The only prescription for what ails us is a win over Stony Brook.
It’s been 334 days since Stony Brook delivered the most painful upset possible of the Flying Dutchmen in the CAA Tournament semifinals. Maybe today we find out this afternoon it’s even more painful to fall under .500 by losing to the Seawolves on Homecoming! Pessimistic, but hey, better to steel ourselves just in case, right? (A good attitude in general these days)
As will hopefully be the routine now that conference play has begun, I ran down the boilerplate material from Thursday’s loss in Friday’s Keep It Perky. Today will be about the individual news and notes from that loss (not as bad as Campbell but still not great) as well as a preview of the Seawolves. Enjoy!
DAMNIT WE ARE RUNNING OUT OF TIME
24 reference! With Thursday night’s loss, the Dutchmen fell to 12-12 this season. Since 12 is my favorite number, you’d think I’d like that. Alas! This is the first time the Dutchmen haven’t been over .500 through 24 games since the 2016-17 season, when they were 11-13 on their way to their most recent sub-.500 finish. Every other CAA team has been at .500 or under at least once through 24 games since then with the exception of Charleston, which has the pandemic-related asterisk of finishing 9-10 during the 2020-21 season. The Dutchmen only played 23 games that season but finished 13-10.
SECOND TIME MUCH WORSE THAN THE FIRST
Northeastern salvaged a split of the season series (the Barone Bowl remains ours though unless we lose in the CAA Tournament but what are the odds of that?) with their 77-68 win Thursday night. The Huskies more than doubled their output from the first game in Boston Jan. 4. When the Dutchmen earned a 55-37 victory. The 40-point increase from the first meeting of the season to the second is the largest by a Hofstra opponent since the 2006-07 season, when Drexel improved by 42 points between a 55-53 overtime loss on Jan. 11 and a 95-87 overtime win on Feb. 8. The second overtime game having 74 more total points than the first overtime game, now that’s quirky!
FIRST HALF FADES
The end of the first half unfolded in familiar fashion for the Dutchmen Thursday night, when Northeastern went on an 8-0 run in the final two minutes (actually, LA Pratt went on an 8-0 run). The Dutchmen have been outscored 43-27 in the final two minutes of the first half in 11 league games, during which their opponent has shot 13-of-28 from the field in the last two minutes and scored on their final possession six times. The Dutchmen have shot 11-of-29 from the field in the last two minutes of the first half and scored on their last possession four times. The disparity has been particularly stark in the last four games, during which the Dutchmen have been outscored 23-8 in the final two minutes of the half while surrendering points on the opponent’s last possession every time. The Dutchmen haven’t scored on their final possession of the first half since Jan. 25, when Michael Graham’s dunk preceded a free throw by Campbell’s Cam Gregory.
TWO-MAN SHOW
Jean Aranguren (35 points) and Cruz Davis (18 points) combined to score 53 of the Dutchmen’s 68 points Thursday night. Another way to put it: They accounted for 78 percent of the Dutchmen’s points, which was the largest percentage accounted for by two players since way back on Jan. 16, 2000, when Speedy Claxton (40 points) and Norman Richardson (25 points) combined for 65 points, or 80.2 percent of the Dutchmen’s points in an 81-72 win over Hartford. That was 805 games ago! And in a truly quirky bit of minutiae: The combined output for Aranguren and Davis on Thursday officially accounted for 77.9 percent of the Dutchmen’s points, which is just fractionally larger than the combined output for Carlos Rivera (25 points) and Loren Stokes (20 points) when their 45 points accounted for 77.6 percent of the Dutchmen’s points in the infamous 58-49 win over George Mason in the CAA Tournament semifinals on Mar. 5, 2006. Quirky!
JEAN COOKS UP A THIRTY-BURGER
The above-mentioned note is a convenient segue into breaking down the big game for Jean Aranguren, who joined some pretty select company Thursday night by scoring a career-high 35 points and adding 10 rebounds. Aranguren is the 24th Hofstra player since the 1988-89 season — which is as far back as my game logs go at home — to score at least 30 points in a game and the fifth to do so under Speedy Claxton. He is also the 13th player since the 1988-89 season to score 35 points in a game. Aranguren’s 35 points Thursday night were the most by a Hofstra player since Tyler Thomas scored a career-high 40 points in a 97-92 overtime win over High Point on Nov. 22, 2023.
THE 35/10 CLUB…EVERY 33 YEARS
Jean Aranguren became just the second Hofstra player since the 1988-89 season to collect at least 35 points and 10 rebounds in a game — and, in a very Hofstra thing, became the second Hofstra player since the 1988-89 season to collect at least 35 points and 10 rebounds in a loss 33 years to the date of the last time it happened. The late great Demetrius Dudley had 37 points and 10 rebounds for the Flying Dutchmen (who really were the Flying Dutchmen back then!) on, I really am not making this up, Feb. 6, 1992, when the Dutchmen lost to Towson State 80-70. Two 35/10 games, separated by exactly 33 years and both coming in losses. Now that’s quirky! The sliver of good news here is Dudley’s big game came in the final regular season loss for the Dutchmen, who won their next nine games before falling to Towson State in the ECC championship game, which really was a real thing back then!
THE 35/10 IN A LOSS CLUB
Jean Aranguren became just the third Division I player this season to record at least 35 points and 10 rebounds in a defeat Thursday night, when he, as you know by now, had 35 point and 10 rebounds. Aranguren joins Sacramento State’s Jacob Holt, who had 35 points and 10 rebounds in an 80-67 loss to Idaho on Jan. 9, and Alabama A&M’s Anthony Bryant, who had 39 points and 10 rebounds in a 103-93 triple overtime loss to Jackson State on Jan. 13.
ALMOST ALL ARANGUREN
Jean Aranguren scored 35 of the Dutchmen’s 68 points Thursday night, or 51.5 percent of the Dutchmen’s total points. He’s the first Hofstra player to account for more than 50 percent of the Dutchmen’s points since Tyler Thomas ended his career by scoring 32 points accounting for 54.2 percent of the Dutchmen’s points in a 63-59 loss to Stony Brook in the CAA Tournament semifinals last Mar. 11.
COLLECTING FREEBIES
Jean Aranguren did much of his damage from the free throw line Thursday night, when he finished 14-of-18 from the charity stripe. The 18 free throw attempts were the most by a Hofstra player since Nov. 19, 2013, when the late great Zeke Upshaw was 15-of-18 from the line in his 37-point breakout performance in a 74-63 overtime loss to Richmond. The 14 made free throws were the most by a Hofstra player since Dec. 15, 2020, when Tareq Coburn went 14-of-16 from the line in a 96-88 win over Monmouth.
JEAN FITS
You might have figured this out by now, but Jean Aranguren extended his streak of double-digit scoring efforts to 14 straight games Saturday, when he finished with 35 points while going 9-of-13 from the field, including 3-of-4 from 3-point land. Aranguren has scored in double figures 21 times in 24 games overall after reaching double figures just nine times in 33 games last season with Iona.
CRUZ-IN
Cruz Davis continued his midseason resurgence Thursday night, when he finished with 18 points, seven assists, three rebounds and one steal. Davis has scored in double figures in a season- and career-high six straight games after scoring in double figures just twice in his previous six games from Dec. 29 through Jan. 16 Alas, the loss Thursday dropped the Dutchmen to 9-6 when Davis scores in double figures.
GRAHAM CRACKIN’
Michael Graham had an up-and-down game Thursday night, when he scored six points but shot just 3-of-12 from the field while adding 10 rebounds before he exited due to what appeared to be a lower leg injury with 1:09 remaining. To be fair to Graham, many of the misses were layups that rolled off the rim. Still, the nine missed field goal attempts were just three fewer than Graham had in his previous seven games combined, when he shot a robust 74.4 percent (35-of-47) from the field. The 10-rebound game marked the ninth time this season Graham has reached double figures in rebounds. He had just seven 10-rebound games the previous two seasons at Loyola Marymount.
THE GOOD KIND OF THIEVERY
German Plotnikov, the lone returning player who made a start last season for the Dutchmen, came off the bench for the second straight game Thursday, when he was scoreless but collected three steals and one rebound in 15 minutes before suffering what appeared to be a lower leg injury with 5:16 left. The three steals marked the fourth time this season Plotnikov has recorded at least three steals in a game. The scoreless effort snapped a 15-game scoring streak dating back to Nov. 30 for Plotnikov.
TJ TO THE EXTREME
TJ Gadsden had another quiet game Thursday night, when he scored three points while draining his only field goal attempt. He also added two rebounds and two steals in 27 minutes. Gadsden has scored seven points or fewer in each of his last six games and has scored in double figures just twice this season after scoring at least 10 points in 11 of 25 games last season for Canisius.
FARMER AID
Is Khalil Farmer hitting a late-season wall? Farmer made his third straight start Thursday night, when he finished with two points on 1-of-4 shooting while adding two rebounds in 20 minutes. Farmer has just five points and three rebounds over 66 minutes in his last three games after collecting 40 points and six rebounds in five games (one start) from Jan. 11 through Jan. 25. Overall, Farmer has scored in 16 of the last 19 games in which he’s played after he didn’t score in his first two games of the season.
WHERE HAVE YOU GONE, MR. ROBINSON?
Same song headline, different vibes! KiJan Robinson was quiet again Thursday night, when he finished with two points on 1-of-5 shooting from the field while adding one rebound and one assist in 14 minutes. Robinson has just 13 points over 58 minutes in the Dutchmen’s last six games, a span in which he was held scoreless twice and played a total of 30 minutes. He was held scoreless just twice in the Dutchmen’s first 18 games, a span in which he averaged 8.1 points and 21 minutes per game.
SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY
Silas Sunday followed up one of his busiest and most productive games with one of his briefest stints Thursday night, when he scored two points on 1-of-4 shooting while playing just six minutes. Sunday had 10 points over 17 minutes in last Saturdays 75-52 loss to Campbell. The six minutes were the fewest Sunday has played since he played five scoreless minutes in a 74-56 loss to William & Mary on Jan. 2. Sunday has scored in 19 of the 24 games in which he’s played this season after scoring 15 times in 32 games last season.
DECADY RETURNS
Joshua DeCady, who was ejected from last Saturday’s 75-52 loss to Campbell after he nearly fought with Nolan Dorsey, returned to action Thursday night, when he was was scoreless while going 0-for-3 from the field with one rebound in eight minutes. DeCady has scored in just one of the last six games in which he’s played, though that one game was his career-best 15-point outburst in the 74-63 win over Not Twitter Guy on Jan. 30.
STRUGGLING SANDERS
Jaquan Sanders’ up-and-down season took another downward turn Saturday afternoon, when he was scoreless missing his lone shot, a 3-point attempt, in four minutes. Sanders has just 26 points on 9-of-45 shooting, including 7-of-37 from 3-point land, in the last 11 games in which he’s played dating back to Dec. 6 after opening the season by averaging 11.3 points and shooting 34 percent from the field, including 33 percent from 3-point land, over the Dutchmen’s first nine games.
OVER THE AIR
This afternoon’s game is slated to be carried live on FloHoops.com (subscription required, click here for options) as well as on MSG Networks if you are in the New York area and/or somehow paid one billion dollars (approx) for the Gotham Sports app. Of course, if you live in New York and/or paid one billion dollars (approx) for the Gotham Sports app you are totally out of luck at the moment. Hooray for more carriage disputes! Hofstra will provide a radio feed as well as live stats at the Pride Productions hub.
SCOUTING STONY BROOK
The Seawolves, under sixth-year head coach Geno Ford, are 5-19 overall and 1-10 in CAA play after falling to Towson, 66-59, on Thursday night. Stony Brook has lost three straight, though its average margin of defeat against title contenders Towson, Charleston and UNC Wilmington has been just eight points. Overall, seven of the Seawolves’ 10 league losses have been by 10 points or fewer. Gulp.
The Dutchmen and Seawolves had two common opponents in non-conference play. The Dutchmen beat Division III St. Joseph’s (NY) 114-46 on Dec. 6, just under three weeks after Stony Brook earned a 93-45 win over the Golden Eagles on Nov. 16. The Dutchmen also defeated Norfolk State 80-67 on Dec. 9, eight days after the Spartans knocked off the Seawolves 77-66.
In CAA play, both teams have lost to William & Mary, Drexel and Charleston. The Dutchmen beat Delaware and UNC Wilmington, each of whom defeated the Seawolves. Hofstra lost to Towson, who swept Stony Brook, and was swept by Campbell, which won its lone game against the Seawolves. The Dutchmen split with Northeastern, which beat Stony Brook.
The Dutchmen, who were picked to finish fourth in the CAA preseason poll, are ranked 191st at KenPom.com, which is their second-lowest ranking of the season. The Seawolves, who were picked to finish ninth, are ranked 330th, 60 spots lower than their preseason ranking but an improvement of 12 spots since the morning of Jan. 25, when Stony Brook beat North Carolina A&T for its first CAA win,
According to KenPom.com, the Dutchmen rank last in the CAA in conference-only offensive efficiency (99.5 points per 100 possessions) and third in defensive efficiency (101.0 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 63.9 possessions per 40 minutes, the 12th-most in the league. The Seawolves rank 11th in the CAA in offensive efficiency (101.9 points per 100 possessions) and are last in defensive efficiency (115.6 points per 100 possessions) while averaging 64.1 possessions per 40 minutes, the 11th-most in the league.
The Seawolves return six players from last year’s team, though four of their top five scorers from the squad that made a Cinderella run to the CAA championship game graduated. Graduated?! In this economy?! Junior CJ Luster, who played a season apiece at Kilgore College and Salt Lake Community College, leads Stony Brook with 15.2 points per game while graduate student Joe Octave, a preseason all-CAA honorable mention selection who opened his career with two seasons apiece at Air Force and Holy Cross, is averaging 13.3 points per game. Graduate student Ben Wight, who played his first three seasons at William & Mary before spending last season with Toledo, is averaging 8.8 points per game and ranks second on the team with 5.4 rebounds per game and 1.7 assists per game. Senior Andre Snoddy, in his second season at Stony Brook after two seasons with Central Connecticut State (my parents’ alma mater!), leads the Seawolves with 7.1 rebounds per game. True freshman Collin O’Connor is averaging a team-high 2.9 assists per game.
KenPom.com predicts a 69-58 win for the Dutchmen. Per the wise guys in Vegas, for entertainment purposes only, the Dutchmen are 11-point favorites. Perhaps this means German Plotnikov and Michael Graham are going to play? The Dutchmen are 10-12 against the spread this season.
ALL-TIME VS. STONY BROOK
Hofstra is 28-7 NICE FOOTBALL SCORE all-time against Stony Brook, including 10-3 THAT’S ALSO A NICE FOOTBALL SCORE since the series resumed in 2014. The Seawolves got the last laugh to end all last laughs last season, when the Dutchmen swept the regular season series before Stony Brook recorded a 63-59 upset win in the CAA Tournament semifinals on Mar. 11. Tyler Thomas ended his career in gallant fashion by scoring 32 points while collecting nine rebounds and six assists.
Hofstra is 52-49-3 in all sports against Stony Brook since the two schools began scheduling each other again in the spring of 2014, including 48-38-3 since the 2016-17 school year began. However, the Dutchmen are a not-so-nice 6-9-1 against the Seawolves dating back to Mar. 11.
WINTER HOMECOMING
Everyone knows real homecoming is in the fall with football, but, well, you know what happened there. But the good news (for now anyway!) is the Dutchmen are 4-0 since winter homecoming debuted in 2020, though three of the wins were by four points or fewer or in overtime. The 2021 homecoming game against Charleston, which was going to be played without fans due to the pandemic, was canceled due to, yup, the pandemic. Stony Brook will be the first two-time homecoming opponent for the Dutchmen.
2/8/20: Hofstra 75, Northeastern 71
2/5/22: Hofstra 85, James Madison 78 (OT)
2/4/23: Hofstra 79, Stony Brook 58
2/3/24: Hofstra 59, Towson 56
THINGS YOU CAN SHOUT ON TWITTER (OR BLUESKY) IF CALLS GO DO NOT GO HOFSTRA’S WAY
You’ve still had more winless football seasons than us bias! (You can’t win — or lose — if you don’t play!)
Needs more cowbell bias! (Buck Dharma, the founder of Blue Oyster Cult, went to Stony Brook)
We’ve had to eat from your lemon tree bias the last 334 days bias! (Painful but true)
We’re closer to having a Manhattan campus than you bias! (Since we’re in Nassau County and all and the Stony Brook Manhattan campus closed in 2017)
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