Tri-State College Basketball Podcast

Hofstra's Jaquan Sanders was full of pride after upsetting his former team, Seton Hall. Sanders speaks with host Bryan DeNovellis about the victory.

Plus Rick Pitino improved to 3-1 against his son Richard, as #22 St. John's defeated New Mexico 85-71 at MSG; Meanwhile, Seton Hall did something it hadn't done since 1947, and #24 Rutgers routs Monmouth despite a record 38 points by Abdi Bashir.

2:40 Jaquan Sanders Interview + Hofstra is 4-0

23:00 St. John’s

39:40 Seton Hall

47:30 Rutgers

54:10 Abdi Bashir/Monmouth

St. John's storms back in the 2nd half to beat Quinnipiac and now the Red Storm crack the Top 25 for the first time since 2019; Meanwhile UConn shakes off a ragged 1st half to rout New Hampshire; Seton Hall falls to Fordham for the first time in 34 years; and Princeton comes from behind to win all 3 of their games.

1:55 St. John’s

15:10 UConn

23:50 Seton Hall

37:10 Princeton

44:35 Central Connecticut

UConn beat writer Dave Borges previews the Huskies and Big East Conference. Can UConn 3-peat as national champions? Who are UConn's biggest challengers in the Big East Conference? Plus Bryan offers his predictions and analysis of St. John's and Seton Hall.

5:00 - Dave Borges on UConn and Big East

Bryan's Breakdown:

34:00 - St. John's analysis and prediction

43:30 - Seton Hall analysis and prediction

56:20 - Tri-State Games of the Week

Bryan DeNovellis recaps an exciting exhibition game between Rutgers and St. John's, won by St. John's 91-85. Bryan gives his analysis of both team's performances and individual players, plus post game comments from Rick Pitino and Steve Pikiell.

Podcast Topics

3:40 - 21:30 St. John’s

3:50 Zuby Ejiofor

7:50 RJ Luis

11:00 Kadary Richmond, Simeon Wilcher, Deivon Smith

18:25 Aaron Scott

21:35 - 37:15 Rutgers

22:40 Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey

26:40 PJ Hayes and Jordan Derkack

29:15 Jeremiah Williams

31:00 Rutgers offense vs defense

32:50 Center Platoon

Jaden Daly from "A Daly Dose of Hoops" has been covering the MAAC men's basketball for 14 years. He knows the league better than anyone and offers his team by team breakdown of (Quinnipiac, Iona, St. Peter's, Marist, Fairfield, Sacred Heart, Merrimack and Manhattan) predictions, players to watch, surprise teams and more.

Full coverage of Rutgers MBB Media Day and observations from open practice. Comments from Steve Pikiell and Bryan's 1 on 1 interview with senior captain Jeremiah Williams (29:00 - 39;00)

Other topics include: Impact of freshmen Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, Rutgers length and depth, Center battle between Emmanuel Ogbole and Lathan Sommerville, transfers Tyson Acuff, Zach Martini, PJ Hayes and Jordan Derkack, and predictions for Rutgers in the Big Ten.

Ivy League Player of the Year, Caden Pierce, joins the podcast to preview the Tigers season. Caden also discusses why he ultimately returned to Princeton and turned down NIL opportunities elsewhere. He and fellow junior, Xaivian Lee, promise to be one of the best 1-2 junior tandems in the country, as Princeton tries to regain the Ivy League Title won by Yale last season.

Author Richard Kent joins Bryan to talk about his latest book, "The Madness of Ivy Basketball" which chronicles a wild season of men's and women's basketball in the Ivy League. Richard, who grew up in New Haven, CT as a fan of Yale and Princeton too, is currently a color commentator for Yale basketball. He offers plenty of anecdotes and insight into the players, coaches and teams from Bill Bradley in the 1960s to Caden Pierce and Bez Mbeng from today.

As summer workouts are underway at Rutgers, Head Coach Steve Pikiell assesses his most talented roster ever. Pikiell talks about:

dealing with high expectations

adding experienced players through the portal

addressing free throw woes

incoming freshman class

team size, depth and versatility

what the offense will look like

2024-25 schedule and more!

UConn Head Coach Dan Hurley joins Bryan DeNovellis in the wake of Alex Karaban's announcement that he's returning to Storrs. Hurley covers a number of topics including:

Karaban's return

His "deepest roster ever"

Incoming transfers (Reed and Mahaney) and freshman McNeeley

Why he engages opposing fans

Next Year's non-conference schedule

Quest to 3-Peat