The Hofstra University men’s basketball team kicked off their Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play with a 74-56 loss against the College of William & Mary on Thursday, Jan. 2. The Pride has an overall record of 8-6 while the Tribe sit at 7-7.
William & Mary ended the first half on a 46-11 run as Hofstra allowed too many open looks on the defensive end and was left in the dust by William & Mary’s fast-paced offense.
“Hats off to William & Mary, they came in and they gave it to us,” said Hofstra head coach Speedy Claxton. “To give up 48 points in the first half, that’s where the game was lost. We weren’t ready to go and credit to them, they shot the basketball well and they have some good shooters, which we knew coming into the game. Even their non-shooters made shots tonight and if you have that, it’s going to be hard to beat them.”
Just about every aspect of the game went against the Pride on Thursday night, but two players shined when given the opportunity. Guard TJ Gadsden and forward Josh DeCady performed well during a lackluster team performance.
Gadsden made five of six shots, two of which came from behind the arc and recorded 12 points. The senior added two rebounds and a steal to his stat line. DeCady added a sense of energy once he came off the bench in the second half and got the crowd involved with his athletic ability. The freshman forward made all three of his shots for six points while adding four rebounds and three blocks.
“[Gadsden and DeCady] played great and I told them that in the locker room,” Claxton said. “[Gadsden] has been out of the lineup, so it was good to see him make some shots, make some plays and play hard. This will get him some more minutes. And DeCady we just have to find him some minutes someway, somehow.”
German Plotnikov was another player who shined in the game as he made his presence known on the glass and on the defensive side of the ball. The senior guard had six rebounds and showed off his hands with three steals. Plotnikov also added eight points, while shooting two-for-three from the field and two-for-two from the 3-point line.
“I thought [Plotnikov] was another one that played great, I have no beef with the way [he] played,” Claxton said. “He went out there and competed along with [DeCady] and [Gadsden], he was a bright spot out there.”
The game was a tough pill to swallow, as Hofstra has dropped three games in a row, after starting the season 8-3. On the bright side, the Pride is finally getting their players back.
“We have to get better at playing hard and working hard,” Claxton said. “It’s going to start in practice. It seemed like everybody on the team got sick and during that stretch, we weren’t even able to practice. Yes, it was a long stretch without playing games so maybe we’re a little rusty, but I’m not going to make any excuses. We have to right the ship and play better.”
The Pride were back in action for their second CAA matchup of the season against Northeastern University on Saturday, Jan. 4. Tipoff was set for 12 p.m. in Boston.
