By Marc Raimondi
VESTAL, N.Y. – The way Charles Jenkins figures it, he’s earned a matter of trust with his teammates on the Hofstra men’s basketball team. He’s almost sheepish when he speaks about it, but when the Pride tip off this season, the former Springfield Gardens HS star will be the team’s go-to guy – as a sophomore.
Averaging 15 points and 4.6 rebounds per game as a redshirt freshman this past season and becoming the secondary option to Antoine Agudio, Hofstra’s all-time leading scorer, went a long way into determining his future stardom in Hempstead.
His performance this weekend at the Empire State Games – with four current or future teammates watching closely – won’t hurt his standing either.
Jenkins scored 25 points to lead the Long Island men’s open basketball team to a gold medal Saturday in a 104-78 win against New York City at SUNY Binghamton.
Two players on his team – Cornelius Vines and Greg Washington – are teammates at Hofstra, as are two on the city team: Darren Townes and Nathaniel Lester.
“The pressure’s really not on me,” Jenkins said of the upcoming season. “They respect me enough to put the ball in my hands…I just work hard, I guess. I guess they just respect my hard work.”
Jenkins, who is a chiseled 6-foot-3, 220-pounder, gives plenty of credit to the conditioning and lifting he did during his redshirt season. He says he wasn’t ready for the grind of Division I college basketball after graduating from Springfield Gardens in 2006.
“The college transition is a big one,” said Jenkins, who averaged 23.3 points per game in the Empire State Games. “I was big as most forwards in my conference (in high school). I think that year helped me adjust.”
It didn’t take him too long to adjust to the play at SUNY Binghamton. Jenkins was a dominant force in almost every game. The level of competition wasn’t surprising; it was the more than 7,000 people packed inside the BU Events Center for the Empire State Games Opening Ceremonies that shocked Jenkins.
“I saw the most people I’ve ever seen together,” he said, “without a fight breaking out.”
Reach Associate Sports Editor Marc Raimondi by e-mail at mraimondi@timesledger.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 130.
