Did not go to Charleston but was one of Pat Kelsey's players in a retro lineup against the Mets and only played for the Reds, in case that ever comes up in a certain grid game.
Tyler Thomas and Darlinstone Dubar showed out again against big-time competition and the Flying Dutchmen erased nearly all of a 13-point second-half deficit Saturday afternoon, but the 5-on-8 was too much to overcome THIS ISN’T REALLY YOUR HOME ARENA BIAS in an 84-79 loss to St. John’s at UBS Arena. The real season begins tonight, when the Dutchmen open CAA play by hosting defending champion Charleston. Nothing like jumping right into the deep end! Here’s a look back at the loss to the Red Storm and a look ahead to the Cougars.
THE MOST RECENT GAME SUMMARIZED IN ONE PARAGRAPH
The Flying Dutchmen held five brief leads in the first half and trailed 36-32 at intermission, but a 9-0 run to open the second half by St. John’s proved decisive. The Dutchmen missed their first three shots in the second half and were whistled for five fouls (LOL) before Kijan Robinson’s 3-pointer sparked a 14-4 run in which Tyler Thomas and Darlinstone Dubar combined to score the next 11 points. The Red Storm responded with a 12-4 spurt to take a 61-50 lead before the Dutchmen mounted a persistent comeback over the final 10 minutes. Thomas, Dubar and Jaquan Carlos combined to score 26 of the final 29 points for the Dutchmen, who cut the Red Storm’s lead to three points five times in a wild final 4:09 in which the teams combined to score on 14 of 17 possessions. The Dutchmen were down 75-72 with the ball after a rare empty trip for St. John’s, but Thomas’ layup hung on the rim for what seemed like a year before rolling off with 1:32 left. The Red Storm were 7-of-8 from the line the rest of the way and iced the game with their last field goal, a dagger jumper by Daniss Jenkins with 25 seconds left. Thomas led the Dutchmen with 29 points and nine rebounds while Dubar had 24 points. Carlos scored all 10 of his points in the second half while Robinson scored eight points in 28 minutes and German Plotnikov had seven points, three assists and one steal in 17 minutes.
3 STARS OF THE GAME (vs. St. John’s, 12/30)
3: Tyler Thomas
2: Darlinstone Dubar
1: Jaquan Carlos
SEASON STANDINGS
Tyler Thomas 28
Darlinstone Dubar 25
Jaquan Carlos 14
Jacco Fritz 6
Bryce Washington 3
Silas Sunday 1
KiJan Robinson 1
THE FLYING DUTCHMEN AFTER THIRTEEN GAMES
With Saturday’s loss, the Dutchmen fell to 7-6. This ties the 2023-24 team for the 43rd-best record in school history through 13 games. This is the second straight year in which the Dutchmen have opened 7-6, the third time they’ve done so in four years and the ninth time overall in school history. Here is how some notable Hofstra teams have fared through 13 games:
NCAA DIVISION I TOURNAMENT TEAMS
1975-76: 6-7
1976-77: 9-4
1999-2000: 8-5
2000-01: 9-4
2019-20 (IT COUNTS TO US): 9-4 (most recent 9-4 start)
NIT TEAMS
1998-99: 8-5
2004-05: 10-3
2005-06: 10-3
2006-07: 9-4
2015-16: 9-4
2018-19: 10-3 (most recent 10-3 start, win in 13th game marked seventh win in the 16-game winning streak)
2022-23: 7-6 (most recent 7-6 start)
NCAA DIVISION II TOURNAMENT TEAMS
1958-59: 9-4
1961-62: 12-1
1962-63: 9-4
1963-64: 12-1 (most recent 12-1 start)
Some other notable 13-game starts:
2021-22: 8-5 (most recent 8-5 start)
2013-14: 4-9 (most recent 4-9 start, Joe Mihalich’s first team)
2012-13: 3-10 (most recent 3-10 start, final loss in eight-game losing streak)
2011-12: 6-7 (most recent 6-7 start)
2002-03: 2-11 (most recent 2-11 start)
2001-02: 6-7 (Tom Pecora’s first team, under .500 for good)
1996-97: 5-8 (most recent 5-8 start)
1994-95: 2-11 (Jay Wright’s first team)
1993-94: 1-12 (VBK’s last team, most recent 1-12 start)
1991-92: 7-6 (over .500 for good)
1986-87: 7-6 (last time over .500)
1966-67: 7-6 (last time over .500)
1959-60: 12-1 (Hofstra’s winningest team, percentage-wise; win in 13th game was second win of season-ending 13-game winning streak)
1955-56: 12-1 (suffered first loss in 13th game)
Hofstra has never been 13-0, 11-2 or 0-13 through 13 games.
Full records not available for the following seasons: 1936-37, 1941-42, 1942-43.
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 EIGHTY
With Saturday’s loss, Speedy Claxton fell to 53-27 (.663) as head coach. That’s the third-best known winning percentage for a Hofstra coach through his first 80 games at the helm. BREAKING NEWS (that’s actually more than 70 years old): I’ve been able to piece together the missing games in Frank Reilly’s career (viva la Microfilm), so Claxton may not have had the second-highest winning percentage of any Hofstra coach through the previous 26 games after all. This is going to bug me so I’m sure I’m going to go back and check where Reilly ranks in the all-time game-to-game standings for games one through 79. Anyway!
Paul Lynner 55-25 (.688, 80th game was the 21st game of his third season in 1964-65)
Frank Reilly 54-26 (.675, 80th game was the ninth game of his fourth season in 1950-51)
SPEEDY CLAXTON 53-27 (.663, 80th game was the 13th game of his third season in 2023-24)
Butch van Breda Kolff I 51-29 (.638, 80th game was the fifth game of his fourth season in 1957-58)
Dick Berg 42-38 (.525, 80th game was the 25th game of his third season in 1982-83)
Butch van Breda Kolff II 39-41 (.488, 80th game was the 23rd game of his third season in 1990-91)
Joe Mihalich 39-41 (.488, 80th game was the 13th game of his third season in 2015-16)
Mo Cassara 35-45 (.438, 80th game was the 15th game of his third season in 2012-13)
Roger Gaeckler 31-49 (.388, 80th game was the eighth game of his fourth season in 1975-76)
Jay Wright 30-50 (.375, 80th game was the 25th game of his third season in 1996-97)
Tom Pecora 28-52 (.350, 80th game was the 19th game of his third season in 2003-04)
Joe Mihalich moves into a tie with Butch van Breda Kolff II for sixth place on the list.
The records are incomplete for Jack McDonald’s first stint from 1936 through 1943 as well as the tenure of Jack Smith (1943-46). But not Frank Reilly (1947-55) anymore!
Three coaches had one-season tenures lasting 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.
PUTTING A BOW ON 2023
The Dutchmen ended the calendar year with a loss for the third straight year. But as has often been the case this century, the Dutchmen still had a pretty good calendar year! The Dutchmen finished 24-9 in 2023, which is a winning percentage of .727. That ties the 2023 Dutchmen with the 2018 team for the fifth-best record compiled during a calendar year in the 2000s. Pretty good century so far in basketball, all things considered. Here’s the full list led, not surprisingly, by 2000 (Conan O’Brien voice goes here), when the Dutchmen made their first NCAA Tournament in March and began building towards a repeat over the final two months.
2000: 27-6 (.818)
2019: 26-9 (.743)
2006: 26-9 (.743)
2020: 19-7 (.731)
2023: 24-9 (.727)
2018: 24-9 (.727)
2001: 23-9 (.719)
2016: 24-11(.686)
2005: 20-10 (.667)
2004: 19-10 (.655)
2022: 21-12 (.636)
2009: 20-13 (.606)
2008: 19-13 (.594)
2015: 20-14 (.588)
2011: 20-14 (.588)
2021: 17-12 (.586)
2010: 18-15 (.545)
2007: 16-14 (.533)
2017: 13-15 (.464)
2014: 15-19 (.441)
2003: 11-19 (.367)
2002: 9-21 (.300)
2012: 7-24 (.292)
2013: 8-24 (.250)
THE BEST OF ’23
Like the very existence of I’ll Be Quirky, this idea comes from Islanders statistician and The Skinny author Eric Hornick, who compiled the Islanders’ 2023 leaderboard following their New Year’s Eve loss to the Penguins. Without further ado, here’s the Dutchmen’s leaders in the major statistical categories in 2023:
Points per game: Tyler Thomas, 20.3 ppg
Rebounds per game: Warren Williams & Jacco Fritz, 4.9 rpg***
Assists per game: Jaquan Carlos, 5.8 apg
Most total points: Tyler Thomas, 669
Most total rebounds: Darlinstone Dubar. 174
Most total assists: Jaquan Carlos, 190
Most points in a game: Aaron Estrada (40 vs. Elon on Jan. 26), Tyler Thomas (40 vs. High Point on Nov. 22)
Most rebounds in a game: Tyler Thomas (11 vs. Stony Brook on Feb. 4), Darlinstone Dubar (11 vs. South Florida on Nov. 30, 11 vs. Saint Louis on Dec. 9)
Most assists in a game: Jaquan Carlos (10 vs. Stony Brook on Feb. 4, 10 vs. South Florida on Nov. 30, 10 vs. Norfolk State on Dec. 16)
***Fritz officially averaged 4.92 rebounds per game, but he has 59 boards in 13 games while Williams had 98 rebounds in 20 games
A fun quirky fact: Aaron Estrada and Tyler Thomas each averaged exactly 19.0 points per game over the Dutchmen’s first 20 games in 2023, though Estrada missed one game due to illness.
20/20 NOT ENOUGH
The Dutchmen fell Saturday even though Tyler Thomas (24 points) and Darlinstone Dubar (23 points) each scored at least 20 points. The loss snapped an 11-game winning streak for the Dutchmen in games in which two players scored at least 20 points. The Dutchmen hadn’t lost with two 20-point scorers since Dec. 29, 2021 — that was two years and one day prior to Saturday! — when Aaron Estrada scored 21 points and Jalen Ray had 20 points in a very quirky 63-62 loss to William & Mary.
THOMAS LEADS THE WAY
Tyler Thomas led the Dutchmen in scoring and rebounding Saturday, when he had 24 points and nine boards. It’s the fifth time this season a player has led the Dutchmen in scoring and rebounding:
Tyler Thomas: 20 points/eight rebounds vs. George Washington, 11/14/23
Tyler Thomas: 40 points/eight rebounds vs. High Point, 11/22/23
Darlinstone Dubar: 12 points/10 rebounds vs. Iona, 12/6/23
Darlinstone Dubar: 24 points/eight rebounds vs. Duke, 12/12/23
Tyler Thomas: 24 points/nine rebounds vs. St. John’s, 12/30/23
In addition, Dubar led the Dutchmen with 18 points and tied Bryce Washington for the team lead with six rebounds against Princeton on Nov. 10.
TWENTY IN TWENTY-ONE
Tyler Thomas produced another 20-point game Saturday, when he finished with *checks notes again just to be sure* 24 points. It was the 21st time Thomas has scored at least 20 points in his 48 games with the Dutchmen dating back to last season. He has scored in double figures in 36 of his last 38 games and 41 times overall in the last two seasons.
THOMAS TOUGH FROM TWO
Tyler Thomas did most of his damage from outside the arc for a second straight game Saturday, when he was 6-of-8 from beyond the 3-point line but just 2-of-10 on his 2-point field goal attempts. Thomas is 3-of-19 from inside the 3-point line in his last two games.
D-STONE DEALING
Darlinstone Dubar continued his impressive season Saturday, when he finished with 23 points. Dubar has scored in double figures in all 13 games this season, which is his longest single-season stretch of consecutive double-figure efforts, and in 15 straight games overall dating back to the 88-86 overtime win over Rutgers in the first round of the NIT on Mar. 14.
SECOND HALF D-STONE
Darlinstone Dubar also continued his penchant for performing his best after halftime Dec. 21, when he scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half. Dubar has scored 236 points this season, including 137 in the second half or overtime. Shades of Justin Wright-Foreman’s breakout season in 2016-17.
D-STONE 1K (part one)
Darlinstone Dubar reached 1,000 career points Saturday, when he hit the milestone by sinking a 3-pointer with 9:50 left to begin the Dutchmen’s comeback attempt. Dubar finished the game with 1,007 points in four collegiate seasons dating back to his freshman campaign at Iowa State in 2020-21.
D-STONE 1K (part two)
Of course, Darlinstone Dubar has scored most of his points at Hofstra, where he now has 970 points and is taking aim at becoming the 41st player in school history to score 1,000 points for the Dutchmen. For the record, just one player in the DD Era has joined the 1,000-point club by scoring at least 30 points in his milestone game. Desure Buie scored 44 points against Elon on Jan. 4, 2020 — hey, that’s four years ago tonight! — to surge rom 968 points to 1,012 points. And the last player to reach 1,000 points for the Dutchmen was Aaron Estrada, who did it against…Charleston last Jan. 28. Hmmm.
NOT QUITE SHOPPING AT THE FIVE-AND-DIME FOR CARLOS
Jaquan Carlos scored all 10 of his points in the second half Saturday, when he finished with a team-high four assists. The Dutchmen are 2-3 this season with Carlos finishes with fewer than five assists.
PLOTNIKOV DOES IT ALL
German Plotnikov showed off his versatility Saturday, when he had seven points and three assists while occasionally running the point in 17 minutes. The seven points were the most for Plotnikov since he scored eight points against High Point on Nov. 22 while the three assists were a career-high. The 17 minutes were also his most since Nov. 22. Plotnikov missed the subsequent four games with an injury.
HERE’S TO YOU, KIJAN ROBINSON
Kijan Robinson continued his solid freshman season Saturday, when he scored eight points in a career-high 27 minutes — just two fewer minutes than he’d played over the previous five games combined. The eight points were Robinson’s most since he had a career-high 13 points against Buffalo on Nov 20.
FARMER'S FIELD GOAL
Fellow freshman Khalil Farmer scored three points in 16 minutes Saturday. He has exactly one field goal in four of his last five games.
SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY
With Jacco Fritz sidelined due to injury Saturday, Silas Sunday (alliteration!) drew his first start of the season and finished with four points and six rebounds in 13 minutes against his former head coach, Rick Pitino. The six rebounds were Sunday’s most against a Division I foe in his two seasons while the start was his second and his first since he started for Iona and Pitino against Princeton on Dec. 13, 2022.
WASHINGTON BLANKED
Bryce Washington had a quiet game Saturday, when he missed his lone field goal attempt and was scoreless in a season-low 10 minutes. Washington has been scoreless in two of the last four games — he played 16 minutes against Duke on Dec. 12 — and is the second Hofstra starter this season to have a pair of scoreless games. Jacco Fritz was held out of the scorebook against St. Joseph’s (NY) on Nov. 6 and against George Washington on Nov. 14.
A FOUL FREE THROW DISCREPANCY
St. John’s took a whopping 27 free throws in the second half Saturday (LOL) and finished with 31 free throw attempts overall compared to just six free throw attempts for the Dutchmen. Those are whistles Rick Pitino didn’t get at Iona! The free throw attempt differential of minus-25 is the most lopsided for the Dutchmen since way back on Nov. 13, 2009, when no, 1 Kansas got went to the line 40 times and the Dutchmen took just 13 free throw attempts in a 101-65 loss. Sure, officiating in college basketball is on the up-and-up!
SORIANO SILENCED
Despite the whopping foul discrepancy, the Dutchmen succeeded in shutting down Why Cant Fordham Get Guys Like Joel Soriano, whose double-double streak ended at five games when he had 14 points but just four rebounds — his lowest single-game rebounding total since he pulled down two boards for St. John’s in a 66-65 loss to Villanova in the Big East Tournament on Mar. 10, 2022. Soriano resumed collecting double-doubles Tuesday, when he had 14 points and 12 rebounds against Butler. Thus, Hofstra is much better than Butler.
OUR JENKINS IS STILL BETTER
Daniss Jenkins did his last name proud Saturday, when he nearly posted a triple-double while finishing with 21 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. He’s the second player this season to collect at least 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists against the Dutchmen. Kyle Filipowski had 28 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for Duke in its 89-68 win on Dec. 12.
WINNING THE NON-CONFERENCE SEASON
With Saturday’s loss, the Dutchmen finished the non-conference season 7-6. This marks the 10th straight season in which the Dutchmen hit the CAA schedule with a winning record and the 16th time they’ve done so in 22 seasons in the CAA. (League games that were played in the middle of the non-conference schedule were not counted but are listed separately)
2004-05: 8-1 (.889) 1-0 CAA
2018-19: 10-3 (.769)
2005-06: 6-2 (.750) 2-0 CAA
2008-09: 8-3 (.727) 1-0 CAA
2019-20: 9-4 (.692)
2014-15: 9-4 (.692)
2015-16: 8-4 (.667)
2006-07: 7-4 (.636) 1-0 CAA
2021-22: 8-5 (.615)
2016-17: 8-5 (.615)
2017-18: 7-5 (.583)
2009-10: 7-5 (.583) 1-0 CAA
2020-21: 4-3 (.571)
2010-11: 6-5 (.545) 1-0 CAA
2023-23: 7-6 (.538)
2022-23: 7-6 (.538)
OVER THE AIR
Tonight’s game will be carried live in the metro New York area on MSG2, which tonight is the overflow channel 205 in the Optimum/Altice Are Our Overlords Universe. You can also catch it on the MSG app if you have an Optimum/Altice Are Our Overlords subscription or somehow paid one billion dollars (approx) for the app. It will also be carried live on Flo Hoops. For subscription options, click here. Hofstra will also provide a radio feed as well as live stats at the Pride Productions hub.
HOFSTRA AND THE CAA
As noted in the above, err, note, this is Hofstra’s 23rd season in the CAA. The 23-year tenure in the CAA is the longest Hofstra has been in one league in Division I and tied for the third-longest tenure among current CAA members with fellow former North Atlantic Conference/America East members Drexel, Towson and Delaware (for now, anyway) behind only William & Mary (a founding member in 1982-83) and UNC Wilmington (1984-85).
The Flying Dutchmen spent 20 years in the ECC counting the 1992-93 season, when Hofstra played an independent schedule but was still considered a member of the ECC along with Central Connecticut State. In between exiting the ECC and joining the CAA, the Flying Dutchmen spent seven years in the North Atlantic Conference/America East.
WE’RE NUMBER ONE! (by at least two specially selected statistical measures)
The Flying Dutchmen have won 225 regular season league games since joining the CAA, the most among the six schools that have been in the league since at least 2001-02. The Dutchmen’s .577 winning percentage (225-165) in CAA regular season play ranks second behind only Northeastern among the seven longest-tenured schools in the league. Northeastern joined the CAA for the 2005-06 season.
HOFSTRA: 225-165 (.577)
Northeastern 174-140 (.554)
Drexel: 198-188 (.513)
UNCW: 196-187 (.512)
Delaware: 171-214 (.444)
W&M: 166-220 (.430)
Towson: 158-230 (.407)
Drexel winning its quirky league opener Monday snapped a virtual tie for third place in these standings.
In addition, the Dutchmen have won 207 games since start of the 2013-14 season, the first season of the Joe Mihalich/Mike Farrelly/Speedy Claxton era. That’s the most wins for any school that’s spent any time in the CAA over the last 10-plus seasons (‘sup James Madison).
HOFSTRA 207
Charleston 198
Stony Brook 192
Towson 181
UNC Wilmington 179
Monmouth 174
Northeastern 164
Delaware 162
William & Mary 161
Campbell 161
James Madison 157
Hampton 154
Elon 140
Drexel 134
North Carolina A&T 125
THE DUTCHMEN IN CAA OPENERS
The Dutchmen are 13-9 in the first game of league play since joining the CAA in 2001-02. They’ve won five of the last six openers following an 87-73 win over Delaware on Dec. 29, 2022.
The Dutchmen are playing Charleston in the CAA opener for the first time, But in a quirky bit of, uhh, quirkiness, this marks the second straight season the Dutchmen are facing the defending league champion after never doing so during their first 21 seasons in the CAA.
SCOUTING CHARLESTON
The defending CAA champions Cougars (duh), under third-year head coach Pat Kelsey, are 9-4 after ending their non-conference schedule by beating NAIA Montreat, 96-59, last Friday.
The Dutchmen and Cougars had one common opponent in non-conference play. The Dutchmen beat Iona, 62-57 on Dec. 6, exactly one month after Charleston opened its season with a 71-69 win over the Gaels.
The Dutchmen, who were picked to finish fourth in the CAA preseason poll, are ranked 109th at KenPom.com. The Cougars, who were picked to finish first, are ranked 126th.
According to KenPom.com, the Dutchmen rank second in the CAA in offensive efficiency (109.0 points per 100 possessions) and second in defensive efficiency (103.1 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 67.6 possessions per 40 minutes, the 10th-most in the league. The Cougars rank fifth in the CAA in offensive efficiency (106.8 points per 100 possessions) and third in defensive efficiency (103.3 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 73.4 possessions per 40 minutes, the second-most in the league.
Junior Ben Burnham leads the Cougars with 13.7 points per game. Fellow junior Reyne Smith, who was selected to the preseason all-CAA second team, is averaging 11.9 points per game while junior Ante Brzovic, a preseason all-CAA first team selection who is in his second season at Charleston after opening his career at Southeast Oklahoma State, is averaging 10.4 points per game and a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game. Graduate student native Frankie Policelli, a preseason all-CAA honorable mention selection who went to high school on Long Island and played the previous three seasons at Stony Brook, is averaging 8.4 points per game.
KenPom.com predicts a 79-74 win for the Dutchmen. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 4-point favorites. The Dutchmen are 6-6 against the spread this season.
ALL-TIME VS. COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON
Hofstra is 10-8 against Charleston in a series that began with the Cougars joining the CAA prior to the 2013-14 season. The Dutchmen won the lone meeting between the teams last season, when they ended then-no. 18 Charleston’s 20-game winning streak with an 85-81 victory in Charleston on Jan, 28. Nine of the last 12 games between the teams have been decided by six points or fewer. Charleston was the only team Hofstra didn’t face during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season.
THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY
Pat Kelsey made out a pretty good Reds lineup for a game against the Mets in September bias! (A mouthful but also true)
The Reds have done more than the Mets this offseason bias! (Who hasn’t?)
Pat Kelsey may take over the entire Atlantic seaboard bias! (He’s the Hank Scorpio of college hoops, you know)
Taylor Clarke bias! (The Royals pitcher went to Charleston)
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