STUDENT OF THE GAME
Buie takes Pride in academics as well as hoops to become Hofstra leader
His character gets praised first. Then his off-court development. Basketball follows.
Desure Buie may be Hofstra’s best player, its leading scorer and playmaker, the key to the CAAleading Pride reaching their first NCAA Tournament in 19 years, but it isn’t what defines the redshirt senior from The Bronx. Basketball is only part of who he is.
“He’s an incredible person,” coach Joe Mihalich said.
He’s a member of the 2019-20 CoSIDA Academic All-District 1 First Team, a student-athlete who is on pace to receive his master’s degree (higher education leadership) in May with a near-perfect GPA, a doting father and an exceptional leader. A year ago, he earned his undergraduate degree (linguistics) with a 3.32 average, becoming the first member of his family to graduate from college.
On the court, he’s having a memorable senior season — leading Hofstra (22-7, 13-3) to the top of the CAA, posting career-highs in minutes played (36.7), scoring (18.1), assists (5.6), rebounding (3.5) and field-goal percentage (45.3).
It’s all been about development, on the floor and off. Buie has worked relentlessly in the classroom and on his game, the two emphasized equally.
“I’m not supposed to be here,” said Buie, who is one of 30 student-athletes nationally selected for the Senior CLASS Award, given to a senior who excels in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. “Most kids where I come from, they don’t go to college like this.”
Coming out of Wings Academy in The Bronx, he was a quality three-star recruit, an undersized point guard with a keen understanding of the game. Back then, basketball was his life. He nearly didn’t pass the NCAA Clearinghouse, which gauges academic eligibility, needing to finish strong. Even then, to get into Hofstra, Buie had to be a special admit with presidential approval, since his cumulative GPA was below the university-mandated 2.5.
“His f irst semester, it was a case of just surviving,” said Rachel Peel, an associate dean for the Center for University Advising who also works individually with student-athletes.
That first semester changed his outlook on life. He was taking writing composition and clashed with the professor, who Buie felt was unnecessarily hard on him. She would make him rewrite his work, demand more from him. He took it as a challenge.
“It made me want to do better,” he said. “I’m like I can get through anything if I can get through her.”
The 5-foot-11 Buie needed help in the classroom, needed to learn how to take notes, how to properly focus. That’s where Peel fit in. The two would meet for 10-12 hours a week, frequently after practice. He saw how hard she worked with student-athletes to keep them eligible, how much she helped him at the start and he wanted to make her life easier by doing well himself.
They developed a bond, talking about everything, from basketball to life to school. She stressed the importance to him of thinking beyond the game. Peel would make road trips with the team, and it wasn’t uncommon for the two to be the only ones up on late-night bus trips, studying together as everyone slept. His first semester, Buie got a 2.8. But he wasn’t satisfied.
“I want to get a 3.0 and be on the Dean’s List,” he told her.
Meanwhile, on the court Buie had a quiet freshman year, averaging just 3.0 points as a backup. He tore his ACL eight games into the following season, creating a crossroads on the court.
A full year of rehabilitation followed. While he was out, Hofstra brought in Kenny Wormley, a junior college point guard. The coaching staff wasn’t sure it could depend on Buie to run the team. At the beginning of his long road back, he became a father. At 19 years old, he didn’t know if he was ready. Then he held his daughter Jada. That joy he felt changed him.
“My numbers [ in physical therapy] went up, I went so hard,” he recalled. “My daughter put me on the right track.”
Jada sits with her mother in the same spot behind the basket at every home game. During pregame introductions, Buie makes eye contact with her.
“It gives me goose bumps and