Friday, Nov. 13, was the start of the Monmouth men's basketball season. On this night, the Hawks went into Pauley Pavilion and defeated Pac-12 powerhouse UCLA 84-81 in overtime. It was on this night I knew it was going to be a special season for the team. Going across the country to face a nationally renowned team like UCLA and defeating them in their building is a major accomplishment for any team, let alone a small conference school from central Jersey like Monmouth.

UCLA has gone on to prove how dangerous they can be this season, having defeated number one Kentucky as well as number 20 Gonzaga, at Gonzaga. Last week they were ranked 22 in the AP poll, meaning they were considered the 22nd best team in the country at the start of the week. This just adds to the monumental achievement Monmouth accomplished to open its season.

Fast forward to Thanksgiving, where Monmouth traveled down to Orlando, for the Advocare Invitational tournament. In round one, Monmouth drew No. 17 Notre Dame in what most shrugged off as an easy win for the Fighting Irish. But not so fast. It was on this night that the sensation that is the Monmouth bench was born and the team cemented themselves as the real deal.

MU pulled off the upset by defeating Notre Dame 70-68, earning their first win over a ranked opponent in school history. The next day in the semifinals, Monmouth went toe-to-toe with another NCAA tournament team from a year ago, Dayton. While Monmouth fell to Dayton 73-70, they had a chance to tie it on the last shot. Two days later they defeated USC in a decisive 83-73 win.

The Hawks have kept on rolling. In their home opener, they beat Wagner by nearly 20 points. Then, just last Tuesday, MU went into Georgetown as 10-point underdogs. The end result, a 15-point Monmouth victory and another awesome bench celebration. Then yesterday they traveled to in-state rival Rutgers, and beat them to secure their fifth win versus a major conference school this season.

The Hawks sit with a 8-3 record and are a clear contender for the MAAC title this season. The bench and the guys on the court have each made their contributions to the success of the team.

On the court, junior guard Justin Robinson is the man who controls the action. Leading the team in minutes and points per game, Robinson has hit his fair share of clutch shots so far this season. Then there is freshman guard Micah Seaborn, who simply has a scorer's touch around the basket. Seaborn is hitting three-pointers at nearly 45 percent.

Senior guard Deon Jones is the leading man in regards to rebounds this season, averaging 7.2 boards a game. Junior big man Chris Brady is second in rebounding while connecting for nearly 55 percent of his shots from the court.

Junior guard Je'lon Hornbeak leads the team from the free throw line, hitting 97 percent of his shots from the charity stripe. Junior Collin Stewart is always good for a big shot, averaging eight points per game and shooting nearly 40 percent from three.

Guards Josh James and Austin Tilghman are both on the court for over ten minutes each game as well. Big men Diago Quinn and Zac Tillman are both shooting over 90 percent from the free throw line for the Hawks.

All of these men have made their share of contributions to the team on the court this season. Then there is the foursome known as the Monmouth Bench Mob. These are the four men you can find at the end of the bench doing their epic and fantastic celebrations every time the guys on the court do something big.

First, there are the cousins from New Jersey, Daniel and Louie Pillari. Listed at 5-10, Daniel is usually the one being picked up and held during some of the celebrations, such as the fish in the "Big Catch." Then there is freshman Tyler Robinson, who is usually found at the beginning of the "Pirate Ship." Finally, there is junior Greg Noack, the tallest of the group standing at a listed 6-8. Greg can be seen laying on the floor pointing at Dan in the "Sistine Chapel" or using Dan's legs as "Human Scissors."

These guys seem to be getting most of the press while the team on the court has flown under the radar a bit. But the bottom line is, both parts of the team are bringing their A game this season. We have the best bench in sports. We also have a basketball team that is fully capable of making it to the NCAA tournament this season. The more they keep winning, the more and more they will be recognized for their playing. If they keep it up, they may have a chance at an at-large bid (which is very difficult for small conference schools) if they cannot win the automatic bid by winning the MAAC tournament. But the way they have looked so far, that automatic bid looks well within their reach.

Come March I hope to hear the guys on ESPN talking about a few things. First, how Monmouth's play on the court has them poised to advance in the tournament. And two, the bench celebrations keep getting better and better. The whole team has performed remarkably, and they deserve to be recognized like they have.

Keep on winning boys, we are all pulling for you. What is your favorite Monmouth bench celebration? (Personally, I love the "Big Catch")