Hall of Fame
We’ve all heard of the expression of catching lightning in a bottle. If lightning had a name at CSI, it would be Rob Roesch, and its bottle would be the CSI basketball hardwood. For two seasons in the late-1980’s, Roesch put on a one-man show at CSI on game night’s that went largely unparalleled. The decorated superstar may have had only an abridged career at the College but the lasting effect he had on the program still resonates today as one of the successful program’s most dominating players.
Roesch joined the Dolphins in time for the 1987-88 basketball campaign after a layoff from basketball for a full two years. When he did finally emerge in a CSI uniform, the 6-7 Roesch was a man among boys, suffocating the opposition with tenacious defending and an inside game that made for highlight-reel material. In 30 games as a first-year junior, Roesch shot 61.1% from the field and scored 727 points, good for a 24.2 point per game average, both the best marks in CSI single-season history. Roesch also brought in 368 rebounds (12.3 per game), at the time also the best mark in history. The Dolphins won 21 games that season, a CUNYAC title, and clinched its fourth appearance in the NCAA National Championship Tournament.
The next year, Roesch assumed the captainship in time for his senior season, and only dropped in 637 tallies, good for a 20.6 clip per contest. He broke his own single-season rebounding record with 482 caroms, good for 15.6 per game, and CSI cruised to another conference title en route to another national tournament appearance. In a 96-72 win over Alfred State in the national tourney, Roesch led the way with 28 points and 14 rebounds. CSI would not win another NCAA National Championship contest until 2012.
For his career Roesch finished 13th in career points with 1,364 and 2nd in career rebounds with 850. He was a two-time All Metropolitan Basketball Writers All-Star and was a 2nd-team GTE Academic All-America and NABC Division III All-American in 1989. Having stayed connected to the program and the College through the years, Roesch served on the CSI Alumni Association Board of Directors from 2001-03.
