Prolific Jenkins leads Hofstra Pride

It’s a new day at Hofstra where Mo Cassara takes over as head coach of the men’s basketball program.

Cassara, who spent the past four seasons serving as an assistant at Boston College, inherits a team that finished with a record of 19-15 (10-8 Colonial Athletic Association) under Tom Pecora, who left the Pride to take over coaching duties at Fordham.

Fortunately, Cassara has a go-to player to ease his transition. Charles Jenkins, the 2009-10 CAA Player of the Year, has emerged as one the country’s top guards. The 6-foot-3 senior captain averaged 20.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a junior. Jenkins also was named the Haggerty Award winner as the top player in the Metropolitan New York area, and was an honorable mention All-America selection by the Associated Press.

Jenkins, who was selected as the CAA Preseason Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, entered the season with 1,767 points, putting him within striking distance of Antoine Agudio’s all-time Hofstra scoring record of 2,276. Jenkins is off to a solid start, averaging 25.7 per game in Hofstra first three contests, which include a loss to perennial power North Carolina.

Cassara is thrilled to have Jenkins leading the Pride. “As good as a player as Charles Jenkins is, he’s a better leader, and he’s an even better person,” Cassara said. “He’s one of those guys that you just get excited to coach each day. He not only embraces all the players on the team and the coaching staff, he really embodies what Hofstra University basketball is all about.”

Senior captain Nat Lester, who averaged 8.0 points and 4.8 rebounds as junior, suffered an injury over the summer that may cause him to utilize a medical redshirt. 

Junior college transfer Dwan McMillan will run the point. McMillan joins the Pride after playing at Indian Hills Community College where he averaged 10 points and eight assists per game. McMillan scored 15 points and dished out six assists as the Pride routed Farmingdale State, 102-62, in the opener. Junior Mike Moore, a transfer from Fordham, is a legitimate threat from three-point land. Moore averaged 12.8 points per game for the Rams as a sophomore. 

Hofstra will get some depth in the backcourt when senior Brad Kelleher joins the team after sitting out the first eight games due to an NCAA clearinghouse penalty. Freshman Shemiye McLendon is an athletic guard can take it to the rack or knock down shots from the perimeter. 

Six-foot-10 senior captain Greg Washington anchors the frontcourt. Washington, the school’s all-time leading shot blocker with 203 career swats, has been named to the CAA All-Defensive team in each of the past two seasons.

David Imes, a 6-foot-7 sophomore from Brooklyn’s Boys & Girls High School, will be looked upon to provide solid rebounding and to make things happen with his athleticism. 

Cassara is looking to generate more interest in the Hofstra five. “My youth and enthusiasm, and maybe a little naivety, has me going around campus, door-to-door to try to get as many people out to the games,” Cassara said. “Ultimately, you have to put a great product on the floor, and you have to win. I think we’ll be a far better team in January than we are today. Our best basketball is ahead of us.”