Biography
By Jim Hague
The truth be told, Hussein Abdelmaksoud truly believed he would be playing college football someplace rather than owning a spot on the Rutgers-Newark men’s basketball roster.
You see, the 6-foot-6 Abdelmaksoud was a standout in both basketball and football at Memorial High School in his native West New York and almost made the decision to spend his time on the gridiron than on the hardwood.
“I was a good tight end in high school,” said Abdelmaksoud, earning several post-season honors for his football prowess. “I was actually getting more looks and better looks from colleges for football. I really wasn’t getting many looks for basketball.”
However, one school did pursue Abdelmaksoud for basketball – and that was Rutgers-Newark.
“They were the first ones to really recruit me and were all over me my junior year,” Abdelmaksoud said. “Since they were the first, that really motivated me to go there.”
However, when Abdelmaksoud arrived in Newark, he found out that there wasn’t exactly a lot of playing time available. With seven seniors and several inside players still on the roster, Abdelmaksoud had to bide his time and learn from the returning Scarlet Raiders.
“Without a doubt, that’s what my freshman year was, a good learning experience,” Abdelmaksoud said. “It was all learning. I played in practice every day with some great guys who helped me get better.”
There were times that Abdelmaksoud showed flashes of his potential in practice.
“He would go up against guys like (now graduated players) DeShawn Singleton and Ryan Gillens in practice and give those guys fits,” Rutgers-Newark head coach Joe Loughran said. “We knew that he had some ability coming in, but he busted his tail against those guys and drive them nuts.”
But Abdelmaksoud didn’t get much chance to play as a freshman, playing in 13 games, averaging 1.4 points and 1.5 rebounds as a little-used reserve for the Scarlet Raiders, who won 20 games and qualified for the NCAA Division III tournament for the very first time.
“It was okay, because I knew it was a way that I was getting better,” Abdelmaksoud said. “It was the role I had to play.”
Most of those inside players graduated from last year’s team. One, Singleton, became a member of the R-N coaching staff.
Abdelmaksoud looked at it as a chance to finally break into the playing rotation, when disaster struck.
“I sprained my knee in practice and missed six weeks,” Abdelmaksoud said. “It was really frustrating, because I really wanted to play. It didn’t keep me from working hard. I just wanted to get the chance to play.”
“He had that early setback in the preseason,” Loughran said. “He was playing well before he got hurt. He just kept his mouth shut, worked hard in getting back and realized that good things were going to happen for him.”
Abdelmaksoud said that he was receiving daily encouragement from new coach Singleton.
“He was the best forward in the NJAC last year in my mind, so I had to listen to him,” Abdelmaksoud said. “When I first came here, he was the one who was pushing me and helping me. Now, DeShawn’s a coach and he’s the one talking to me all the time, telling me I could be a good player. He works with me and believes in me.”
When Abdelmaksoud returned from the knee injury, he found the playing time to be minimal. But when Ralph Jones left the team for personal reasons after nine games, the door opened for Abdelmaksoud to see more action.
Lately, Abdelmaksoud is making the most of his time – and developing into an inside force for the Scarlet Raiders.
Over the last seven games, Abdelmaksoud has been unbelievable, averaging 11.7 points and 10.8 rebounds during that stretch, all of which have been crucial NJAC contests.
In his last two games, Abdelmaksoud went for 14 points and 16 rebounds against William Paterson, then had a career-best 29 points and 18 rebounds in a game against Ramapo.
“To have games like that has really given me a lot of confidence,” Abdelmaksoud said. “I’ve proven that I can compete with anyone. I’m pretty surprised myself. I knew that I just needed the opportunity to play. I knew I had some potential. But this is crazy.”
“This is beyond anything we could have imagined,” Loughran said. “He’s proven a lot of people wrong. He’s playing his tail off right now. During the game (Ramapo), I leaned over and told DeShawn that he never did anything like this as a player. Hussein has very good hands, has good footwork and has a sense what to do around the basket. He has good touch around the rim. He’s become our X-factor down low. He’s a bright kid, a fast learner who has really made the most of his opportunity. He’s been a pleasant surprise.”
For the season, Abdelmaksoud is averaging 6.5 points and 6.4 rebounds. He definitely has found a permanent spot in the Scarlet Raiders’ rotation.
“We’re not deep upfront, so I felt I had to get in there and do something,” said Abdelmaksoud, who has not declared a major yet, but is leaning toward computer engineering. “I just needed to earn my chance. I’m glad I got the opportunity.”
Abdelmaksoud is a product of a mother who is Lebanese and a father who he does not know who is Egyptian. His mother raised four children in West New York on her own. He credits an older brother Hassaim Jafar for helping to raise him, but another older brother, Mohamed, who is currently an assistant football coach at Marist High School in Bayonne, was the one who introduced him to basketball.
“I was nine when I started playing basketball, but I wasn’t that good,” Abdelmaksoud said. “I just decided to stick with it. My brother was more of a football player.”
As was Hussein, until he decided to attend Rutgers-Newark instead – and now, the Scarlet Raiders are all the better for it.
