The Hofstra University women’s basketball team lost its sixth consecutive game on Monday, Jan. 26, in a 55-37 defeat to The College of William & Mary. This was the least number of points they scored in a game since February 24, 2023. The Pride fell to 3-16 and 1-7 in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) games. This is the worst record, both overall and in conference, for Hofstra since the 2019-20 season.
“Not a good one out there for us on either end of the floor,” said Hofstra head coach Danielle Santos Atkinson. “We took steps backwards tonight. I thought we had taken steps forward in our last few games, even though we came up short.”
Not one player on the Pride broke double digits, with the most points coming from Alarice Gooden with eight points on 15 shot attempts. This is the second time during the season that a player did not exceed said quantity. As a team, the Pride shot 24% from the field and 7% from the 3-point line, finishing as one of the worst shooting performances in program history.
“I thought we had a few players, when they didn’t see it go in through the net, play with a lack of confidence,” Santos said. “We have to be a whole lot tougher, step up, force issues, step up and make plays when plays need to be made.”
Once again, the Pride’s offense didn’t get started in the first quarter. They scored just six points on 3-16 shooting. The most points they scored in a quarter against the Tribe were 11, during the fourth quarter. Hofstra’s defense has been very solid throughout the entire conference run, holding CAA teams to just 58.5 points per game. The Pride is averaging just 48.6 themselves.
“It’s been a really tough road,” Santos said. “We’ve had a lot of adversity and challenges – some of that we’ve brought on ourselves. There’s a lot to learn from this game.”
The Pride’s slow-paced style of offense that they have been known for doesn’t fit the constructed roster – they have too many shooters, and only five players are attempting 3-point shots. Any time this team goes on a run, it seems to be when the offense is led through a single player in isolation, such as Chloe Sterling or Nevaeh Brown. This only happens when the Pride is down by a lot of points and they desperately need buckets by any means necessary. Playing a quicker perimeter attack works with strong players who can rebound, such as Sandra Magolico and Deivejon Harris.
Hofstra traveled to take on Stony Brook University on Friday, January 30, at 6:30 p.m. The Seawolves took the last matchup 61-44 earlier this month.
