By Ed Morrone
In last week’s extensive season preview coverage on the men’s basketball team, one of the key points raised was that one of the main issues the Pride needs to address is its frontcourt. Gone are Adrian Uter and Aurimas Kieza, two stalwarts last year who brought a combined 20 points and 14 rebounds down low for Hofstra last year.
As a result, burly sophomore forward Chris Gadley was thrust into the spotlight, and is considered one of the keys to Hofstra’s season. The backcourt of Loren Stokes, Antoine Agudio and Carlos Rivera is spectacular, but a suspect frontcourt will slow the team in its ultimate destination of the NCAA Tournament.
Gadley was absent in Saturday’s opening loss to Charlotte, still recovering from a concussion he suffered in the Pride’s exhibition game against N.Y.I.T. on Nov. 7. In his absence, the 49ers out-rebounded Hofstra 43-30, and Mike Davis-Sabb fouled out starting up front for Gadley.
“They out-rebounded us by 13 and Mike Davis fouled out, and neither of those things are going to happen if we have Chris, as well as Greg Washington,” head coach Tom Pecora said. “But injuries are going to happen, so we’ll find a way to deal with that.”
When asked if Gadley will be ready for Saturday’s game at Manhattan, Pecora said, “I hope so, but that’s a decision made by the doctors and trainers, not by me.”
If Gadley is again out of the lineup, Davis-Sabb and sophomore swingman Zygis Sestokas will again attempt to plug the already thin frontcourt. Davis-Sabb did grab nine rebounds in 24 minutes and Sestokas scored 15 points, but his 6-5 frame is much better suited for the perimeter.
Stokes, who scored a team-high 24 points, said the loss of Gadley is no excuse and he and his fellow guards need to execute better and put the team in a position to win.
“We missed him, he’s a big body, but that’s no excuse we should’ve came out and won,” Stokes said. “The bigs played solid. It wasn’t up to them, we felt it was the perimeter players. We should’ve come out and played with more intensity from the beginning.”
Still, the guards can’t win the games all by themselves, so the absence of the big guy could become an even bigger problem for the Pride.