By Kevin Carroll – Staff Writer
It may be freezing outside, but Anjie White continues to have the hot hand for the Pride, dropping a game-high 15 points, and Ashunae Durant added 13 as the Hofstra women’s basketball team picked up their fourth win in a row, coming out on top of the Towson Tigers, 62-48 on Thursday night at the Mack Sports Complex.
“I feel like I’ve been getting more comfortable, my teammates definitely help me,” White said after the game. She hit the nail right on the head, as the Pride’s victory was a total team effort, with nine different players scoring, and everyone getting some minutes on the floor. Darius Faulk played a pivotal role in the team’s success, stuffing the stat sheet with eight points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and three steals.
Hofstra’s first half of basketball was as complete and solid as any half they’ve played this season. From the opening tip, which Kelly Loftus quickly turned into the first basket of the game, the Pride was in complete control on both ends of the floor, getting easy looks, while stifling the Towson shooters, who were forced to take contested jumpshots that weren’t falling. The Pride stayed ahead by double-digits for most of the half, as White knocked down all of her shots, and Elo Edeferioka along with Krystal Luciano also shouldered the scoring load for the Pride, with Luciano connecting twice from beyond the arc.
What was most remarkable is that Hofstra played almost the entire half without a foul, with Edeferioka picking up the only two personal fouls committed by the Pride for the entire period. It was this discipline that took Hofstra into halftime with a 34-19 lead over the Tigers.
The beginning of the second half was a stark contrast to the crisp, clean basketball that the Pride had played with earlier in the game. It was a sluggish start on offense for the Hofstra, as they failed to score for nearly the first eight minutes of the half. Towson used an 8-0 run to pull to within seven points of the lead, but it was as close as they would get. The two teams traded baskets for a bit, and Towson could never quite get within striking distance, as Durant began to make her presence felt on the glass for the Pride, pulling down three huge offensive rebounds, and scoring nine of her 13 points in this half.
As the time ran down, Hofstra slowly started pulling away, with key contributors off the bench like Janelle King-Gilchrist and Asia Jackson putting more points on the board. Jackson hit a three-pointer with just over three minutes left to stretch Hofstra’s lead, essentially putting the nail in Towson’s coffin. The Tigers went on a 7-0 mini-run to close out the game, but it was not enough, as Hofstra walked off the court with a comfortable 12-point victory.
“Another mark for our team tonight against a conference opponent,” said coach Kilburn-Steveskey said after the game. “It’s about us, and I was very proud of their effort tonight.”
Hofstra improves to 17-9 with the win, and is up to a 10-5 conference record. Towson, who was led by Dominique Johnson’s 13 points, drops to 10-17, and slips to 6-9 in the CAA.
With only three games left before the CAA Tournament, the Hofstra Pride women’s basketball team will travel down to Virginia to meet the conference powerhouse James Madison University, who have yet to lose a game in CAA play. In the teams’ prior meeting this season, Hofstra almost pulled a monumental upset, falling 77-68 to the Dukes. The game will be played on Sunday at 2:00 p.m., at the Convocation Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
