Andy Stein was a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He shared his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written April 22, 2012
Over a month has passed, but technically the season wasn’t over yet…today was our end of season gathering! This year, the location was changed to the reception room at Coles, with catering provided by two local staples: Pizza Mercato and Pluck U. During this time, players and coaches shared thoughts on the season. It was a very lively and overall satisfying reflection of the awesome team I had the privilege to be apart of.
That night against Amherst just wasn’t our night. We were a victim of early foul trouble, and couldn’t find our overall rhythm when we needed to rally most. Amherst showed signs of allowing a comeback early in the second half, but began firing on all cylinders as the half progressed, ultimately granting them the ticket to the Sweet 16. We went out fighting, though, and I finished my career with a dunk. I can remember walking to the bench with pride.
Sometimes teams gel together, sometimes they don’t. We’ve had the talent since my arrival, but I guess you can say it just didn’t work out. Be it bad luck or just rough team chemistry, it just didn’t happen.
We found early success in the UAA, caught a few rough patches and got some help from other upsets, and grinded it out to the very last game at Brandeis, which came to a memorable finish. That day I also left my jersey at the hotel on the way to the game. My parents were touring the city of Boston when I called my mom from the gym with the bad news. They retrieved the jersey and got it there in time, and I hit the biggest shot of my career, which ended up being a righty hook shot.
While in middle school the high school coach told me I couldn’t play high school basketball if I didn’t work on my right hand. Granted I didn’t start working on it until this year, but better late then never. I’m now some guy with a solid left and a decent right, a worthy pick among the “Average Joes” on the pickup court.
It’s been strange playing basketball now without the stage of intercollegiate competition or structured competition. It’s what I’ve been used to, so I guess now I’m at the liberty to work on some natural raw abilities, like my fadeaway. I’m getting used to it slowly. The transition has been rather unexplainable really. I’ve been a player for 14 years, and it’s always been on my schedule.
I’ve filled a lot of my open time this semester with internship hours. But, after college there won’t be a next season. At least not now…I see myself triumphant in the Loyal Order of Water Buffalo someday down the line. But at the moment, I step into the next phase of things holding onto a much cherished experience that will bring me comfort for a lifetime. I respect the game of basketball for what it’s given me in its nuances on and beyond the court. It’s prepared me to handle anything.
There will be some things I miss, though. I always had a parent in attendance, usually both unless the occasional work event or cold interfered. They were the most committed fan/coaches. Friends came often to catch a game, and even my girlfriend balanced getting into dental school with traveling on our Emory-Rochester trip. The joy my playing has brought those around me has made it all worth it, and I’ll never get to thank everybody enough for cheering for us.
This year was special. It brought a new sense of pride and community to the NYU family. My teammates were unbelievable and our coaches shaped us up for a next-level kind of season. I’m sure they’ll keep it going. We have so much more we can build off of, on and off the court. With a new generation in recruiting talent, we’ll be UAA contenders as long as we keep up the hard-working mentality we used to drive us all season long. Strange to be a fan now, but it definitely comes with a lot less pressure. I can even eat popcorn.
I thank the athletic department for the opportunity to share my experiences as an NYU athlete. It’s been truly remarkable, has taught me so much, and will remain in my thoughts for years to come.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written March 2, 2012
I’ve taken the last few weeks off with the blog, hoping not to jinx a possible end-of- season quest to make the NCAA Tournament…and here we are!
It is currently late Thursday evening, and we’ve just won our first game of the tournament at home over Misericordia University. This was a special night on many fronts: our first tournament appearance in 14 years, the largest crowd Coles Sports Center may have ever seen, and on a personal level one of Misericordia’s starting forwards, Jeff Slanovec, was my teammate and friend since sixth grade and throughout high school.
Some say there is a basketball god, but this one we both couldn’t have imagined: us getting an at-large bid and them making their first NCAA Tournament appearance ever. But, back to the game itself…
Our team started off a little stiff, playing with some early-game jitters. But, we found our rhythm as the second half progressed and we pulled out marginally by the end. It was a great night for the fans experiencing a tournament game, and the excessive media timeouts seemed humorous by the 12-minute mark.
Backtracking, perhaps I should recount how we actually got into the tournament. We ran a tough stretch starting on the Emory/Rochester road trip suffering two losses, then completing the sweep against Chicago at home. A win the following Sunday against Wash U would’ve tied us with them for first in the conference, or a loss and they would clinch as conference champions. We unfortunately came up short in heartbreak fashion.
This set the stage for a must-win at Brandeis, though a victory wouldn’t guarantee a tournament bid, but greatly raise the possibility. Charging a 12-2 run to close out the game, we sealed a victory, as well sealed for myself and the other seniors a victory at every UAA gym.
We were forced to wait until this past Monday to learn of our fates in the internet selection show. If you haven’t seen this video, please do…it’s one of the most exciting moments of my career, as we were beyond thrilled to see our name posted on the fifth bracket. It’s tough getting out of the UAA, and even at second in the conference we felt deserving of a shot in the tournament, and we’ve gotten just that.
With tonight’s win against Misericordia, this has set up for what is undoubtedly the biggest game of my playing career - a shot at #2 in the country Amherst at their gym. Before receiving the bid Monday, I had said all I wanted was a shot at Amherst, so perhaps I spoke too soon. This is why we play though, as Coach Nesci says…to be in that big game, to enjoy the moment. We have the opportunity to do what we’ve seen year after year in the big dance, that team that perhaps squeaks into the tourney against all odds getting that huge upset. We’ve already got a tournament game under our belt, and I still have faith that we’re still the road warriors, so why not? With the love and support of a growing fan base here at NYU, we have all the momentum and confidence to put up a great fight against an undoubtedly talented team.
Perhaps this will be a classic NESCAC/UAA match-up for the ages. But, again, perhaps I speak too soon. I’d rather just continue to enjoy the moment and keep riding the train of this special season.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written February 7, 2012
At the moment, we’d like to call ourselves the “Road Warriors”. Something about being on the road, taking on the local crowd has brought us together in ways I’ve never felt on this NYU squad. At the moment, although we sit atop the UAA rankings (technically we’re tied for 1
st but we win the tiebreaker with Wash), there is no feeling of superiority, or that we’ve got a conference title in the bag. We’ve been victim to foolish thoughts of invincibly, as 2,000 fans watched us drop a game to a much harder-working Carnegie Mellon, who played with that “nothing to lose” mentality. We regained our momentum two days later with a grind-out victory against Case Western. We then proved our stability against that mentality this past weekend, sweeping the same two in their gyms.
Jumping back to travel, beginning the Midwest road trip I had expected to room with freshman center Mack Fraser, a similar move my freshman year with the then senior John Mish. Interestingly enough, I was paired with sophomore Jed Borovik, who I can tell is one of the most interesting members of the team. Aside from his unique blend of Kansas/California sense of humor, Jed’s spot on the team is an extremely important one. He’s been a driving force in our practices and I have found motivation from him countless times. Hearing a simple “Let’s Go!” 10 times a day is unexplainably inspiring, to say the least. As a senior, doing some of the same drills four years straight can get mentally fatiguing, but stepping on the court with someone who never takes a day off is all the pick-me-up I need to finish strong.
Speaking of finishing strong, we now begin our fourth and final act of this regular season. Viewing the conference from the outside, Brandeis continues to claw for top ranking (currently second behind us and Wash). Rochester is gaining momentum having just swept the Midwest teams at home, and Emory, though dropping a few tough games, has the talent to rally a comeback. Yes we are currently in first. And, from enduring three tough seasons with not much to show for it, this is undoubtedly awesome. Like all players, I dreamt that my last season would be something to remember, and so far it is. On the bus from Newark Airport on Sunday, a teammate said to me “I can’t believe the season’s almost over”, and I told him we’ve got another month and a half to go. Maybe we do, maybe we don’t…but whatever every other team is doing to prep for games, we control our own fate.
At the post-game meal Sunday in Cleveland, I approached Case’s head coach to wish him good luck the rest of the season, and he congratulated me on my career with the Violets. A similar remark was made in the “good-game line” with Carnegie’s coach, and I can tell you it is a profound feeling. Touching on a point I made in my pregame speech before the Carnegie game, I spoke of what I wanted to do to finish this year the best I could. My scoring numbers in the UAA have been down, but my assists and defensive presence have made great strides in comparison to previous seasons. I have faith in my team, and I believe in the work ethic we set out to achieve starting in September.
This is a team worth fighting for, and I don’t think the memories have been made just yet.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written January 19, 2012
Road trip! But, before I get to that, let’s recap this past weekend.
As stated in my previous blog, it would take a great effort from guard Ryan Tana to lead the defensive strike against a pair of tough opponents (Emory, Rochester). Approaching both games with a concentrated tenacity that I haven’t been a part of before, we knocked off #4 Emory and preseason top-pick Rochester by convincing margins, sending a message to the conference that we’re not settling for our preseason rank of 6
th. The radio announcer commented that in his four years, he had never seen such a dominant UAA weekend out of us, which is a special breath of fresh air to hear. Confidence is sparked again within the team, and what better way to keep this momentum rolling than flying into our toughest road trip historically, Chicago & St. Louis.
A great week of practice has led to this road trip, starting with a lift on Monday that left our hamstrings tight; some adversity worth pushing through to the weekend. Before hopping on a plane from LaGuardia, we will again review our defensive philosophies and our system as we prep for Friday night’s bout with Chicago.
This weekend’s defensive key will be our best defender, Max Wein, who will be guarding two top-scorers in the league. Like against Rochester & Emory, we will seek to aggressively make decisions for their offense difficult and out of the natural flow of their game. To dive slightly into statistics, we have never swept this road trip. Good!
This is my personal favorite of the road trips, considering many factors such as city surroundings (Chicago is my third favorite city in the U.S. next to NYC and Bethlehem, of course), as well as the courts we play at. Chicago’s gym isn’t too flashy, but I always feel very comfortable on the court. Wash U’s gym is arguably one of the best gyms in the nation to play in, and always brings a rowdy, fraternity- filled cheering section. Thankfully, we’ve had practice with facing larger opposing crowds than ours this year, as both Emory & Rochester dwarfed our fans in numbers, even at our gym. Our first stop marks a hometown presence of freshman Jordan Liss, and aside from the fans he brings we will be joined by several groups of parents including my own.
The best part about this trip is that due to less members of the women’s team that will travel, we will be bringing all members of our team (where usually you must bring 14 instead of our full roster of 16). “Team First” has been a common motto this year, and going squad deep into hostile territory is all the more power to us.
Chicago is currently tied with us in record, and Wash U leads the UAA at 3-0. What better way to start our road travels than with the toughest one on the list? So, whether you’re in the Windy/Gateway cities this weekend, or have dial-up/high- speed internet, these are games you won’t want to miss.
This weekend will shape the UAA.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written January 13, 2012
Suffering an early loss in the UAA season is not the end of the world, but more of a tune-up for games to come. Perhaps it was nerves, some slight hesitation on otherwise confident plays, or just a couple of bad rolls that left our team on the losing end. We played a great defensive game. However, when shooting in the 30’s from the free throw line as a start, you can’t expect to win too many UAA games.
Fortunately, we were able to put the tough loss aside in our next game at Hunter College, where we again reclaimed some confidence on our shots, and came through with a 20-point win.
In that game, I joined NYU’s list of 1,000-point scorers on a three-point shot. Being a center, I can only thank my teammates for their confidence in me throughout my time here, since without them this accomplishment would not be possible. Through research on our last 1,000-point scorer, Richie Polan, I noticed some odd similarities between his milestone game and mine. First off, both were against Hunter, though his was at home and mine was away. Both were achieved by means of a three-pointer, and in both games I scored 22 points. Finally, in Richie’s 1,000-point game, guard Kyle Stockmal managed to tally a four-point play. In mine, Kyle’s brother Cory Stockmal attained a similar four-point play. You can say coincidence for the first couple, but without a doubt that last one is bizarre.
Coming up now on our first full UAA weekend, what better way to start than with the top two teams in the conference: Emory & Rochester. Emory, who we play on Friday, comes into this game still undefeated and ranked #4 in the country. Numbers don’t lie. They are a talented team. However, rankings arrive by means of votes, which hold no bearing once the game actually starts. We are all very excited to approach this challenge, to prove ourselves within the conference, and as well to forget about the rough shooting performance we undertook last weekend against Brandeis.
Rochester provides another great challenge for us, as they’ve given us plenty of trouble in the past. Led by a versatile junior point guard, it will be the biggest challenge this weekend in both games for our sophomore guard Ryan Tana. I remember when I was thrown into a starting position my sophomore year, the excitement of competing with many older players with a stronger grip on the pace of college basketball. What we can expect from Ryan, as was with me, is that he continue to adapt to the game our team plays, and for him as a point guard (like a quarterback) he continues to command the floor and control the pace of the game with a tenacity that the rest of us feed off.
We are excited for the challenge that’s been posed upon us early on in the conference schedule. With online broadcasting, it’s safe to say that the world is watching, so it is only fitting that we put on a great show.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written January 2, 2012
Today is game one of our Holiday Classic, a round-robin tourney including Clarkson (who we play today), Regis College and Haverford College (who we play tomorrow). It’s been a couple of weeks since my last post, so to bring you up to speed, we’re currently still undefeated at 7-0, though in a few weeks records won’t matter at the start of UAA play.
Being a college basketball player during winter break almost feels like you’re a professional athlete, in the sense that the sport is all we need to focus on, and we get meal money daily. The campus, though this is still NYC, seems fairly deserted of fellow students, though a wave of holiday tourists fills the void. Teammates occupy the rest of the day with movies, video games and the recent emergence of a late start of an NBA season. Personally, I wouldn’t have minded a full lockout, as I watch hockey instead. I’ve also begun work on the violin, as well expanding my encyclopedia of classical music.
Two days ago marked one of our most dominant wins that I’ve been apart of, which was against Hamilton College; a team who came in 9-1 only having lost to our UAA-rival Rochester. After an efficient series of winter break practices, we played a nearly perfect game, connecting on shots, finding open cutters often, and executing the scouting report.
The win for us was great, but another accomplishment for our program highlighted the evening, with Coach Nesci’s 410th career win, now the most in the program (which will continue to grow). From a player’s perspective, and from a senior’s perspective, it’s pretty special being a part of this accomplishment, knowing we provided a chunk of those victories. Being involved with any accomplishment of the program yields proud memories when looking back.
The yearly Holiday Classic means the UAA schedule is around the corner. So, like the Hamilton game, we treat games leading up to Brandeis like a rivalry game. What happened to us last year provides us a strong reminder of what can happen with a lack of confidence and team unity, so we cannot wait for another challenge.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written November 24, 2011
From where we started two weeks ago there’s been a great early transition for us. You’d like the season to start with a vibe, something everyone can buy into. You might make a slogan for the year off of some archive of team mottos, but it just doesn’t cover enough. It’s a pulse you want to drive the team throughout the dense season, and it must pertain to everyone, coaches and players alike. We’ve discovered what it is, even in week # 3. So now, this vibe must be present at every game, and especially every practice.
Starting with a home scrimmage against Drew, we figured out our rhythm offensively early, jumping to a 15-0 lead to start the half. As the scrimmage progressed, Drew loosened up and gave our team a good run throughout the rest of the evening, calling for disciplined rotations on the defensive end, an area we have worked much harder to improve upon for the year. First scrimmages can be a little tense, since it’s a first showing of the team and its abilities. The best way to come out is loud and excited to start a season of college basketball, as I felt we did well.
Our second scrimmage, at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, PA, proved a different, yet extremely beneficial experience. In all honesty, we got roughed up, losing all three halves (2-20’s & a 10) and ending the scrimmage knowing we were all-around defeated. However, walking out of the gym, a positive result was felt. We now know that regardless if we feel we are the more talented team, we will never be successful if we are out-toughed.
A strong week of practice leading to the Tip-Off Tournament resulted in a solid defeat of
TCNJ, who tested us with a zone defense for a large majority of the game. The following day, we were challenged well with a rivalry game against Baruch College, who brought a strong intensity early that left us down a point after the first half. The second played out as a see-saw, only to finish out with an exciting yet all too reminiscent scenario of last season: close game, and a three-pointer hit by the other team leaving us down three with a minute to go. Pulling together in the final minute, we fought for two foul shots, and took advantage of a miscue in transition to take the lead. This was capped by great defense, especially by Max Wein, who managed two steals in the final two seconds (though one didn’t count due to an out of bounds), and we took the win.
A test like that early on can say a lot about a team and also set a tone for every challenge week by week. If we want to “be the tougher team”, we must continue to pull together. It’s exciting to know that things will get tougher; being in the UAA for three years now you come to expect it.
Andy Stein is a member of the 2011-12 NYU men's basketball team. He will share his thoughts in this space throughout this season.
Written October 18, 2011
By request of our Sports Information Office at NYU, I am excited to once again head up the blog for this season. It seems like forever ago that we were walking out of the dome in Newark at the conclusion of last year, and now we are up to day four of our regular season practices. Again I will provide a behind-the-scenes perspective of our season, with insight into our team’s actions, as well a personal insight of my perspective within the team.
It’s strange knowing this will be my last season of basketball. Becoming a “real person” is not just a distant imagination of future endeavors any more; it is the next step in about six months from now. This year I’ve found myself reflecting more and more on my experiences within the sport, my time with past coaches and teams, and the many things non-basketball related that have contributed to my personal development.
I can say that I am a changed person because of this sport, and there would be no better way to respectfully leave the game than to give one last push for a great season. Over the span of my 14-year career I have won two championships: once in fourth grade going 18-0, and winning a gold medal at the Keystone Games seven years ago. Obviously, I have unfinished business a long time coming.
The loss of last year’s seniors prompted a potential loss in offensive prowess. Some thought last year’s Violets were the most talented here at NYU since our last successful team in 2007, a year before I joined. This year started with a new workout program led by a great team of trainers, and this year’s team has responded full force to the new staple of our athletics program. The experiences of the last season have brought the returning players closer than I remember any of my previous teams at NYU, and for our freshmen we have ushered them into our system with plenty of help, as things in college can be much more complicated than in high school.
Something feels different about this year. Stating that it’s another “season filled with opportunity” like I said last year now goes without saying, as predictions don’t matter anymore. If somebody wants to know how we’ll be this year, I don’t need to give a wins and losses comparison. I know that my team with go harder than every team we face, and it would be a disservice to our teammates and coaches if otherwise.
Jude, Ben, Allen & I have experienced quite a roller coaster ride over three years. Perhaps fate, destiny, or some other force will help us make this a very special year.
