Benigni poured in 22 points, connecting on 4-of-5 three-pointers in his homecoming matchup with UConn on Saturday (PHOTO BY Bob Blanchard) |
BY David Borges
New Haven Register
HARTFORD — It had been 672 days between Jackson Benigni's last game with Stonehill and his return to the floor on Monday night. But who's counting?
"I was counting, for sure," the former Xavier High and Hamden Hall standout confirmed.
So much had changed that when Benigni made his return Monday night at George Washington, Stonehill had transitioned from a Division II program to Division I.
Benigni's return wasn't triumphant (scoreless in a 45-point loss), but his homecoming on Saturday was the stuff of dreams. Playing in front of numerous family and friends, many of them seated courtside at XL Center, Benigni poured in 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting, including 4-for-5 from 3.
That it came in a 40-point loss hardly took away from the fact that it came against the UConn men's basketball team, the program Benigni has loved since childhood, and had Dan Hurley marveling at it as "one of the best performances that a guard's had against one of my teams."
"It's a childhood dream to play here," said Benigni, an East Hampton product. "I wish the outcome was better, but just a dream come true for me."
Benigni missed out on the chance to live out his dream last season, when UConn opened up its season against the SkyHawks in Hartford. Benigni had undergone double knee surgery in March 2022, and wasn't ready to return to action last November. He thought he could be back by January, and started to do live stuff in practice at that time.
However, with Stonehill transitioning to a D-I program and ineligible for postseason tournaments, its season was over on Feb. 22. Rather than burn a whole season just to play for about a month, Benigni and the coaching staff decided for him to redshirt.
Now, Benigni has two more years of eligibility after this one.
Benigni |
"Every game's a learning experience," he said. "Not playing the past two years, playing at D1 level now, I'm just taking every moment in and being grateful I have the opportunity to play the game I love."
Benigni tore the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) and meniscus in his knee midway through the 2021-22 season. He tried to come back for the postseason, but ultimately opted for surgery.
"It was a crazy experience," Benigni said of his injury and rehab. "I had never missed a game or practice prior to this injury. For me, it was a totally different experience dealing with this, being on the sideline for a whole 1½ years. But, very grateful to be back."
Benigni admitted to some "first-game jitters" prior to Monday's game at George Washington, and wound up shooting 0-for-5 off the bench in the loss. On Thursday, Benigni played 28 minutes off the bench against Army and scored 14 points in a 57-44 win.
Then came Saturday. Benigni used to go to the Big East Tournament each year with his father Brian, superintendent of schools in Berlin, and his late grandfather, including the famous six-overtime loss to Syracuse in 2009. More recently, he was at the Huskies' Big East tourney semifinal loss to Marquette last March.
"He's been dying for this moment his entire life," Stonehill coach Chris Kraus said after Saturday's game.
Make no mistake, while Benigni still considers himself a "diehard" UConn fan, he noted a few days earlier that, come noon on Saturday, the Huskies would be the "enemy." Benigni came out firing, knocking down his first 3-pointer of the season about six minutes into the game, then scoring on a nifty, spinning drive. He canned another trey later in the half, then scored a pair of tough drives to the hoop to finish with 12 points at halftime.
"He brings that competitive edge and spirit," Kraus said. "He's a hard-nosed, attacking winner. It was great to see him knock the 3-ball down today, because he's such a great shooter."
Benigni stayed hot in the second half, and with about 12 minutes left, Hurley shouted to him, "Can you stop scoring!?!?"
"I watched him on film, and I tried to warn our guys that he was going to be a problem," Hurley said afterwards. "And he was."
Hurley was complimentary to Benigni in the postgame handshake line, as well.
"Just a dream come true," Benigni related. "An opportunity to speak to a legend in the coaching world."
Benigni wound up matching UConn's Tristen Newton for game-high scoring honors, making every one of those 672 days of rehab worth it.
"They beat us by 40, he outscored the majority of them," Kraus pointed out. "Moments like that are pretty cool for our program. I'm proud of him, and proud of our group."
Another CT connection
Benigni isn't the only Nutmeg State native on Stonehill's roster. Charlie Diamantis of Milford is a sophomore walk-on with an unusual story behind his spot on the roster. The Foran High graduate was a team manager last season. However, due to multiple injuries (including Benigni's), Diamantis was often pressed into playing action during practices.
Ultimately, he was rewarded with a walk-on role this season.
"He worked his butt off as a manager," Benigni noted. "I'm so happy for him to get the opportunity to travel with us and experience the D1 level."
