After a 94-46 blowout win over the College of William & Mary Tribe in the quarterfinals of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) tournament on Sunday, March 5, the Hofstra University men’s basketball team moves into the semifinals to face the UNCW-Wilmington (UNCW) Seahawks.
Hofstra’s offense was clicking on all cylinders, with Aaron Estrada and Tyler Thomas putting up 22 points each and Jaquan Carlos adding 15 points, shooting 24-36 overall in the victory. Estrada also recorded a double-double, claiming 10 rebounds for the Pride.
Sunday’s game wasn’t just their show, as the entire team shot 59% from the floor and 62% from downtown. The team broke two CAA records in one day, setting the new record for the largest margins for both the halftime break and final score in tournament history at 51-14 and 94-46.
Hofstra’s defense was just as strong as their offense, putting up five blocks and five steals to minimize the Tribe’s 3-pointers. The night before when the team put up 14 threes seemed like a distant memory as they only shot 24% from beyond the arc against the Pride.
“We’re a defensive-minded team,” Hofstra head coach Speedy Claxton said in the press conference following the game. “We allow our defense to fuel our offense. When we get out in transition, we’re extremely hard to stop.”
On the other side of the bracket, UNCW proved in their quarterfinal battle against the Drexel University that they weren’t going to give up without a fight, overcoming a 12-point deficit in the second half to walk away with the win. Junior Nick Farrar came off the bench and stepped up for the team, cotributing 19 points in his 17 minutes of playing time.
Three other players scored in the double digits, including Trazarien White with 14 points, Jamarii Thomas with 11 and Donovan Newby with 10 during the contest. Overall the team shot efficiently in the quarterfinal, going 55% in field goals.
When the teams battled in the regular season, Hofstra came out victorious 70-46.
Tip-off is scheduled for 6 pm and will stream on CBS Sports Network, while 88.7 FM WRHU will carry an audio-only broadcast.
Photo courtesy of Alexis Friedman/The Hofstra Chronicle
