Army West Point Athletics
Army Kicks Off Men's Hoops Season at Hofstra
November 09, 2017 | Men's Basketball
WEST POINT, N.Y. - Army West Point men's basketball is scheduled to tip off its season at Hofstra on Friday night at 7 p.m.
The Black Knights closed with a 13-19 record last season under first-year head coach Jimmy Allen. The Cadets finished the season strong, winning four of their last six games, including a thrilling come-from-behind victory over service-academy rival Navy on Feb. 18. In that contest Army overcame a 25-point second-half deficit over the final 12:40 of the game, by using a 33-8 run, which spanned 10 minutes.
The Pride won 15 games last season and will look to continue those efforts on Friday with a trio of returning starters in senior Rokas Gustys, junior Justin Wright-Foreman and sophomore Eli Pemberton. Hofstra closed out its 2016-17 campaign in the CAA opening round when it fell 81-76 to Delaware. The Pride welcome back a total of seven players from last season to go along with their six newcomers.
HOW TO FOLLOW
ONLINE • PrideProductions
RADIO • Army West Point Sports Network
WBNR (1260 AM, Beacon, N.Y.)
AUDIO • Knight Vision
LIVE STATISTICS • GoHofstra.com
TICKETS • GoHofstra.com
TWITTER • @ArmyWP_MBB
GAME NOTES • Army | Hofstra
Allen, in his first season at the helm of the Black Knights last year, helped the program surpass expectations for a squad that had graduated its entire starting five one year prior. Junior guard Jordan Fox (12.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 4.6 apg) stepped up to lead the young squad, while sophomore guard Tommy Funk (9.1 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 4.8 apg) finished among the league's assist leaders and was named to the all-rookie team. Sophomore forward Matt Wilson averaged 9.2 points per game and shot at an impressive .640 clip, while junior forward John Emezie and senior Luke Morrison adjusted to bigger minutes, both averaging 8.9 points per game last season. This season Allen returns four starters and 7-of-9 players that averaged double-digit minutes last season.
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Roster Breakdown
The Black Knights return a veteran squad that accounted for 79.2 percent of the team's offense from a year ago, including its top six scorers. They also bring back 85.4 percent of its assists and 66.2 percent of its rebounds. The biggest loss for Army was Mac Hoffman, who posted a team-high 209 rebounds last season, while averaging 6.2 points per game.
Sharing the Rock
Tommy Funk and Jordan Fox return for the Black Knights as the only duo in the nation to record more than 4.6 assists per game last season. Funk was second in the conference with 4.8 helpers per contest, while Fox averaged 4.6 assists throughout the year to place him fourth.Â
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About the Pride
Hofstra was picked to finish fourth in the Colonial Athletic Association Preseason Poll after posting a 15-17 mark a season ago. The Pride bring back the nation's most improved player from last year in junior guard Justin Wright-Foreman, who improved his points-per-game by 16.5 in 2016-17. Wright-Foreman, who garnered Second Team All-CAA honors last season, was named to the 2017-18 Lou Henson Award Watch List. The award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I mid-major player. He was also named to the Preseason All-CAA first team, while senior Rokas Gustys earned second team honors and sophomore Eli Pemberton garnered honorable mention accolades.Â
A Win over Hofstra Would…
Give Army its first victory in a season-opener away from West Point since the 2008-09 season when the Black Knights defeated Dartmouth, 63-48. It would also be Army's first win at Hofstra since an 87-76 victory during the 1993-94 campaign.Â
Return to the Garden
The Black Knights are scheduled to play at Madison Square Garden against service-academy rival Air Force on Dec. 17, with tipoff slated for 1:30 p.m. It will be Army's sixth game at 'The World's Most Famous Arena' and first trip since 1985-86 when the Cadets dropped a 73-61 decision to LaSalle. The Black Knights are 1-4 all-time at MSG with the lone win coming in the 1971-72 season-opener, 79-73, against Niagara. Army also played St. Bonaventure (1970-71: L, 66-51), Florida (1971-72: L, 80-71) and LSU (1978-79: L, 83-77) at the Garden.
Next Up
Army returns to West Point for its home opener against Division III opponent John Jay College on Tuesday at 7 p.m. That contest will be played at Christl Arena and will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network with Rich DeMarco on the call. The Bloodhounds finished with an 11-16 record last season and made an appearance in the City University of New York Athletic Conference second round.
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The Black Knights closed with a 13-19 record last season under first-year head coach Jimmy Allen. The Cadets finished the season strong, winning four of their last six games, including a thrilling come-from-behind victory over service-academy rival Navy on Feb. 18. In that contest Army overcame a 25-point second-half deficit over the final 12:40 of the game, by using a 33-8 run, which spanned 10 minutes.
The Pride won 15 games last season and will look to continue those efforts on Friday with a trio of returning starters in senior Rokas Gustys, junior Justin Wright-Foreman and sophomore Eli Pemberton. Hofstra closed out its 2016-17 campaign in the CAA opening round when it fell 81-76 to Delaware. The Pride welcome back a total of seven players from last season to go along with their six newcomers.
ONLINE • PrideProductions
RADIO • Army West Point Sports Network
WBNR (1260 AM, Beacon, N.Y.)
AUDIO • Knight Vision
LIVE STATISTICS • GoHofstra.com
TICKETS • GoHofstra.com
TWITTER • @ArmyWP_MBB
GAME NOTES • Army | Hofstra
Inside Information
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Roster Breakdown
The Black Knights return a veteran squad that accounted for 79.2 percent of the team's offense from a year ago, including its top six scorers. They also bring back 85.4 percent of its assists and 66.2 percent of its rebounds. The biggest loss for Army was Mac Hoffman, who posted a team-high 209 rebounds last season, while averaging 6.2 points per game.
Sharing the Rock
Tommy Funk and Jordan Fox return for the Black Knights as the only duo in the nation to record more than 4.6 assists per game last season. Funk was second in the conference with 4.8 helpers per contest, while Fox averaged 4.6 assists throughout the year to place him fourth.Â
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About the Pride
Hofstra was picked to finish fourth in the Colonial Athletic Association Preseason Poll after posting a 15-17 mark a season ago. The Pride bring back the nation's most improved player from last year in junior guard Justin Wright-Foreman, who improved his points-per-game by 16.5 in 2016-17. Wright-Foreman, who garnered Second Team All-CAA honors last season, was named to the 2017-18 Lou Henson Award Watch List. The award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I mid-major player. He was also named to the Preseason All-CAA first team, while senior Rokas Gustys earned second team honors and sophomore Eli Pemberton garnered honorable mention accolades.Â
A Win over Hofstra Would…
Give Army its first victory in a season-opener away from West Point since the 2008-09 season when the Black Knights defeated Dartmouth, 63-48. It would also be Army's first win at Hofstra since an 87-76 victory during the 1993-94 campaign.Â
Return to the Garden
The Black Knights are scheduled to play at Madison Square Garden against service-academy rival Air Force on Dec. 17, with tipoff slated for 1:30 p.m. It will be Army's sixth game at 'The World's Most Famous Arena' and first trip since 1985-86 when the Cadets dropped a 73-61 decision to LaSalle. The Black Knights are 1-4 all-time at MSG with the lone win coming in the 1971-72 season-opener, 79-73, against Niagara. Army also played St. Bonaventure (1970-71: L, 66-51), Florida (1971-72: L, 80-71) and LSU (1978-79: L, 83-77) at the Garden.
Next Up
Army returns to West Point for its home opener against Division III opponent John Jay College on Tuesday at 7 p.m. That contest will be played at Christl Arena and will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network with Rich DeMarco on the call. The Bloodhounds finished with an 11-16 record last season and made an appearance in the City University of New York Athletic Conference second round.
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Players Mentioned
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