Welcome to the slightly tweaked gameday I’ll Be Quirky! If you’re stopping by for the first time since Thursday afternoon and wondering what I’m yammering about with a slightly tweaked gameday I’ll Be Quirky, I debuted the postgame version of IBQ overnight Thursday in which I recapped the 72-71 win over Stony Brook (hee hee) and handled the usual post-victory boilerplate work — the 3 Stars of the Game, unicorn score and Keith Hernandez along with how the Flying Dutchmen are historically faring through this point in the season and Speedy Claxton’s standing with previous coaches through however many games. Read that, and a further explanation of why I’m tinkering with two versions of the IBQ, here.
With the usual postgame work completed, today’s IBQ will look at the team-related quirkiness from Thursday’s win as well as some of the individual news and notes before previewing Towson. If you have any thoughts on the new format, please drop me a line on Twitter (yeah that’s what I’m calling it). In the meantime, read on to learn all about double-digit comeback wins, the Dutchmen’s streak of closely contested games, Jaquan Carlos’ near triple-double and much more before a look at the Tigers!
BUZZER-BEATING BLISS
Tyler Thomas’ game-winning jumper with 0.4 seconds left gave the Dutchmen their first victory in the final second since Jan. 9, 2020, when Eli Pemberton drained the tie-breaking floater in the lane with 0.5 seconds left in a 74-72 win over Northeastern.
DOUBLE-DIGIT COMEBACK (part one)
The Dutchmen, who trailed by 13 points early in the second half Thursday, overcame a double-digit deficit in a win for the third time this season. The Dutchmen trailed Wright State by 13 points in the first half of an 85-76 win on Nov. 21 and trailed Hampton by 18 points in the first half of an 86-77 win on Jan. 18. Those are two nearly identical final scores! The Dutchmen have overcome a double-digit deficit in nine victories under Speedy Claxton over the last three seasons.
DOUBLE-DIGIT COMEBACK (part two)
The Dutchmen trailed by at least 10 points at halftime of the wins over Wright State, Hampton and Stony Brook, the latter of whom led 41-31 at intermission Thursday. This marks the first time since at least the 2006-07 season —which is as far back as play-by-play logs go at the Hofstra site — that the Dutchmen have won three games in which they trailed at the half. Perhaps this season should be sponsored by Rolaids. Or maybe it should be sponsored by…
TEAM BARBASOL
Thanks to loyal reader EvanJ for asking about this truly quirky stat: The close shaves continued Thursday for the Dutchmen, when they played their ninth straight game decided by fewer than 10 points. That’s the longest streak of such games way back in 1985-86, when the Flying Dutchmen — who really were called the Flying Dutchmen back then! — ended the season with nine straight games decided by single digits.
TEAMS BARBASOL
The Dutchmen and Stony Brook continued a post-reunion (why did the teams stop playing anyway, hmm, I have no idea) tradition by playing another close game Thursday. Nine of the 12 games to be played since the series continued in 2014 have been decided by fewer than 10 points, including five decided by three points or fewer. Hofstra is 8-1 in the games decided by fewer than 10 points and 4-1 in those decided by three points or fewer. Just the facts!
NO BENCH BRIGADE
The Dutchmen received all 72 points from their starters Thursday, when Bryce Washington, KiJan Robinson, Silas Sunday and Khalil Farmer combined to go 0-for-7 from the field in 25 minutes. It was the second time this season Dutchmen reserves were held scoreless — Farmer, Robinson, Sunday and German Plotnikov didn’t score in 36 minutes in the 73-61 loss to Charleston on Jan. 4 — and the first time no reserves have scored in a win for the Dutchmen since the 70-61 victory over Northeastern in the CAA title game on Mar. 10, 2020. And then what happened?
A SECOND-HALF TEAM
After scoring more points in the first half than the second half in last Saturday’s 81-78 loss to Monmouth, the Dutchmen returned to form Thursday by following up a 31-point first half with a 41-point second half. The Dutchmen are averaging 40.4 points per second half (889 points overall) as opposed to averaging 34.4 points per first half (756 points overall). I’d have to imagine that’s one of the biggest discrepancies in Division I. (These figures don’t include the nine points the Dutchmen scored in overtime of the 97-92 win over High Point on Nov. 22)
DUBAR MOVIN’ ON UP
Darlinstone Dubar had one of his quietest games of the year Thursday but still moved up two spots on the all-time Hofstra scoring list. Dubar finished with 10 points, which increased his career total to 1,141 points and lifted him past Wandy Williams and Nathaniel Lester into 31st place. Dubar is 20 points away from moving past Ted Jackson for 30th place.
29.) Rokas Gustys 1,184
30.) Ted Jackson 1,159
31.) DARLINSTONE DUBAR 1,141
32.) Nathaniel Lester 1,139
33.) Wandy Williams 1,132
34.) Mike Moore 1,128
35.) Richie Swartz 1,107
THOMAS MOVIN’ ON UP, TOO
Tyler Thomas, who joined Dubar in the 1,000-point club on Jan. 25, also also moved up the all-time Hofstra scoring list Thursday, when his 26 points increased his career total to 1,053 points and lifted him past Percy Johnson into 39th place. Thomas is eight points away from moving past Darius Burton for 38th place, 17 points away from surpassing Derrick Flowers for 37th place and 38 points away from surging past Ameen Tanksley for 36th place.
36.) Ameen Tanksley 1,090
37.) Derrick Flowers 1,069
38.) Darius Burton 1,060
39.) TYLER THOMAS 1,053
40.) Percy Johnson 1,045
41.) James Shaffer 1,022
42.) John Irving 1,018
NO DOUBTING THOMAS
Tyler Thomas, who snapped a three-game slump last Saturday, had another strong game Thursday, when he scored 26 points while going 10-of-21 from the field, including 7-of-13 from inside the 3-point line. Thomas has scored in double figures in 45 of his last 47 games and 50 times overall in the last two seasons. The 26-point effort Saturday marked the 15th time this season Thomas has scored at least 20 points and the 27th time he’s done so at Hofstra.
SEVEN THE HARD WAY
(This is a nifty Pat Benatar reference, BTW)
The seven two-pointers for Tyler Thomas Thursday #Alliteration matched a season-high, set previously when he was 7-of-13 in a 71-68 los to Saint Louis on Dec. 9 and again when he went 7-of-14 in a 69-68 loss to Campbell on Jan. 13. The 53.8 shooting percentage from inside the arc was tied for the second-best of the season for Thomas (minimum 10 two-point field goal attempts), who shot 54.5 percent (6-of-11) on two-point baskets in a 73-61 loss to Charleston on Jan. 4.
FLIRTING WITH THE TRIP-DUB
You know a game was wild when someone nearly collects a triple-double and it takes almost 1,500 words to begin talking about him. Jaquan Carlos came as close as possible to compiling a triple-double without doing so on Thursday, when he finished with 11 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. It marked the second time Carlos had at least nine points, nine assists and nine rebounds. He had 10 points, nine assists and nine rebounds in a 72-53 win over Northeastern last Feb. 8. Not surprisingly, the only player to come closer to a triple-double without finishing with one in the Defiantly Dutch era (1993-pres) was…who else but Speedy Claxton, who had 10 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists against Maine on Feb. 22, 1998. I love it when a quirky fact comes together! Juan’ya Green recorded the only triple-double in school history Dec. 28, 2014, when he had 15 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in an 88-62 win over Long Island University at Barclays Center.
A PERFECT TEN (part one)
Jaquan Carlos had 10 assists and no turnovers Thursday. It was the sixth time Carlos has collected at least 10 assists and the first time he’s done so without committing a turnover. Carlos is the first Hofstra player to have at least 10 assists with no turnovers since Aaron Estrada recorded 10 assists and no turnovers in a 102-51 win over John Jay on Dec. 12, 2021 and the first player to do so against a Division I opponent since Chaz Williams had 10 assists and no turnovers in a 75-58 win over New Hampshire on Dec. 12, 2009. Wow! Twelve years spanning three decades! In between, Desure Buie had 10 assists and no turnovers in a 107-54 win over Division III Rosemont on Dec. 22, 2018.
A PERFECT TEN (part two)
Per Hofstra SID Stephen Gorchov, Jaquan Carlos is the 26th Division I player this season to finish with at least 10 assists and no turnovers in a game and the 19th to do so against a fellow Division I opponent.
GERMAN FOR STARTERS
German Plotnikov’s move to the starting lineup has been a winning move for both the Dutchmen — who are 4-1 since Plotnikov swapped spots with Bryce Washington — and Plotnikov. The junior set a career-high in scoring for the second time in three games Thursday, when he finished with 17 points in 30 minutes. Plotnikov is averaging 11.0 points. 2.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists over 31 minutes per game as a starter after averaging 3.7 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.6 assists over 14 minutes per game in 13 games this season as a reserve.
D-STONE DEALING
Darlinstone Dubar had a quiet game by his standards Thursday, when he tied a season-low by finishing with 10 points. But that was enough to maintain a pair of impressive streaks for Dubar, who has scored in double figures in all 22 games this season — which is his longest single-season stretch of consecutive double-figure efforts — and in 24 straight games overall dating back to the 88-86 overtime win over Rutgers in the first round of the NIT on Mar. 14. The latter streak is the longest by a Hofstra player since Aaron Estrada ended his career with the Dutchmen by scoring in double figures in his final 24 games last season. That stretch actually spanned 28 games because Estrada missed three games due to an ankle injury and one game due to illness.
PUTTIN’ ON THE FRITZ
Jacco Fritz made Tyler Thomas’ game-winning shot possible by coming up big in the final minute Thursday. Fritz hit a layup off a Jaquan Carlos feed from underneath the basket to pull the Dutchmen within 69-68 and then put back a Carlos miss to narrow the gap to 71-70. Overall, Fritz finished with eight points and five rebounds while drawing just two fouls over 29 minutes.
BRYCE BLANKED
For a second straight game, a quirky stat involving Bryce Washington took a hit. This one happened in victory, though! Washington was held scoreless in the win as the Dutchmen improved to 2-8 when he scores fewer than seven points. The graduate transfer had seven points in last Saturday’s 81-78 loss to Monmouth, when the Dutchmen fell to 10-2 when Washington scores at least seven points.
FARMER AID FOR THE DUTCHMEN
Khalil Farmer got some run in the second half Thursday, when he missed a pair of 3-point attempts in three minutes. It was the first action for Farmer since he played two minutes in the 86-77 win over Hampton on Jan. 18.
OVER THE AIR
Tonight’s game — tipping at the rare Saturday time of 6 PM because the teevee the teevee — 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 TOWSON
The Tigers, under 13th-year head coach Pat Skerry, are 14-8 this season and 7-2 in CAA play following an 83-76 win over Northeastern on Thursday night. It was the fifth straight win for Towson.
The Dutchmen and Tigers had no common opponents in non-conference play. In CAA play, both teams have lost to Monmouth and beaten Delaware. The Dutchmen lost to Charleston, whom Towson beat, and swept Stony Brook, whom the Tigers beat in the only regular season matchup between the schools. Towson split with Northeastern, which beat the Dutchmen, and beat Campbell, which also beat the Dutchmen.
The Dutchmen, who were picked to finish fourth in the CAA preseason poll, are ranked 148th at KenPom.com. They’ve slipped following each of the last six games despite being 4-2 in that span. The Tigers, who were picked to finish tied for fifth with Delaware, are ranked 142nd.
According to KenPom.com, the Dutchmen rank sixth in the CAA in conference-only offensive efficiency (106.6 points per 100 possessions) and fifth in defensive efficiency (104.8 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 68.1 possessions per 40 minutes, the third-most in the league. The Tigers rank fifth in the CAA in offensive efficiency (108.1 points per 100 possessions) and first in defensive efficiency (98.5 per 100 possessions) while averaging 63.0 possessions per 40 minutes, the fewest in the league.
Sophomore Christian May leads Towson with 12.4 points per game and ranks second with 4.7 rebounds per game. Junior Nendah Tarke, who played his first three seasons at Coppin State, is averaging 10.8 points per game since making his debut for the Tigers on Dec. 16. Redshirt freshman Dylan Williamson is averaging 10.6 points per game and a team-high 3.1 assists per game. Graduate student Charles Thompson, a preseason all-CAA first-team selection who has played all five seasons at Towson, is averaging 8.8 points per game and leads the Tigers with 7.7 rebounds per game.
KenPom.com predicts a 67-64 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 7-14 against the spread this season, including 1-8 in CAA play. Good thing nobody keeps track of standings that way!
THE ECC RACE
This has always only been a thing to me (and maybe Litos) but the best race in American sports is further compromised this season by the dreadful unbalanced schedule. None of the four ECC teams are playing a round-robin against each other — and the Dutchmen are playing Delaware and Towson, their first- and third-most frequent rivals, just once apiece this season — so the ECC champion will be determined by winning percentage and will actually be decided tonight if Towson wins to complete a sweep of everybody with only a game against Delaware left. So don’t win, Tigers!
Towson 2-0
HOFSTRA 1-0
Drexel 1-1
Delaware 0-3
The Flying Dutchmen won the ECC title last season after Towson took home the very real hardware in 2021-22.
ALL-TIME VS. TOWSON
Hofstra is 47-30 against Towson in a series that began during the 1982-83 season, when both schools were in the East Coast Conference. The teams split last season’s series, when Towson overcame an early 10-point deficit to beat the Dutchmen 68-47 in Maryland on Jan. 16, 2023 before Hofstra returned the favor by climbing back from an 11-point first-half deficit to earn a 76-72 victory at the Arena on Feb. 2, 2023. One year ago last night!
Hofstra and Towson opposed one another in the ECC and the North Atlantic Conference/America East before moving together to the CAA for the 2001-02 school year. Hofstra has faced only two opponents as often as it’s faced Towson: Longtime conference rivals Delaware and Drexel. Yeah, about that…
ONE TIME ONLY
The unbalanced schedule means this season marks the second time since 1982-83 — when I believe the ECC schedule consisted of just a single round-robin — that Hofstra and Towson are in the same conference and playing each other just once in the regular season. They played each other twice apiece from 1983-84 through then-Towson State’s last year in the ECC in 1991-92 and twice a season every year from 1995-96 — when Towson joined the NAC following a short pitstop in the Big South — through 2010-11 before playing just once during the 2011-12 season when the CAA had 12 teams. That’s 36 times in 37 years the two teams played each other twice per season, including a campaign played in a pandemic. I know there’s a lot of balls to juggle in the air when scheduling a 14-team league, but it’s a bummer there’s no home-and-home this season.
THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY
Hasn’t Charles Thompson been there longer than Andrei Semenov was at James Madison bias? (Sure seems that way, but good to see someone playing his entire career at one school)
The Orioles finally got sold this week bias! (And then they got Corbin Burnes)
Nicolas Timberlake can’t shoot the lights out here anymore bias! (Timberlake, who played five years at Towson, transferred to Kansas for his free pandemic season after shooting a whopping 60.6 percent — 20-of-33 — from 3-point land at the Arena)
Jermon Bushrod bias! (The Towson graduate played 12 seasons in the NFL and won a Super Bowl with the Saints in 2009)
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