Bears’ Haynes willing to do ‘dirty work’

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According to the black-and-white, just-the-facts language of a basketball stat sheet, Colin Haynes had a forgettable game when his University of Maine team kicked off the new year against Northeastern.

He made one shot from the floor … grabbed four rebounds … scored five points. Oh. He also handed out four assists in 22 minutes of action.

Not bad. Average. Unspectacular. Or was it more than that?

Sometimes, Haynes would tell you (probably more with his game than his words) the stat sheet can lie. It can’t tell you, for instance, what happened with seven seconds left in that game.

But first-year assistant coach Andy Bedard, who played with the 6-foot-7 forward for two years, can.

He can tell you how Haynes watched the Huskies roll the ball up the court so the clock wouldn’t start in a game they already trailed by six.

And he can tell you how Haynes decided to dive on the ball, knowing full well that if he could tie it up, the possession arrow favored his Bears.

And he can tell you what that play, and hundreds of others Haynes has made over the past 31/2 years, tells him.

“It seems like whenever there’s a big play to be made, he’s involved in it somehow,” Bedard says. “Like [against Northeastern]. We probably didn’t need that play to happen. We were probably gonna win without it. But it just put an exclamation point on it.”

That’s the kind of thing coach John Giannini hoped he’d get when he made the Moorestown, N.J., native his first recruit after getting the UMaine job during the summer of 1996.

“He’s just one of those recruits who becomes exactly what you hoped he would be,” Giannini said of his captain.

Sometimes, that means Haynes is a shooter. Sometimes he’s a defender. Often he’s a rebounder.

But no matter what, Bedard and Giannini agree, Haynes is the one thing the team needs most: He’s a winner.

Chasing a record

Basketball, the way Colin Haynes plays it, is not necessarily a breathtaking game. Nothing looks particularly easy. Nothing is especially breathtaking.

His hoop world is, Haynes will tell you, a bit different.

“I just let the game come to me,” Haynes says. “I’m not really a drive, crossover [dribble] guy. I’m not about to got out and break someone down and stuff like that.

“Hopefully, someone will shoot, and then I’ll get a rebound, and then I can get some offense [by] putting it back up.”

Colin Haynes’ world is one where no one keeps track of the important stuff.

Forget the fact that Haynes has averaged only 5.2 points and 5.0 rebounds per game over his career. Giannini says those numbers don’t illustrate what Haynes brings to his team.

“Whatever you need to do to win, Colin will do it. It’s hard to elaborate more than that,” Giannini said. “He not only has a great feel for the game, but he appreciates and enjoys doing all the hard things.”

That means he collects floor burns and trades elbows. He gets the ball to the open man, and never shies away from a chance to draw an offensive foul on an out-of-control opponent.

And he’s got that routine down pat. Even if nobody keeps track of how many times he gets it just right.

“As long as I can get in the right spot, it’s about being a good actor,” Haynes says with a grin. “[Then you] flop back and let out a good yelp. That’s all you really need [to convince] the ref, really.”

And in his world, a guy’s worth can be measured by how he answers one simple question: How many wins have you got?

“If you look at the purpose of any team sport, the main objective is to win as a group,” Giannini says. “Very soon Colin will have helped his teammates win more games than any other [men’s] basketball player in the history of this university. I think that’s a stunning accomplishment.”

Before the Bears faced Vermont on Monday, Haynes had played in 59 Black Bear wins, and hadn’t missed a game in his career.

Ken Barnes sits atop the Maine career-wins list with 61.

Haynes, who admits he considered transferring early in a frustrating seven-win freshman year, has become comfortable in his role as the Black Bears’ working-class sixth man, or as the low-post defensive stopper employed during special situations.

“I’ve always felt better on defense than offense,” Haynes says. “Maybe I wasn’t as good on offense as I was on defense.”

To his credit, he has worked hard at becoming a good shooter from the perimeter, and is a threat from 3-point range. He’s also worked hard in the weight room, and weighs in at a solid 220 pounds.

But his strong suit is an innate understanding of a few things about the game that coaches are paid thousands of dollars to teach.

Giannini calls it “basketball IQ,” and says Haynes possesses one that’s off the chart.

“He just knows what has to be done,” Giannini says.

Haynes, of course, knows what his coach is talking about.

“It’s all the little things,” he says. “To get a rebound, all you have to do is box out. As long as everyone boxes out, you’ll get a rebound. … and all defense is being in the right place at the right time.”

Sounds pretty simple. But not too glamorous. Not that Haynes minds. And his teammates, past and present, are happy to have him around, too.

“Colin is kind of the Dennis Rodman of our team,” senior Julian Dunkley says, referring to gritty play, not the outrageous behavior and tattoos the former NBA star was equally noted for.

“He’s kind of the warrior, kind of the unsung hero. He goes in there and does all the dirty work. You need a player like him on your team to be successful,” Dunkley said.

Popularity contest

Evidence of Haynes’ popularity is everywhere around the UMaine program. Talk to coaches. Talk to players. Talk to coaches who used to be players.

Everybody’s a fan.

Bedard, who played with Haynes in games for two years, in practice for another, and is now an assistant coach, pays his former teammate the ultimate compliment of gym rats everywhere.

“He’s the guy that I pick first every time we play pickup and we pick teams,” Bedard says. “He’s not gonna be the leading scorer, the leading this or the leading that. He’s just a guy who knows how to win.”

Senior forward Carvell Ammons seconds that opinion.

“I think he’s the best player for our team because he’s unselfish,” Ammons says.

“Everyone loves playing with Colin. You know you’re gonna get the ball when you’re open,” Ammons says. “He’s gonna make you have the easiest shots. I think I’ve got to attribute maybe 50 percent of the points I’ve scored this year to Colin.”

Giannini, who made a phone call to Haynes one of his first acts when he got settled into the UMaine coaching job, knows he’s going to have a hard time replacing his captain … no matter what the stat sheet says.

“He’s a meat and potato type guy,” Giannini says. “He’s not about style. He’s about getting the job done. And coaches today wish there were more Colin Hayneses out there.”