TOWSON, MD. – The Hofstra women’s basketball team fell to the Towson Tigers, 84-71, on Sunday, Jan. 26, at SECU Arena in Towson, Maryland. Jaylen Hines and Ana Hernandez Gil earned the team 20 points apiece, but the Pride blew a five-point halftime lead as they couldn’t contain Towson’s big three.
Hines added 14 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season while Marianne Kalin added 17 points. Sorelle Ineza was the fourth Hofstra player with double-digit points with 10, marking the fourth time the team has had four double-digit scorers in a game this season.
For the Tigers, Q. Murray led the way with 22 points while Kionna Jeter and Nukiya Mayo contributed 21 points apiece. Ryan Holder also finished with double-digit points, adding 12 for Towson.
The Pride started off on fire, hitting seven of their first eight shots, contributing to a 16-9 lead just five minutes into the first quarter. “I thought [we] did a great job of coming out with [the] intensity and energy we needed,” said head coach Danielle Santos Atkinson. “That first half was really a glimpse into what this team’s true potential is.”
Hofstra continued its hot start, leading by as many as nine points in the first quarter and taking a 41-36 lead into the break. They held Jeter and Murray to a combined 14 points through 20 minutes of play. Mayo helped keep the Tigers close with 17 first-half points.
For the Pride, it was the most points they had scored in a half all season, as well as the first time this season they led at halftime. Hines scored 10 points in a strong first half while Hernandez Gil led Hofstra with 13 first-half points.
The second half was all Towson. A layup by Holder with 6:14 to go in the third quarter gave Towson its first lead. Jeter then extended it on the next possession. Hernandez Gil tied the game at 50 with 5:13 to go to help keep the Pride in it. The teams traded buckets later on but Murray’s jumper with 3:15 left in the quarter gave the Tigers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Although Kalin brought Hofstra to within four points with four seconds to go in the third, a heads-up play by Murray gave Holder an easy layup for two of Towson’s 21 fast-break points. Eighteen of those points came in the second half.
“One of our major game plans was to limit them and stop them in transition,” Santos Atkinson said, “We had done a great job of rebounding the basketball and we got away from some of our transition defense.”
After Kalin provided the first points of the fourth quarter a minute in, Towson went on a 10-0 run to bring the lead to 14 points and seal the Pride’s fate. Hofstra wouldn’t get the deficit back to single digits for the rest of the game. A free throw in the final seconds by Rayna Barbour completed the 84-71 final score.
The Towson Tigers are now 10-8 overall, with a record of 5-2 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play. Hofstra sits at 3-15 and 0-7 in CAA play. The Pride will look to build on a strong first half as they return home to begin a four-game home stand on Friday, Jan. 31, against UNC-Wilmington.
Image Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
