Men’s Basketball looks to succeed
 with young talent

Steve Morano
MSMU Class of 2024

(2/2024) Fans and family members gathered in the Knott Arena at Mount St. Mary’s University on October 28th, 2023, to watch the men’s basketball team take on Bucknell in the first ever Behan Strong exhibition game. Even with a cast of veteran talent and new, unproven talent, the Mount had to go to double overtime to beat Bucknell 72-67. But the game itself showcased the resiliency of the team when a game wasn’t going their way—a resilience that Coach Dan Engelstad and his staff must maintain if they want to obtain a good seed for the conference tournament in March.

In an offseason where the team lost key players of the last four years such as Jalen Benjamin, Malik Jefferson, and Deandre Thomas, the team has had to adjust to relying on a current talent pool of veteran players and the first proper MAAC recruiting class. But this is the natural progression of running a Division 1 program: relying on tested veterans while playing younger players who can learn from the coaching staff and older players. But with games coming fast at the team, especially with out of conference play done, the team must adapt to playing conference teams week and week out.

The remaining members of the starters last year consist of senior redshirt sophomore, Dola Adebayo, junior Jedy Cordilla, graduate student George Tinsley, and seniors, Xavier Lipscomb, Josh Reaves, and Dakota Leffew. Many of these players are hardened MAAC veterans, even with the team only being in the conference for a year, and are used to deep runs in the conference tournament, with many of them being on the team in 2021 when the Mountaineers won the NEC and made an appearance in the National Tournament. The veterans will be looked at by many of the freshman including Ronald Jessamy, Dallas Hobbs, and De’Shayne Montgomery as examples of what it means to play for Coach Engelstad.

Dakota Leffew has been the most impactful veteran for Engelstad so far this season, as he has started in every single game for the Mount this season. So far, he leads the team in points with 281, points per game with 17.6, field goal percentage with .417, and 3-point percentage at .345 among other offensive categories. He is the most valuable player offensively for the team so far, and he is the start button to the rest of the team, leading by example when point scoring.

Behind him in offensive output is Josh Reaves, who has been helping the team with his longball, as he has a 3-point percentage .346 with significantly less attempts than Leffew. Reaves has also supported the offense with his longevity, as he has played 460 minutes for the team so far this season and is one of seven players on the team who has played in all games so far. These outstanding performances by Reaves this season have come in the wake of last year when he was injured only three games into the year.

Good offense is only possible if you have good defense on the other side of the court. And the Mountaineers have no shortage of defensive prowess when guarding their own basket, this comes in the form of Jedy Cordilla, who has been the most valuable player for the team on defense. A native of the Netherlands, Cordilla leads the team in defensive rebounds with 53 and averages 3.3 defensive rebounds per game. He is a force to be reckoned with on the court, as he stands at 6’9" and is one of the tallest players on the court at any one time.

These veteran players are rounded up by George Tinsley, who is in his last year of eligibility after transferring to the Mount from Binghampton at the beginning of last season. While he may not output large numbers in the points scoring department, Tinsley is vital in transition, as he has 4.4 offensive rebounds per game and an assist/turnover rate of 1.06 of qualified players. In his last year, Tinsley will look to make an impact that will be remembered by the younger players for years to come.

But with these veteran players comes fresh, new players who have yet to settle in with the experience of older members of the team. One of those players is Ronald Jessamy. The freshman from Philadelphia has taken part in 13 games for the Mount this year and has notched a field goal percentage of .586. Even though he has yet to start this year for Coach Engelstad, Jessamy is a sure bet for players that will start next year and make an impact with future teams.

Another outstanding freshman on the team this year is Dallas Hobbs. A native of the same city in Texas that he shares a name with, Hobbs has started in 11 of the 16 games for the team this season and has shown an impact on the court. With a field goal percentage of .368 and a 3-point percentage of .326, Hobbs has been one of the most consistent players for the team this year. And with his potential only predicted to grow, he will be slated as one of the future leaders of the team.

But by far the most impactful freshman for the team this year is the Fort Lauderdale native, De’Shayne Montgomery. While only starting in three games for the team this year, Montgomery has played in every single game for the team this year. This is enough to earn him a field goal percentage of .532 and average of 12 points per game. Currently, his offensive output is jaw dropping enough to see what his potential in the starting lineup could be in the future, let alone what he will be like when he is used to the landscape of MAAC basketball.

This team made it through their first year in the MAAC, while putting up a good fight in the conference tournament only to go out in the second round. But with the experience in the conference last year combined with new members of the team who are ready to show what they are made of, it is not out of the realm that this team could make an impact in the MAAC. And if not this year, then the team as it stands right now will only grow into a threat for the rest of the league at-large for years to come.