Despite riding the momentum of a statement win over UNC-Wilmington, the Hofstra University men’s basketball team did not complete the perfect road trip on Saturday, March 2, falling 87-76 to the College of Charleston Cougars at a sold-out TD Arena. The loss snapped Hofstra’s four-game winning streak and marked the first time the Pride has given up more than 65 points since their last loss on Feb. 15.
“It was a tale of two halves. In the first, what killed us was our live ball turnovers,” said Hofstra head coach Speedy Claxton. “In the second half, we gave up too many second and third opportunities. Their offensive rebounding killed us.”
The Pride dug themselves a hole with a slew of miscommunications and sloppy passes early on, as the Cougars racked up 12 points off nine Hofstra turnovers in the opening frame. Charleston’s ability to turn defense to offense allowed them to take a 45-36 lead into halftime, before they built on their advantage with 11 second-chance points in the second half.
The Pride’s self-inflicted wounds allowed Charleston to build a lead as large as 18 points in the second half, but a flurry of Hofstra runs brought the advantage to single digits on multiple occasions. Still, their first half shortcomings proved too difficult to surmount, as the Pride never cut their deficit below seven points after the break.
“Definitely proud of our fight. We got down 16 or 18 points, and there was no quit from the guys,” Claxton said. “They battled back. We cut it down to six or seven points [but] just couldn’t get over that hump.”
Hofstra’s big three shouldered the offense in the loss, with Tyler Thomas, Darlinstone “Dstone” Dubar and Jaquan Carlos combining for 59 of the Pride’s 76 points. Jacco Fritz also added 12 points on six trips to the free throw line, but no other teammate had more than three points.
“They played well. Tyler carried us while [Dubar] and [Carlos] were solid,” Claxton said. “Today, it was more on the defensive end. We gave them too many turnovers and rebounds.”
Having split the toughest road swing in the conference, the Pride is still riding a heap of momentum into postseason play despite the loss. Hofstra’s victory over UNC-Wilmington on Feb. 29 allowed the Pride to secure a double-bye in next week’s Coastal Athletic Association tournament, meaning they avoid seeing Charleston until a potential championship game.
“It was very important for us to at least get one, and we accomplished our mission,” Claxton said. “They’re both tough teams to beat at home. We had to play extremely well, but today we just fell short. Still confident in our abilities.”
Hofstra finishes the regular season 12-6 in league play, good enough to earn the third seed in the CAA tournament. The Pride will face either the University of Delaware, Elon University or Hampton University in the quarterfinals on Sunday, March 10.
Photo courtesy of Matteo Bracco
