Peter Kiss (basketball)

Peter Richard Kiss (born May 9, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for Soles de Mexicali, of the Mexican LNBP. He played college basketball for the Bryant Bulldogs of the Northeast Conference (NEC). He previously played for the Quinnipiac Bobcats and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. In Kiss' redshirt senior season at Bryant University, he averaged 25.2 points per game leading the NCAA Division I in scoring.[1]

Peter Kiss
No. 1 – Soles de Mexicali
PositionShooting guard
LeagueLNBP
Personal information
Born (1997-05-09) May 9, 1997
Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school
College
NBA draft2022: undrafted
Career history
2022–presentSoles de Mexicali
Career highlights and awards

High school career

Kiss started his high school career at Loyola School Manhattan then Monsignor Scanlan High School in The Bronx, New York, and began playing basketball seriously in his sophomore season. He then attended Victory Rock Prep School in Sarasota, Florida before spending his senior year at Notre Dame Preparatory School in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Kiss committed to playing college basketball for Quinnipiac in October 2015.[2]

College career

Quinnipiac

Kiss spent one year at Quinnipiac. In his one-season, Kiss became a leader on the team averaging 13.3 points per game.[2][3] He was named to the MAAC All-Rookie Team including being named the MAAC Rookie of the Week four times and leading Quinnipiac in scoring in eight games.[4] Kiss transferred to Rutgers over the likes of Seton Hall and Auburn.[5]

Rutgers

In his first year with Rutgers, Kiss redshirted due to not being eligible because of NCAA transfer rules. In his first season playing with Rutgers, Kiss would play in 30 games averaging six points a game. Despite this, there were concerns regarding Kiss' defense.[6] The following season, Kiss would only play in two games and as a result Kiss made the decision to transfer to Bryant.[7]

Bryant

In Kiss' first year at Bryant, he played in and started in 22 games averaging 16.6 points per game. As a result, Kiss was named to the First-team All-NEC.[8] In Kiss' second season with Bryant, he led the NCAA in scoring.[9] Kiss averaged 25.1 points per game. Kiss became the fastest player in program history to tally 1,000 points, doing so in 48 games.[10] During the season, Kiss was suspended for the first two games by Bryant head coach Jared Grasso for an unspecified violation of team rules.[11][12] Kiss was suspended for a second time for unsportsmanlike conduct in a game against Long Island. The suspension kept Kiss out for another two games.[13] Throughout the season, Kiss led the NCAA in technical fouls with 9.

Despite being one of the top scorers in Division I basketball, Kiss did not win the NEC Player of the Year Award, and it was believed that Kiss's antics kept him from winning the award.[14] He was named to the First Team All-NEC, however.[15] An assistant coach in the NEC called Kiss "bush league" and recalled how he mocked opposing players after turnovers and blew a kiss at Fairleigh Dickinson head coach Greg Herenda after hitting a 3-pointer, among other incidents.[16]

In the 2022 NEC tournament, Kiss led the Bulldogs to the championship game after wins against Central Connecticut and Mount St. Mary's. Throughout the game, Kiss regularly taunted opposing players and fans by showboating, flexing and doing push-ups after field goals, even screaming "That's for you, bitch!" at a reporter who predicted Bryant would lose.[16] After a brawl and a 30-minute delay, play resumed, and the Bulldogs won 70–43 to clinch their first ever bid to the NCAA tournament. Kiss was named the MVP of the tournament.[17]

In the 2022 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, Kiss scored 28 points in the Bulldog's First Four game against Wright State.[18] Bryant lost the game 82–93.

Professional career

In September 2022, Kiss signed with Mexican team Soles de Mexicali.[19] He scored 11 points in his professional debut, an 89–75 loss to the Dorados de Chihuahua.[20]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
* Led NCAA Division I

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2016–17 Quinnipiac 312029.8.408.277.7425.62.81.2.213.3
2017–18 Rutgers Redshirt Redshirt
2018–19 Rutgers 301118.1.384.302.5812.2.9.4.16.0
2019–20 Rutgers 206.5.000.000.0001.0.5.5.0.0
2020–21 Bryant 222233.0.504.424.8516.53.21.9.316.6
2021–22 Bryant 272635.7.456.296.7845.83.21.7.325.2*
Career 1127928.3.441.313.7714.82.41.2.214.6

Personal life

Kiss' parents, Peter and Ida, emigrated from Hungary and Romania. Growing up in Manhattan, Kiss mainly played baseball.

References
  1. FrontPageBets, Joe Sullivan For. "A dozen facts you probably don't know about 2022 NCAA Tournament teams". Buffalo News. Retrieved 2022-03-15.
  2. "Peter Kiss a welcome surprise for Quinnipiac men's basketball team". New Haven Register. 2017-02-09. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  3. Conner, Desmond. "Losing Dixon, Kiss Would Be A Blow To Quinnipiac In Dunleavy's First Season". courant.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  4. Sports, MAAC. "MAAC Announces 2016-17 Men's Basketball All-Rookie Team". maacsports.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  5. Zagoria, Adam (2017-04-23). "Rutgers Lands Quinnipiac Transfer Peter Kiss (UPDATED)". Zagsblog. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  6. Media, Adam Zagoria | For NJ Advance (2022-03-01). "Ex-Rutgers guard Peter Kiss leads Division I in scoring for Bryant while 'playing with an edge'". nj. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  7. Zagoria, Adam (2020-05-07). "Bryant adds Rutgers grad transfer Peter Kiss". Zagsblog. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  8. "NEC Men's Basketball Player of the Year Alex Morales Highlights Wagner Awards Haul". northeastconference.org. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  9. "Meet Bryant's Peter Kiss, the scoring machine you'll either love or hate this March Madness". For The Win. 2022-03-09. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  10. "Kiss signs with Soles de Mexicali". 2022-09-07.
  11. "Bryant's Grasso tight-lipped about star Peter Kiss' return". WPRI.com. 2021-11-05. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  12. Koch, Bill. "Who is Peter Kiss? A look at Bryant's polarizing guard — and the nation's top scorer". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  13. Koch, Bill. "Bryant's Peter Kiss suspended for two games for unsportsmanlike conduct". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  14. Fenton, Josh. "EDITORIAL: The New UNLV of Rhode Island — Bryant Basketball". GoLocalProv. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  15. "Two-For-2: Wagner's Alex Morales Repeats As #NECMBB Player of the Year" (Press release). Northeast Conference. March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  16. Braziller, Zach (2022-03-15). "Bryant's Peter Kiss is more than March Madness' biggest villain". New York Post. Retrieved 2022-03-15.
  17. "Kiss ready to head to Big Dance". Sentinel and Enterprise. 2022-03-09. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  18. Rueb, Eric. "Here's how Bryant's dream season came to an end in Dayton against Wright State". The Providence Journal. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  19. "Soles presenta hoy a Peter Kiss". Podium Deportes (in Spanish). September 9, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  20. "Apagan Dorados a los Soles de Mexicali". La Opción de Chihuahua (in Spanish). September 9, 2022. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
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