Last week, the Hopkins men’s basketball team took on the visiting Salisbury University Sea Gulls at Goldfarb Gymnasium for their first home game of the year. The Jays pulled off a 72-52 win, driven by graduate student guard Conner Delaney.
Delaney stuffed the stat sheet, putting up a career-high 37 points along with five rebounds, four assists and four steals. With his 37 points, Delaney joined the 1,000 point club for the Jays, being only the 18th player in program history to do so.
The News-Letter had the opportunity to talk to Delaney about the Salisbury contest, his entrance into the 1,000 point club and the team’s goals for the rest of the season.
The News-Letter: After the pandemic canceled the basketball season last year, how excited were you and the team to step back onto the court?
Conner Delaney: I was very excited to get back to the team and get back on the court. I was fortunately able to play with the lacrosse team last spring and had a great time, but that also made me really excited to get back to basketball. It’s been great to work with our team every day to get better.
N-L: On Wednesday you had a great performance against Salisbury recording 37 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals. How were you able to make that happen?
CD: The coaching staff had a great game plan for us on Wednesday, and they do a great job of putting me in spots where I can succeed. My teammates trust me, and I always feel confident in myself and I was just able to get into a good flow early and play my game.
N-L: The 37 points that you scored made you just the 18th player in program history to reach the 1,000 point landmark. How do you feel about joining the 1,000 point club?
CD: I feel very honored to be a part of the 1,000 point club. All the credit goes to all my teammates at Hopkins over my career for believing in me. It’s something that I thought was possible when I got to Hopkins, and to do it in front of my family, a great crowd and in a win was very special.
N-L: What are your goals for the rest of the season?
CD: I feel that our team has a great chance to win a lot of games this year. Our main goal is to win the regular-season championship and host the Centennial tournament, but I also want to make a deep run and compete for a national championship.
