The men’s basketball team finished the 2008-09 season with a 7-18 record and a 4-12 performance in conference play, just missing the SUNYAC tournament. In the final 12 games, New Paltz lost six times by ten points or less including four games by five points or fewer.
The Hawks doubled their conference win total from the previous season and competed against six teams that took part in post season play at the NCAA tournament or ECACs. New Paltz defeated Keene State, a consistent participant in the postseason, for the second consecutive season.
Junior Oppong Agyemang broke a 14-year old school record as he became the all-time leader for assists in a season with 160. He was ranked first in the conference and 16th nationally in assists per game (6.40). First year Harris Wichard led the team in points with 12.6 per game and three-point field goals made (52) while junior Connor Cornine scored 9.8 points per game and grabbed a team-high 7.4 rebounds. Junior forward Lee Bertram added 11.8 points per game and was second on the squad with 7.1 boards per contest, and senior Matt Hauser completed his final season averaging 8.9 points.
