The Hofstra University women’s basketball team lost its third game in a row in a 80-42 game against No. 11 University of Kentucky on Sunday, Dec. 28. With that loss, the Pride fell to 2-9 and sat last in the Coastal Athletic Conference (CAA) standings.
With conference-play looming, a loss of this magnitude is not an ideal situation for the Pride. This is the third game this season that they have lost by at least 35 points. In all of those games, Hofstra scored less than 50 points and shot under 37% from the field.
“We gotta get back and regroup,” said Hofstra head coach Danielle Santos Atkinson. “We have to continue to put together a full complete game of 40 minutes.”
Hofstra’s consistent low scoring has made comebacks from early deficits nearly impossible to recover from.The Pride average just 53.9 points per game, which is last in the CAA. The Pride continues to struggle during the first half as well, averaging just 20.0 points per first half in losses this season.
“Previous games we hadn’t gotten off to our best start – one of the positives of this game,” Santos said. “I thought we got off to a much better start than we had in previous games.”
Hofstra did not hit a single 3-pointer against Kentucky, ending an active program streak. They only attempted three 3-pointers all game, which is a season-low number.
“I did think we passed up on some opportunities that we would’ve taken previously,” Santos said.
Chloe Sterling has been nothing short of consistent and efficient since her return to the court. She finished the game with 16 points on 7-14 from the field. She’s averaging 11 points, five rebounds, two assists and 1.4 steals per game since her return, all of which lead the team.
Kentucky’s Clara Strack has been a force to be reckoned with, and Hofstra was on the receiving end of her best game of the season. She finished with 24 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals and a season high seven blocks.
“[Strack is] so mobile at [six foot five inches],” Santos said. “She can block shots; she’s really light on her feet along with her length. She’s just an anomaly, for sure.”
Santos, a former assistant for Kentucky, reflected on her time with the university and the opportunity to face her former team in their building.
“It was a great time when I was [at Kentucky],” Santos said. “I was asked earlier what’s one of the things I remember most or enjoyed most, and I think it was the people. I think there’s such a great environment, such a great department to work and be a part of. There [are] just great people surrounding basketball in general, but women’s basketball, they really care.”
The Pride entered CAA play against the College of Charleston on Friday, Jan 2. Tipoff was scheduled for 7 p.m. at TD Arena.
