
Darlinstone Dubar 22
Jaquan Carlos 13
Warren Williams 10
Nelson Boachie-Yiadom 7
Amar’e Marshall 6
Griffin Barrouk 1
THE FLYING DUTCHMEN AFTER TWENTY GAMES
With Monday’s loss, the Dutchmen fell to 12-8. This ties the 2022-23 team for the 28th-best record in school history through 20 games. The Dutchmen have started 12-8 eight times in program history, most recently in 2020-21. Here is how some notable Hofstra teams have fared through 20 games:
NCAA DIVISION I TOURNAMENT TEAMS
1975-76: 10-10 (loss in 20th game was final regular season loss)
1976-77: 14-6
1999-2000: 15-5
2000-01: 16-4 (marked eighth win in program-record 18-game winning streak)
2019-20 (IT COUNTS TO US): 14-6 (most recent 14-6 start)
NIT TEAMS
1998-99: 13-7
2004-05: 14-6
2005-06: 16-4 (most recent 16-4 start)
2006-07: 15-5 (most recent 15-5 start)
2015-16: 14-6
2018-19: 17-3 (most recent 17-3 start, win in 20th game marked 13th win in the 16-game winning streak)
NCAA DIVISION II TOURNAMENT TEAMS
1958-59: 15-5
1961-62: 18-2 (most recent 18-2 start)
1962-63: 14-6
1963-64: 17-3
Some other notable 20-game records:
2021-22: 13-7 (most recent 13-7 start)
2016-17: 9-11 (most recent 9-11 start; loss in 20th game marked final loss of Mihalich-era record six-game losing streak)
2013-14: 7-13 (most recent 7-13 start, Joe Mihalich’s first team)
2012-13: 5-15 (most recent 5-15 start)
2007-08: 6-14 (most recent 6-14 start)
2003-04: 8-12 (most recent 8-12 start)
2001-02: 9-11 (Tom Pecora’s first team)
1996-97: 10-10 (most recent 10-10 start, last time at .500)
1995-96: 7-13 (loss in 20th game marked sixth loss of Jay Wright-era record nine-game losing streak)
1994-95: 6-14 (first 6-14 start, win in 20th game marked final win of three-game winning streak, the first winning streak of Wright’s first year)
1993-94: 3-17 (only 3-17 start, VBK’s final team)
1991-92: 12-8 (win in 20th game was first in nine-game winning streak that ended in ECC title game)
1990-91: 11-9 (most recent 11-9 start)
1987-88: 4-16 (only 4-16 start, loss in 20th game was 10th loss of program-record 12-game losing streak)
1960-61: 18-2 (first 18-2 start)
1959-60: 19-1 (most recent 19-1 start & Hofstra’s winningest team, percentage-wise; win in 20th game was ninth win of season-ending 13-game winning streak)
1955-56: 19-1 (first 19-1 start, VBK’s first year)
1944-45: 8-12 (win in penultimate game was final win of season)
1940-41: 13-7 (won regular season finale)
Hofstra has never been 20-0, 2-18, 1-19 or 0-20 through 20 games.
Six seasons were completed in fewer than 20 games:
1936-37: 10-7
1937-38: 10-4
1938-39: 10-8
1943-44: 7-12
1945-46: 12-7
1947-48: 13-6
Full records not available for the following seasons: 1936-37, 1941-42, 1942-43, 1945-46, 1948-49, 1949-50, 1951-52, 1954-55, 1957-58.
This feature is inspired by Greg Prince, who measures how the current Mets compare, record-wise, to previous teams through the same point in the season.
NUMBER TEN THROUGH FIFTY-TWO
With Monday’s loss, Speedy Claxton fell to 33-18 (.635) as head coach. That’s tied with Butch van Breda Kolff for the second-best known winning percentage for a Hofstra coach through his first 52 games at the helm. Still a tie! And still the first of a few!
Paul Lynner 41-11 (.788, 52nd game was the 22nd game of his second season in 1963-64)
Butch van Breda Kolff I 33-19 (.635, 52nd game was the 26th and final game of his second season in 1956-57)
SPEEDY CLAXTON 33-19 (.635, 52nd game was the 20th game of his second season in 2022-23)
Mo Cassara 27-25 (.519, 52nd game was the 19th game of his second season in 2011-12)
Butch van Breda Kolff II 25-27 (.481, 52nd game was the 23rd game of his second season in 1989-90)
Dick Berg 23-29 (.442, 52nd game was the 25th game of his second season in 1981-82)
Joe Mihalich 23-29 (.442, 52nd game was the 19th game of his second season in 2014-15)
Roger Gaeckler 18-34 (.346, 52nd game was the fourth game of his third season in 1974-75)
Jay Wright 18-34 (.346, 52nd game was the 24th game of his second season in 1995-96)
Tom Pecora 17-35 (.327, 52nd game was the 20th game of his second season in 2002-03)
How about that — ties for second, sixth and eighth place, but Pecora falls into last. He’ll probably never bounce back from that slow start.
The records are incomplete for Jack McDonald’s first stint from 1936 through 1943 as well as the tenures of Jack Smith (1943-46) and Frank Reilly (1947-55).
Three coaches had one-season tenures lasting fewer than 33 games at Hofstra. 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.
NO LONGER WINNING IN THE NEW YEAR
The loss Monday afternoon dropped the Dutchmen to 4-1 this month, which now has them on pace for the second-winningest calendar year of the century behind 2000 (27-6, .818). #Facts The Dutchmen opened 4-0 in January for the fifth time this century but fell short of their first 5-0 start in January since they went 7-0 in January 2019 and the CAA just went ahead and gave them the automatic bid because there was no reason to play the rest of the season.
HOT AND COLD
The Dutchmen followed up their 24-point win over Delaware by losing by 21 to Towson. It’s the first time the Dutchmen have split back-to-back games in which the final margin was 20 or more points since Jan. 2-4, 2000, when they lost to William & Mary 88-61 and beat Elon 102-75. The Dutchmen previously went win-loss in consecutive 20-point games on Nov. 10-12, 2013, when they beat Fairleigh Dickinson 80-58 and lost to defending national champion Louisville 97-69. Those were the second and third games of the Joe Mihalich Era.
DOUBLE DIGITS NOT ENOUGH
The Dutchmen squandered a double-digit lead for the third time this season and the sixth time since Speedy Claxton became head coach last season. The Dutchmen led George Mason (grrr) by 11 points in the first half of an 81-77 overtime loss on Nov. 30 and led North Carolina A&T by 13 points in the second half of an 81-79 loss on Dec. 31. So one a month means they got this one out of the way earlier, then?
RUN RUNAWAY
Towson mounted a 17-0 run to take control in the first half Monday. I believe that’s the longest run mounted against the Dutchmen since St. Bonaventure went on an 18-0 run before Hofstra came back to take the lead in an eventual 77-69 loss on Dec. 19, 2020.
UPSIDE DOWN, BOY, THEY’RE TURNING US INSIDE OUT
Disco reference! The Dutchmen led by 10 points twice — at 11-1 and 13-3 — before losing by 21 points Monday. It’s the first time the Dutchmen have led a game by double digits and lost by at least 20 points since Feb. 6, 2010, when they led Northeastern by 13 points in the first half of a 75-55 loss.
NOT NOSTALGIC FOR THESE ‘40S
As you have deduced by now, the Dutchmen were limited to 47 points Monday. It was the second sub-50 point performance of the season for the Dutchmen, who fell to Saint Mary’s 76-48 on Nov. 19. This is the first time the Dutchmen have scored fewer than 50 points twice in a season since 2013-14, when Joe Mihalich’s first team fell to SMU 73-49 and College of Charleston 67-49. The 47 points on Monday were the fewest the Dutchmen have scored in a CAA game since a 61-43 loss to Georgia State on Feb. 13, 2013 — the fifth and final game of that nightmarish season in which they scored fewer than 50 points. The Dutchmen have lost their last 21 games in which they scored fewer than 50 points dating back to a 44-39 win over Manhattan on Dec. 9, 2009. Of course, it could be worse, because…
WE’RE STILL STREAKING! (part one)
…at least the Dutchmen got to 40 points! Nelson Boachie-Yiadom’s layup with 4:57 left cut the deficit to 59-40 and ensured the Dutchmen would not be held below 40 points for the first time since a 55-37 loss to Drexel in the America East semifinals on Feb. 28, 1999. That was 749 games ago! Speedy Claxton missed that game with an injury.
WE’RE STILL STREAKING! (part two)
As rough a game as Aaron Estrada had, he still got into double figures by hitting a jumper with 6:53 left (it was the basket before Boachie-Yiadom’s layup). That ensured the Dutchmen would have at least one player scoring in double figures for the 457th straight game! So we’ve got that going for us. The Dutchmen haven’t had a leading scorer finish with fewer than 10 points since Jan. 5, 2009, when Cornelius Vines had eight points in a 73-50 loss to Northeastern.
TEN AND NOT A POINT MORE
The loss Monday marked just the third time in those 457 games that the Dutchmen’s leading scorer finished with 10 points. Prior to Estrada collecting 10 points Monday, David Imes led the Dutchmen with 10 points in a 61-41 loss to James Madison on Jan. 31, 2013 before Omar Silverio and Darlinstone Dubar had 10 points apiece in an 81-55 loss to Elon on Feb. 24, 2022. Somewhat related: Only twice in the last 457 games has the leading scorer been a reserve who was the lone player to get into double figures. Halil Kanacevic had 11 points against Manhattan in the aforementioned 44-39 win over Manhattan while Daquan Brown had 13 points in a 69-54 loss to Delaware on Jan. 9, 2013. Honestly, I just wanted to mention Halil Kanacevic and Daquan Brown in the same sentence because it’s never happened before and will never happen again.
AN IMPERFECT 10
We mention the bad with the good here at I’ll Be Quirky, so avert your eyes. But Aaron Estrada became the first Hofstra player since at least 2002-03 — as far back as my game-by-game logs and box scores go — to hit no 3-pointers while taking at least 10 attempts. Not only that, he’s the only Division I player since 2010-11 — the start of the Play Index era at College Basketball Reference — to go 0-for-10 from 3-point land. Among Hofstra players, only one other player — Brian Bernardi against Coppin State on Nov. 11, 2016 — went 0-for-8 from beyond the arc in a game prior to Monday. Five players have made one 3-pointer while hoisting at least 11 attempts since 2002-03. Taran Buie (against George Mason on Feb. 20, 2013), Zeke Upshaw (against Siena on Dec. 23, 2013), Ameen Tanksley (against Vermont on Mar. 18, 2015) and Justin Wright-Foreman (against James Madison on Feb. 25, 2017) were all 1-for-10 from 3-point land while Antoine Agudio was 1-for-11 against Old Dominion in the NIT quarterfinals loss on Mar. 22, 2006.
MISFIRING FROM THREE
The Dutchmen finished 4-of-27 (14.8 percent) from 3-point land on Monday. It’s the second time this season they’ve shot below 15 percent from beyond the arc. The Dutchmen were 1-of-16 (6.3 percent) against Saint Mary’s on Nov. 19.
MISSING: FREE THROWS
Despite their struggles from long range Monday, the Dutchmen attempted just six free throws. The Dutchmen have shot fewer than 10 free throws 18 times in 52 games under Speedy Claxton. They attempted fewer than 10 free throws just 18 times in the 14 full seasons — spanning 449 games — from 2007-08 through 2020-21.
THOMAS’ STREAK SNAPPED
Tyler Thomas was limited to five points Monday, when he was 2-of-11 shooting, including 1-of-7 from 3-point land. The outing ended his streak of double-digit scoring efforts at eight games, his longest such streak since he scored in double figures in 11 straight games for Sacred Heart from Nov. 30, 2021-Jan. 17, 2022.
CARLOS LENDS A HAND
Let’s focus on a couple more upbeat stats, shall we? Jaquan Carlos finished with nine points and five assists Monday. It was the ninth time this season Carlos finished with at least five assists. He had just one game with five assists as a freshman last season.
NELSON’S NINE
Nelson Boachie-Yiadom scored seven points and pulled down a season-high nine rebounds Monday. The seven points were the second-most in CAA play for Boachie-Yiadom, who had eight points against Delaware on Dec. 29, while the rebounds were his most since he had a career-high 10 rebounds against St. Bonaventure on Feb. 14, 2020.
OVER THE AIR
Tonight’s game will be carried live on CBS Sports Network, which is channel 215 in the Optimum/Altice Are Our Overlords Universe. Hofstra will provide a radio feed as well as live stats at the Pride Productions hub.
SCOUTING UNC WILMINGTON
The Seahawks, under third-year head coach Takayo Siddle, are 15-5 this season and 5-2 in CAA play following a 62-54 win over Elon on Monday night. The win snapped a two-game losing streak for UNC Wilmington, which was unbeaten in the league before falling to Charleston 71-69 in the battle of the nation’s longest active winning streaks on Jan. 11.
The Dutchmen and Seahawks had no common opponents in non-conference play. Both teams have beaten Monmouth and Hampton in CAA play. The Dutchmen lost to North Carolina A&T, which fell to the Seahawks, and beat William & Mary, which upset UNC Wilmington.
The Dutchmen, who were picked to finish second in the CAA preseason poll, are ranked 127th at KenPom.com. That’s a 16-spot drop from Monday, which is what happens after lopsided losses like that. The Seahawks, who were picked to finish fifth, are ranked 135th.
Due to the CAA’s expansion and the unbalanced schedule, tonight marks the only scheduled regular season game between Hofstra and UNC Wilmington. On one hand, that sorta stinks, because round-robin scheduling is the only way to go. On the other, nothing good ever happens to the Dutchmen in Trask Coliseum, so we’ll take it. The Dutchmen are also slated to face William & Mary, North Carolina A&T, Elon, Charleston and Drexel just once apiece. Again…Drexel? Only once? Really? This marks the first time since the 2007-08 season — Charles Jenkins’ freshman season! — that Hofstra and UNC Wilmington are scheduled to play just once in the regular season.
With league play now more than one-third complete, we’ll now summarize the teams by their performance in CAA play. According to KenPom.com, the Dutchmen rank second in the CAA in conference-only offensive efficiency (109.2 points per 100 possessions) and fourth in conference-only defensive efficiency (95.7 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 67.8 possessions per 40 minutes, the fourth-most in the league. The Seahawks rank third in in the CAA in conference-only offensive efficiency (107.6 points per 100 possessions) and fifth in defensive efficiency (95.9 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 65.7 possessions per 40 minutes, the eighth-most in the league.
The Seahawks employ a well-rounded offense with just one double-digit scorer but seven players who have led or shared the team lead in scoring at least once this season. Sophomore forward Trazarien White leads the Seahawks with 14.2 points per game and also leads the team in rebounding at 6.0 rebounds per game. Senior guard Maleeck Harden-Hayes, a transfer from North Dakota State, ranks second on the team with 9.5 points per game and is third with 4.2 rebounds per game. Senior guard Shykeim Phillips, who was named to the preseason all-CAA second team, is averaging 8.8 points per game but has missed two of the last seven games due to illness and been limited to 20 minutes or fewer in the other five. Senior forward Amari Kelly, who opened his career with two years at Duquesne, ranks third on the Seahawks with 5.1 rebounds per game while sophomore guard Jamarii Thomas leads the team with 2.3 assists per game.
For more on the Seahawks’ strong season so #alliteration far, check out our friends at The Seahawk Perch. They’re insane like us, except in teal!
KenPom.com predicts a 71-68 win for the Dutchmen. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 3 1/2-point favorites. The Dutchmen are 8-9-2 against the spread this season.
ALL-TIME VS. UNC WILMINGTON
Hofstra is 25-23 against UNC Wilmington in a series that began when the Dutchmen joined the CAA prior to the 2001-02 season. The teams split the season series by holding serve #WrongSportDummy last year, when the Seahawks outlasted the Dutchmen 78-72 in a classic Saturday night special at Trask Coliseum before the Dutchmen eked out a 73-71 win at the Arena, where Mike Okauru’s potential game-tying layup rimmed out at the buzzer.
THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY
You actually have fond memories of the CBI bias! (UNC Wilmington won that stupid thing last year)
You don’t have the real Nathan Scott bias! (“One Tree Hill” was shot in Wilmington but Hofstra’s got Nathan Scott lookalike German Plotnikov)
Ice cream reward bias! (Does UNC Wilmington still get ice cream after road wins? Hopefully not tonight!)
Don’t be mad Benny Moss got whacked here bias! (The #CAAHoops #OGs know what I mean)
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