Hofstra vs CoC 1/19/19

[Dooku25]

We are truly watching something special this season. The talent on display is the best in the conference. But talent only gets you so far. The difference for this team that separates themselves is their hunger to win. You can see how determined they are to do something special this year. The turnaround on defense this year from previous JM coached teams is nothing less than miraculous. Lack of depth has also been an issue of previous teams but this might be our deepest team ever. Throw in we are 2nd in the nation in FT percentage and really we have no holes. I was very interested to see how we'd look against COC, especially with them coming off a loss, and we went out and made them look very ordinary. Their roster this year reminds me more our past teams. 2 studs (Riller and Brantley) and nothing much else. We have too many weapons this year. It's all there for the taking. It's ok to start dreaming, even if you consider the heartbreaks of the past. The nations longest winning streak should give us some national attention this week, attention we deserve. It's been a fun ride so far, very excited to see how far this team can go!

[HU76]

This team is special. Us long time Hofstra guys know when we see it. I was the SID for the 76-77 teams who first went the the big dance and I was also around for Jay Wright's teams.
I have never seen a Hofstra team that has the chemistry of this team! They find very different ways to win but they win. Justin was awesome tonight feeding his teammates...Eli has been on a tear and Jaquil has been awesome taking on every big he sees.
Desire has quietly run this team and Ray off the bench should be sixth man of the year.

Enjoy the ride folks because this type of team only comes along once in awhile.

I couldn't agree with you more SID and I go back to the days when u were the SID here and I loved that team in 76-77. I still feel that Rich Laurel may have been the best that ever played here certainly in the conversation. JT is really playing well and adds a dimension to this club that was not here the past few years. He seems poised also at the FT line which is huge for us.We're not going to lose close games at the FT line anymore. But as far as JT being the best that's ever been here I would probably vote for John Irving who led the country in rebounding and was more of an offensive player then JT. But this team is all about chemistry and Justin seems to be content with getting whatever points he can as long as this team wins. Also of note was Desure shooting the tech. foul FT not Justin. Last year that was all Justin and of course this makes perfect sense.

Taylor has been great and may actually be the biggest factor in the success this season given how much we lost to graduation at the 5. But he doesn’t compare to Irving and I would argue that the best all time is Bill Thieben who averaged 26.9 points and 24.2 rebounds per game for his career (that’s not a typo). He was an All American and played in the NBA for the Pistons. In the 2000’s I’d rate Taylor right after Uter.

[stuball888]

I would put taylor in the same class as Greg Springfield and Adrian Uter. mI still think these two are slightly ahread of Taylor. Both had 10 blocks in one game along with Greg Washington.

[HU76]

I would put taylor in the same class as Greg Springfield and Adrian Uter. mI still think these two are slightly ahread of Taylor. Both had 10 blocks in one game along with Greg Washington.

Springfield to Taylor is a good comparison. I’m thinking Uter was a step above both. Even though he was only 6’7” he had a tremendous impact on that team.

[Wags]

Shameless post with a NY Sports Day recap if anyone's interested:
https://twitter.com/HofstraMBB/status/1 ... 7476627456

[Pride97]

Uter is an all time favorite for me. Played much bigger than he was and brought the energy every game!

I know Rok gets overshadowed by his poor FT shooting, but his presence on the boards should put him in this conversation. Not the best but probably top 5? He was a good offensive player when he had a good PG (Green). I’m not sure where Taylor ended up with rebounds yesterday but I was surprised to see he only had 3 well into the second half. We were out rebounded all game.

[HU76]

Uter is an all time favorite for me. Played much bigger than he was and brought the energy every game!

I know Rok gets overshadowed by his poor FT shooting, but his presence on the boards should put him in this conversation. Not the best but probably top 5? He was a good offensive player when he had a good PG (Green). I’m not sure where Taylor ended up with rebounds yesterday but I was surprised to see he only had 3 well into the second half. We were out rebounded all game.

That’s a fair point about Rok. Tremendous rebounder but had other liabilities. I’d still put Uter first.

[Wags]

Uter's value was also more than what the box score showed. For all of the shots he blocked, he altered many others that opponents missed, to the point it made opponents rethink their overall offensive approaches. Defensively, he was a disruptor in the paint.

[fiftiespride]

When I went for my interview at Hofstra, I was seated in Hofstra Hall and across from me was none other than Bill Thieben who I had seen play MANY times. I was a Hofstra junkie well before I entered in 55. To my regret I was too shy to approach him. He was a physical power house, often a man among boys. 6 6" was a big man in the mid fifties. I believe he was the 1st person taken in the 2nd round by Ft. Wayne. He could more than hold his own as a rebounder in the pros but was too slow and deliberate in his shot making to be productive offensively. He could over power people collegiately and frequently used the boards to shoot a high percentage. I would say he definitely was our best big followed by Irving and Uter with Taylor in the mix for fourth.
Since I am in Florida and Minneapolis I am enjoying our season vicariously on the computer and am excited and charged up as well. I agree with much that has been said and love the energy, resilience, togetherness and scrappiness of this group. As someone who always wants a little more and finds something to worry about, I don't agree with this depth that is being touted. We are basically playing 6 people with DD in for 7, 8 mn. or so. We can't have our key players playing 38, 39 mn. back to back to back in Charleston. We have been very fortunate thus far with our kids avoiding fouling and injury. We need to be developing our depth and their confidence by playing ST 10 or so mn. and a couple of others 4 or 5 including MR and KS. I am happy to see KW ride the pine until he is gone but believe walk on CC is worthy of a few minutes as well. With this streak, the amount of publicity and recognition we are receiving will only continue to grow and should benefit our recruiting. Keep it going guys. Go Pride!

[EvanJ]

Uter blocked more shots than Taylor, but look at these for his two seasons combined compared to Taylor:

Rebounds per 30 minutes: Taylor 10.0, Uter 8.3
Field goal percentage: Taylor .648, Uter .592
Blocked shots divided by fouls (rewarding defense without fouling): Taylor 0.66, Uter 0.64

A big difference is that Taylor leads us in rebounds by a lot, whereas Uter didn't as a junior and led by a little as a senior. When Uter was a junior, he tied with Kieza for second or third in rebounds per game behind Stokes and Gibson, who played 60 percent of the games when 75 percent is needed to qualify. When Uter was a senior, he averaged 7.8 rebounds with Kieza at 7.3. Stokes was a better rebounder than any guard we have now. In fact, Stokes's statistics were more like a forward who shoots threes like Brantley than a guard. Stokes's rebounds, percent of attempts that were threes, and free throw percentage were more like forwards than guards. His statistic that was most like a guard was assists.

Edit: The NET updated and we moved up 4 spots to 48th.

[Cards]

I've been attending games since the "speedy" days, so I don't know about guys that played prior. I know I will likely get some guff for this, but how come no one is mentioning Rokus. I know he was pathetic on the line, and sometimes his defense was questionable (although I believe JM ordered him to stay away from foul trouble, leading to many open drives to the hoop), but his stats are pretty undeniable. The guy was essentially a double double machine. I don't recall many guys over the last 15 years pulling down 15, 18 or 20+ rebs in a game. With all his shortcomings, he was still pretty impressive.

[Wags]

I've been attending games since the "speedy" days, so I don't know about guys that played prior. I know I will likely get some guff for this, but how come no one is mentioning Rokus. I know he was pathetic on the line, and sometimes his defense was questionable (although I believe JM ordered him to stay away from foul trouble, leading to many open drives to the hoop), but his stats are pretty undeniable. The guy was essentially a double double machine. I don't recall many guys over the last 15 years pulling down 15, 18 or 20+ rebs in a game. With all his shortcomings, he was still pretty impressive.

I'll second this. He was overall, a big net positive even with the FT issues and defensive lapses.

[stuball888]

The way Hofstra men’s basketball has been played. The center position was never really reliant on offense. These players main goal was to play defense rebound and keep the opposition from getting to the rim

[triplec2195]

The way Hofstra men’s basketball has been played. The center position was never really reliant on offense. These players main goal was to play defense rebound and keep the opposition from getting to the rim

Not if you go back to the 74-77 teams that had John Irving who I believe averaged 16 points a game in his senior year and also led the nation in rebounding in his sophomore year.

[Jojogunne]

The 1976 and 1977 NCAA tournament teams were the best Hofstra squads that I've seen. Rich Laurel remains my all-time #1 player, followed closely by Speedy and Charles. Justin is close behind.

The late John Irving was phenomenal on the boards. I'd also rate Pat Kammerer from the 76-77 teams as a very effective center.

Pat used to come to the home games. Haven't seen him in a while. Kenny Rood attends most games. Would love to hear their perspectives on their former teammates.

[stuball888]

Triple so you we have to go back 40 plus years to find a center who was the center of our offense. Springfield and Uter did not have to be score a lot. Both player were probably the 5th scoring option on the court.Loved having both of them as they solidified the defense.

[triplec2195]

Triple so you we have to go back 40 plus years to find a center who was the center of our offense. Springfield and Uter did not have to be score a lot. Both player were probably the 5th scoring option on the court.Loved having both of them as they solidified the defense.

Yes Stu this is true but we will all agree its nice to have guys in the post that can score and even have a mid range game. It makes a team that much more dangerous.

[triplec2195]

The 1976 and 1977 NCAA tournament teams were the best Hofstra squads that I've seen. Rich Laurel remains my all-time #1 player, followed closely by Speedy and Charles. Justin is close behind.

The late John Irving was phenomenal on the boards. I'd also rate Pat Kammerer from the 76-77 teams as a very effective center.

Pat used to come to the home games. Haven't seen him in a while. Kenny Rood attends most games. Would love to hear their perspectives on their former teammates.

Yes Jojo I loved to watch Laurel very slick but Justin is a magician out there really has highlight reel moves. I had talked to Pat quite a few times at the Mack but you're right its been a while since I've seen him. He has great stories about the old NCAA teams and he's not afraid to tell them. Lol It's also been a while since Rood has posted here. He's keeping a low profile I guess.

[HU76]

The 1976 and 1977 NCAA tournament teams were the best Hofstra squads that I've seen. Rich Laurel remains my all-time #1 player, followed closely by Speedy and Charles. Justin is close behind.

The late John Irving was phenomenal on the boards. I'd also rate Pat Kammerer from the 76-77 teams as a very effective center.

Pat used to come to the home games. Haven't seen him in a while. Kenny Rood attends most games. Would love to hear their perspectives on their former teammates.

Yes Jojo I loved to watch Laurel very slick but Justin is a magician out there really has highlight reel moves. I had talked to Pat quite a few times at the Mack but you're right its been a while since I've seen him. He has great stories about the old NCAA teams and he's not afraid to tell them. Lol It's also been a while since Rood has posted here. He's keeping a low profile I guess.

The amazing thing about Laurel was that he averaged 30 ppg without a three point line or a shot clock.

[stuball888]

Triple. Kenny was at the Charleston game. After the game he was on the court talking to Husid