2025-26 Roster
2025-26 Schedule
2024-25 Statistics

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State men's basketball team returns a strong core of contributors while welcoming a dynamic group of newcomers as it seeks to make the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) tournament for the third straight year under seventh-year head coach Mike Blaine.

During the 2024-25 campaign, the Cardinals finished with a 15-12 (11-7 SUNYAC) record, featuring a SUNYAC Tournament first-round win over Morrisville before a close semifinal loss to New Paltz. That postseason run marked continued momentum of the program after a first-round appearance the year before as the Cardinals look to advance to the championship game and claim their eighth title in program history.

The Plattsburgh State men's basketball team lost two All-SUNYAC players in Franklin Infante and Kevin Tabb, but returns 10 players from last year's squad, including All-SUNYAC honoree Reem Welch (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Thomas Jefferson) and Nate Pondexter Jr. (Washington, D.C. / Archbishop Carroll). The returning core will be joined by six newcomers, including transfer Khalil Screen (Providence, R.I. / Classical), who has experience playing against SUNYAC competition during his time at Potsdam.

"We are extremely excited for the year ahead. We are pleased to work with a talented crop of newcomers who are hungry to contribute to the program," said Blaine. "We are led by a motivated group of returners who look to continue building on the successive progress we have made over the past several seasons. We recognize a challenging non-conference slate of games will only strengthen us in advance of our continued pursuit of a SUNYAC championship."

Plattsburgh State's quest for a SUNYAC title starts when the team visits Division I University of Vermont tomorrow, Nov. 5, for an exhibition at 7 p.m. before opening the 2025-26 regular season at Skidmore on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 2 p.m.

Guards
Welch, who earned Second Team All-SUNYAC last season, will lead the charge in the Cardinals' backcourt after leading the team in scoring, averaging 15.0 points per game (PPG). Welch ranked fifth in the conference in field goal percentage, shooting 50.0% and proved to be a playmaker as well, recording a team-high 3.8 assists per game (APG), which was second in the conference.

Other returners include senior AJ Williams Jr. (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Paul Robeson) and sophomore Jaiden Gladney (Charlestown, W. Va. / Jefferson), who both saw solid minutes last season and will add depth to the guard unit.

Sophomore transfer Mari Hodnett (Fort Washington, Md. / Bishop Ireton) and junior transfer Elijah Morris (Mount Vernon, N.Y. / Mount Vernon), along with first-year Matty Stolfo (Staten Island, N.Y. / St. Joseph by the Sea) and junior transfer Sean Walsh (Northport, N.Y. / Northport), bring fresh energy to bolster the backcourt. Morris and Walsh both bring experience to the guard unit and will challenge for a rotation spot. During the 2024-25 seasons, Morris averaged 10.2 PPG and 3.4 APG at Cobleskill, and Walsh averaged 15.7 PPG and 4.0 rebounds per game (RPG) and was a Region XV All-Region Honorable Mention at Nassau Community College.

Wings
Pondexter Jr. returns to the Cardinal lineup after a stellar first-year campaign. He averaged 9.7 PPG, along with 4.8 RPG, and proved to be an efficient scoring option, leading the conference in field goal percentage at 57.3%.

The rest of the wing group is highlighted by experience as senior Jeremy Jolly (Queens, N.Y. / Springfield Gardens) and junior transfer David McKnight Jr. (South Orange, N.J. / Columbia) round out the wings. McKnight Jr. will look to boost the Cardinals' scoring after coming off a season at Union College of Union County (UCNJ), where he averaged 8.9 PPG and shot 45.7% from behind the arc.

Frontcourt
Plattsburgh's frontcourt will see multiple returning players in Wol Machteng (Utica, N.Y. / Utica Academy of Science), Aidan McGuire (Turin, N.Y. / South Lewis), and Colin Hartig (Hohen Neuendorf, Germany / Neues Gymnasium Glienicke). Machteng saw the most minutes of the returners and will look to expand his role and be a strong presence in the paint. McGuire saw action in eight games, and Hartig in five, as both will look to compete for a spot in the frontcourt rotation.

Irwayne Connell Jr. (Monroe CC / Saint Thomas Aquinas) also returns to the team's lineup and looks to strengthen the team's frontcourt. At the same time,  Screen provides the Cardinals with a versatile option at the position as well, after averaging 6.9 PPG and 6.9 RPG last season at Potsdam.