The year was 2013. Serge Clement sat in the last row of an airplane ­– listening to music and waiting for his flight to end.  Little did he know, his life was about to change forever.

A man was trapped in the bathroom, unconsciously contorted between the toilet and the wall.

After noticing the commotion, Clement sprang into action. As a crowd of people began to panic, he propped the door open, squeezed in and rescued the man, who was later helped by emergency medical technicians when the plane made an expedited landing.

“In this cynical world – with [COVID-19] and the social injustice that’s happening across the country – I had a lot of time to reflect on my life,” Clement said. “That act of kindness wasn’t about any denomination. It was just about helping someone. I seek to serve.” 

Clement now serves as an assistant coach for the Hofstra men’s basketball team, where he brings the many life lessons he has learned to his players.

It all starts in the classroom. Clement mentors student-athletes, making sure they are up to date with their work. 

“Regardless of whether you’re playing 100 minutes, or you’re playing negative one minutes, you are here to obtain a degree,” Clement said. “The ball does stop bouncing one day.”

Clement can preach it, because he has lived it. In his senior year of high school, the young basketball player did not have a scholarship offer. This adversity put him in a funk.

His single mother, however, preached the importance of going to school – Clement eventually graduated from SUNY Potsdam with a bachelor’s degree in business economics in 2009 – and helped him snap out of his low.

This journey is climaxing in Hempstead, where the Queens native is achieving a life-long dream by coming home.

“[Coming to Hofstra] is a dream come true for me personally,” Clement said. “I never thought that my path would end up with me being back at Hofstra. It’s been a blessing and I’m ecstatic to be here. So just thinking about the history at Hofstra gives me chills. That sense of pride makes it all worth it.”

Head coach Speedy Claxton embodies this history more than any other, perhaps. The Hempstead native graduated from Hofstra in 2000, played in the NBA and returned home as an assistant coach. Now, he is leading his alma mater.

“I tell my players that Hofstra is their home,” Clement said. “So, once they graduate and obtain a degree, they can always come back home. So do your work. Maintain relationships with professors. Because no matter what, they will always be celebrated at home for doing the right thing.”

One of his first things Claxton did as leader of the program – 15 days after being hired, to be exact – was bring in Clement, who he had known professionally for years, as an assistant coach.

“When we forged our connection, it had nothing to do with basketball, even though basketball was the means to bring us together,” Clement said. “It was just more about everyday life.” 

Clement gave Claxton tips about players, expressed interest in his journey and simply cared about his life, showing this with the occasional check-in.

“I never wanted anything,” Clement said. “And that’s the basic building block of any real authentic relationship.”

Before getting the job offer at Hofstra, however – while cultivating that relationship with Claxton – Clement was an important piece of John Dunne’s coaching staff at Marist College.

Under Clement, Marist had its first winning season in 13 years and its best conference finish in 14 seasons. Clement – who was named a Top 50 Impactful Mid-Major Coach by Silver Waves Media in 2020 – was the program’s lead recruiter and focused on guard development, recruiting guard and four-time MAAC Rookie of the Week Ricardo Wright.

At Hofstra, Clement will have a similar role working with the guards, at a program that has graduated Justin Wright-Foreman, Desure Buie and Eli Pemberton since 2019.

“We will continue to ascend,” Clement said. “We consider Hofstra to be ‘Guard University.’”

Now, the Pride will look to ascend to a Colonial Athletic Association championship. At 5-4, they have looked good in non-conference play – barely losing to No. 15 ranked University of Houston on Tuesday, Nov. 9, and No. 20 ranked University of Maryland on Friday, Nov. 19.

But no matter what happens this season, Clement will look make a long-term impact on his players – just like he made an impact on that plane ride eight years ago. 

“We coach with a purpose. We’ve developed respect and a relationship [with each player],” Clement said. “It’s not just a four-year relationship. It’s a 40-year relationship.”

Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics