Justin Wright-Foreman scored a career-high 42 points and drained a buzzer beating three-pointer to put Hofstra men’s basketball over Northeastern University 77-75 on Saturday, Jan. 5.
The Pride (13-3, 3-0) extended their win streak to 10 games with the win. They are now the only remaining unbeaten Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) team after the College of Charleston lost 69-58 to James Madison University.
“Honestly, I just didn’t want to miss it,” Wright-Foreman said. “I saw how much time was left on the clock and just wanted to get as close to the basket as possible.”
Wright-Forman’s 42 points is a David S. Mack Sports & Exhibition Complex record, surpassing Speedy Claxton’s previous high of 40 points against the University of Hartford on Jan. 16, 2000.
The game was initially a back-and-forth affair. The Huskies jumped out to a 7-2 lead before the Pride stormed back to make the score 10-9.
The Pride utilized two scoring runs to increase their lead to 40-34 entering the half.
“We believe in ourselves, we did what we had to do,” head coach Joe Mihalich said.
The second half was a different story. The Huskies tied the game and then took the lead off an 8-0 run to make the score 45-44.
“I was just mentally noting how much we were down or up by,” Wright-Foreman said. “I was just trying to play the game.”
The Pride again clawed back and retook the lead 72-70. With 18.4 seconds left, Northeastern tied the game. The Huskies had one more opportunity to score, but after a missed shot, Wright-Foreman secured the rebound and took the ball down the court. He fired a shot from 33 feet out and made the basket to give the Pride the 75-72 victory.
“My message to my team is to keep our composure,” Wright-Foreman said. “With each other, we could be at our best.”
The Pride edged the Huskies offensively shooting 78.9 percent from the line, 40 percent from three-point territory and 46.6 percent on all shots.
The Pride will travel south on Thursday, Jan. 10, to the College of William & Mary. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.
The Pride hope to keep extending the win streak to 11 and take a win for their first CAA road game.
“That team doesn’t lose much there” Mihalich said. “Good teams win on the road, we’ll see if we can do that.”
Hofstra then returns home on Thursday, Jan. 17, against UNC-Wilmington at 7 p.m.
Image Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
