STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Like most modern basketball programs, the College of Staten Island leans heavily into analytics. The Dolphin men’s coaches sift through the video to chart every pass, every screen, every missed box out … you name it. Data rules.
But at the end of all the square-rooting, head coach T.J. Tibbs simplifies the whole thing with a metric no slide rule or abacus can provide.
“I’ve felt in (previous seasons), we’ve had nine, 10, maybe even 11 guys who were what I call ‘Above the line,’” Tibbs said. “(Meaning) good enough to put them in a game. With so many young guys, we have 7 ½ (out of 13) above the line right now. We’ll probably play slower than the majority of years, and that’s just a depth thing.”
So, getting more guys to measure up is the Dolphins’ jumping off point for the 2025-26 season that starts Friday evening (7:30) against St. Michael’s on the first night of CSI’s Tournament of Heroes.
The good news is the “above the line” guys are veteran players who should offer four new freshmen a little time to grow into their roles.
The Dolphins went 12-18 overall last season, 7-9 in the East Coast Conference, leading the ECC in made threes per game. They won a conference quarterfinal, then lost to top-seeded Daemen, a juggernaut last season, in the semis. That followed a 2023-24 campaign in which CSI went 19-10 overall and 13-3 in the ECC.
What did Tibbs take from the whole experience?
“We certainly competed to the end, which is very CSI-like,” Tibbs said. “We had a lot of ups and downs. But when it came down to it, we had to go on the road in the quarterfinal and won at a place (Roberts Wesleyan) that we had never won at before. And then we had to go try to beat the No. 1 team in the country in their gym in a sold-out place. Two things that team, at that point, probably wasn’t supposed to do.”
We’ll see if the lessons can carry the Dolphins, who are picked to finish third in the ECC, when they need it this season.
Point guard J.J. Chestnut is in his fourth season starting for CSI. (Photo courtesy of CSI Athletics)CSI Athletics
Among the key returnees are guards J.J. Chestnut, Aaron Goldstein and Joey Poulin. Good guard play covers a multitude of sins, so be assured Tibbs wants to see some improvement in assist-to-turnover ratio, which was slightly less than one assist for every turnover.
“(Chestnut) will be a four-year starter,” Tibbs said. “He was second as a freshman in rookie of the year voting. And he brings all the experience from the point guard position that you get when you start for four years in college. He’s gotten better every year, even though his production has fluctuated. Last year, he was up and down (10.0 ppg), but this year, he’s gotten better.”
Goldstein, a junior, will be a third-year starter at the off-guard spot. The Island native became a marked man last season.
“He struggled a little bit last year with being number one on team scouting reports, along with Messiah Mallory (All-Met selection as a senior). So, it’s a huge difference when an entire team (is) trying to stop you. So, I know he’ll adjust well to that this year after seeing it.”
Poulin played more than Tibbs thought as a freshman due to an injury to St. Peter’s HS product Chris Clancy.
“(Poulin is) our best defender,” Tibbs said. “He’ll be one of the best defenders in the league. He takes a lot of pride in that. And he just has to provide us the offense that he’s capable of (by) hitting threes.”
Aaron Goldstein will have to adjust to being the No. 1 guy on opposing teams’ scouting reports. (Photo courtesy of CSI Athletics)CSI Athletics
Mallory’s departure leaves a vacuum. Asa Kone, a 6-foot-8 senior from the Bronx, started 17 of the 30 games last season and will inherit some of Mallory’s interior responsibility.
“He’s not an outside threat as much as Messiah was,” Tibbs said. “But he’s a vertical rim threat more than Messiah is. And I think he’s the best offensive rebounder in the country. So, he can shoulder that load for sure. He’s gotten better every day he’s been here. He’s not an identical match, but he gives you something different.”
The roster will get deeper as the year goes on, but for now, expect redshirt sophomore Mitchell Wiggan to see the court quite a bit as well as redshirt freshman Elijah Darby and true freshman Andrew Benedict.
One player Tibbs can’t wait to see is redshirt junior Michael Oyekanmi, but that will depend on how the Curtis HS product recovers from an injury that cost virtually all of last season.
“He’ll be a huge addition,” Tibbs said. “He’s on the glass. He’s a good (defending) the ball, but he’s a tall guy. I can put him on anybody on the court. I think when he comes back, he’ll be above the line as soon as he’s back.”
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NOTES: Hometownticketing.com is the website for purchasing tickets to CSI men’s and women’s games … Daemen, which was No. 1 nationally in Division II for a good chunk of last season, is the ECC coaches preseason pick to win the conference. St. Thomas Aquinas, which eliminated Daemen from the NCAA tournament last season, is picked No. 2, just ahead of CSI. Daemen is No. 4 in the NABC’s national preseason rankings. St. Thomas Aquinas is listed among others receiving votes. CSI makes a two-game trip to Florida next week that includes a visit to Florida Southern, which is No. 15 in the NABC rankings.
CSI MEN’S SCHEDULE
NOVEMBER
14 – St. Michael’s, 7:30 p.m. (Tourn. Of Heroes)
15 – Chestnut Hill, 2 p.m. (Tourn. Of Heroes)
17 – at U. of Tampa, 7 p.m.
18 – at Florida Southern, 7 p.m.
22 – Adelphi, 3 p.m.
25 – at Pace, 7:30 p.m.
29 – at Georgian Court, noon
DECEMBER
3 – Mercy, 7:30 p.m.
6 – at St. Thomas Aquinas, 6 p.m.
8 – Cheyney, Pa., 7 p.m.
13 – at U. of D.C., 3:30 p.m.
17 – Wilmington, 7 p.m.
20 – Holy Family, 3 p.m.
30 – Franklin Pierce, 5 p.m.
JANUARY
6 – Post Univ., 7:30 p.m.
9 – at D’Youville, 7:45 p.m.
11 – at Daemen, 2 p.m.
14 – St. Thomas Aquinas, 7:30 p.m.
17 – at Mercy, 2 p.m.
24 – at Roberts Wesleyan, 4 p.m.
28 – Queens, 7:30 p.m.
31 – at Molloy, 2:30 p.m.
FEBRUARY
6 – D’Youville, 7:30 p.m.
8 – Daemen, 3 p.m.
14 – U. of D.C., 1 p.m.
22 – Roberts Wesleyan, 3 p.m.
25 – at Queens, 5 p.m.
28 – Molloy, 3 p.m.
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