Nova Southeastern’s men’s basketball team eager to regain momentum lost from COVID
They didn’t play at all last season.
The year prior, the Nova Southeastern University Sharks men’s basketball team was about to start the NCAA Division II playoffs when they got a call from the school president.
Get off the bus.
Season canceled.
COVID.
That’s the way it has gone for the Sharks the past two years. But this is a new season, and NSU is ranked sixth in the nation by NCAA.com and 13th by the NABC national poll.
Those rankings show respect for NSU coach Jim Crutchfield, who built a Division II dynasty at West Liberty, taking that program to seven consecutive NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearances, winning 85.5 percent of his games in 13 years.
At NSU, Crutchfield inherited a 6-20 team and took the Sharks to the NCAA Elite Eight in his second season on campus (2018-2019), which was the program’s last full year.
Last season — with no games — was difficult, but Crutchfield made the best of the situation.
“We practiced all year and played about 25 intrasquad games,” he said. “The guys even wore their uniforms, home against road.”
Since the Sharks last played a real game, they have graduated All-American Mark Matthews, who averaged a team-high 22.0 points and 7.1 rebounds. Mikkel Kolstad also graduated after averaging 11.0 points and shooting a sizzling 46.4 percent on three-pointers.
But despite those graduation losses, no Sharks with remaining eligibility bolted for the portal, which is shocking in today’s transfer-happy world of college basketball.
“These guys are bonded together,” Crutchfield said of his players.
This season won’t start until Nov. 13, but the Sharks already have adversity as guard Jake Maranville is out for the year due to knee surgery in early October. He averaged 6.6 points and made 18 starts in NSU’s last season.
Also, 6-8 starting forward RJ Sunahara is out due to a back injury, although he should return by mid-November. He averaged 12.8 points and a team-high 7.2 rebounds, shooting 60.8 percent on field goals.
But even without those players, the Sharks were very impressive in an Oct. 20 exhibition game, losing 106-95 to the Miami Hurricanes.
Newcomer Sekou Sylla, a 6-5 wing from Brooklyn, led NSU with 26 points and 14 rebounds, making 12 of 20 shots and adding five assists and three steals.
Senior guards Eddie Puisis and Nick Smith are the heart of the team. Puisis had 20 points, five assists and three steals against Miami.
The bench is led by guards Dallas Graziani and Mike Moore, who combined to score 24 points against Miami.
Other players to watch are 6-3 freshman guard Kobe Rodgers; 6-10 center Shane Hunter, who is coming back from a shoulder injury; and 6-7 shooters Jonathan Pierre and Lukas Speidel. Pierre is expected back soon from strep throat.
THIS AND THAT
▪ Barry University, which has been an NCAA Division II power in eight years under coach Butch Estes, has been picked to finish sixth this season in the Sunshine State Conference.
The Bucs return all five starters, including 6-0 sophomore point guard Toru Dean, 6-4 senior shooting guard Jake Kakar, 6-5 junior shooting guard Marcelo Perez and 6-8 junior forward Justinas Marcinkevicius. Kakar made second-team all-conference last season, averaging 15.7 points. Marcinkevicius averaged 13.6 points and a team-high 11.9 rebounds. Perez and Dean averaged 12.4 points and 12.0 points, respectively.
▪ St. Thomas University has been picked to finish tied for third in the NAIA’s Sun Conference. The Bobcats have a new coach: Patrick Crarey III, who inherits a program that has made it to the conference title game two straight years.
Last season, the Bobcats finished 14-11, losing 72-71 to Keiser in the championship game. Keiser made the go-ahead shot with 1.9 seconds left to beat St. Thomas.
This season, the Bobcats will be led by 6-4 Augustus Stone, 6-8 Dwayne Russell and 6-9 Jonas Parker.
▪ Florida Memorial finished 7-17 last season, but Lions fourth-year coach Ansar Al-Ameen has brought in Jacob Shaw as his assistant. Shaw is the former Miami Beach coach, and the Lions could surprise despite being picked eighth in the NAIA’s Sun Conference.
In addition, the staff has added two Division I transfers: 6-7 junior power forward Jacobi Gordon (Cal) and 6-3 senior guard Eric Hester (Florida). The defense will be anchored by 7-foot senior center Mubashar Ali. But perhaps the top talent is 6-2 senior shooting guard Corey Benton, a transfer from Columbia International, where he averaged 24.7 points.
▪ Jorge Fernandez is the new coach at Miami Dade College. Fernandez has Division I experience as an assistant at several universities — Miami, Marshall, Central Florida and South Alabama.
In addition, he led Doral Academy to the only state title in program history. This is his first time as a collegiate head coach.