University of Maine men’s basketball guard Kellen Tynes is averaging 12.7 points a game this season, but his biggest impact has been on defense. He ranks second in NCAA Division I in total steals (97) and steals per game (3.13). Seth Poplaski/UMaine athletics
ORONO — On a basketball court, Kellen Tynes is a master thief. The University of Maine senior guard plays defense like his opponents owe him the ball, and he’s not going to wait for them to part with it willingly.
“I think it’s just the way I’ve always played. When I was younger, I played, it was more old school basketball,” said Tynes, who enters the America East tournament second in NCAA Division I in steals (97) and steals per game (3.13). “Pick you up 94 feet, and I’ve done that the entire time. Defense is something that was always stressed to me at a young age.”
In the last three seasons, no player in Division I men’s basketball has as many steals as Tynes, a native of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. His defensive play is a big reason why Maine will host an America East playoff game for the first time in 30 years. The Black Bears are the No. 3 seed, their highest seed in the tournament since 2011.
Maine (18-13), which has its best record in 15 years, will host UMass Lowell at 6 p.m. Saturday in the Pit.
When America East announces it season awards Friday morning, Tynes is expected to be named Defensive Player of the Year for a third consecutive year. He would join Vermont’s Marcus Blakely (2008-10) as the league’s only three-time honorees.
In each of the last two seasons, Tynes was a finalist for the Lefty Driesell Award, given to the top defensive player in the country. He’s expected to be among the finalists and a top contender for the honor again this season.
“On the defensive end, he’s a menace,” Maine junior guard Jaden Clayton said of Tynes.
Tynes also averages 12.7 points a game and is second on the team in assists, behind Clayton.
His impact on Maine’s team defense can’t be overstated. Of the five leading scorers in America East this season, only UMass Lowell’s Quinton Mincey exceeded his scoring average (16.6 ppg) in both games against Maine this season, going for 26 and 20 against the Black Bears. Bryant’s Rafael Pinson went over his 18.6 average in one game against the Black Bears, scoring 28 in the Bulldogs’ 80-72 win in Orono last week. Tynes held New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Tariq Francis — America East’s leading scorer at 19.2 points per game — to 12 and 11 points.
Tynes has a school-record 229 steals in just three seasons. His prowess was on display in the closing seconds of Maine’s 71-70 win over UMass Lowell on Tuesday night in the Pit, Maine’s cozy home court. With the Black Bears holding a one-point lead with five seconds left, the ball was in Mincey’s hands. Mincey drove left, then spun back right. This is when Tynes’ combination of knowledge and instinct took over.
Tynes knew that when Mincey drives left, he’s likely going to put the ball on the floor for a dribble with his right hand. Tynes saw teammate Quion Burns cut off Mincey’s path left and cheated off his man, knowing what Mincey was going to do next.
“I just kind of left my man, which is a little risky, but I ended up with the steal because I knew he was going to spin,” Tynes said. “A lot of it, I feel like, is just knowing who you’re guarding.”
University of Maine men’s basketball guard Kellen Tynes, a graduate student from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, is enjoying a standout season for the Black Bears. Photo by Seth Poplaski/UMaine athletics
It was a great play, and it helped the Black Bears hold on for the victory. Clayton said it was nothing he hasn’t seen from Tynes over and over.
“That’s the thing a lot of people don’t understand when you watch Kell play. His defensive rotations and anticipation are incredible. Just watching him play so much, that’s something I’m picking up for myself. To be honest, he’s one of the best in the country to do it,” Clayton said. “Being able to play beside him for three years now, it’s a blessing.”
Maine coach Chris Markwood got to know Tynes when he recruited him out of the Rothesay Netherwood, a New Brunswick prep school, as an assistant coach at Northeastern. The 6-foot-3 Tynes has good length for a guard, and his quickness and hand-eye coordination allow him to take defensive chances that lead to steals, instead of silly fouls, and turn into points off turnovers. The Black Bears average 16.5 points per game off turnovers, while opponents are averaging just 10.3 points. Tuesday, Maine scored 21 points off turnovers, while the River Hawks managed just five.
In close games, Tynes does the little things that translate into wins.
“He’s the best defender I’ve ever coached. I’ve always felt with Kell, it’s the competitive fire. I’ve never seen a great defender not have that inner kind of competitive fire. It pushes him to want to guard the best player on the other team every night and do the things he does on the defensive side,” Markwood said. “There’s just a lot going on there that as a coach, you can’t teach. It’s just who he is. It’s who he’s been since I watched him play in high school.”
When Markwood pursued Tynes for Northeastern, the Huskies already had Tyson Walker, just a sophomore and one of the top players in the Coastal Athletic Association. Markwood was honest. Tynes might want to look elsewhere, to a school where he would see playing time sooner. So Tynes initially chose Montana State. A few years later, with Markwood the newly hired head coach at Maine, he heard through mutual friends that Tynes would be entering the transfer portal.
Tynes, who made a visit to Maine during the recruiting process, was already familiar with Orono and Markwood, and felt it would be the right fit. It helped that Maine is the closest Division I school to his Nova Scotia home. Tynes said his parents can make the six-hour drive for his games more frequently.
Tynes said his play has evolved since his first season at Maine.
“My first year, I had a lot of steals. Me and the coaches watched a lot of film, and there was some times I would go for steals, and I wouldn’t get it, and I would put the other four guys in a bad spot. As time’s gone on, I’ve learned when and where I can gamble, and if I do gamble, do it in a way that doesn’t hurt the defense,” Tynes said.
