Just keep shooting. Just keep shooting. Just keep shooting.
The Hofstra men’s basketball team fired off 35 three-point attempts in a comfortable 83-67 victory over the College of William & Mary on Saturday, Feb. 26, at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex.
Senior guard Omar Silverio led the Pride with 20 points on 5-13 shooting from behind the arc. Fifth-year senior guard Jalen Ray followed closely behind with 19 points – 12 of which came from deep.
“That was a great team effort,” said Hofstra head coach Speedy Claxton. “I am proud of my guys.”
The seniors stole the show on Senior Day, recording the team’s first 23 points – including their first nine from three different players in increments of three.
First, Jalen Ray made three free-throws after getting fouled by sophomore forward Ben Wight. Then, Silverio hit a three-pointer from the top of the key. Finally, senior forward Jarrod Simmons put home an and-one.
In all, four seniors – guard Zach Cooks, Ray, Silverio and Simmons – scored 31 of the Pride’s 41 first-half points and 47 of 83 total. The first point by a non-senior came 9:04 into the contest on a layup by sophomore guard Darlinstone Dubar.
“This is my first Senior Day as a head coach,” Claxton said. “I am glad to be a part of this special [occasion].”
In the first half, 23 of the Pride’s 32 shots came from behind the arc. Without Silverio, (5-9) the Pride made just two of its 14 attempts from deep in the game’s first 20 minutes.
The Pride was much more efficient from the free-throw line. The team made its first 10 free throws and went 15-19 overall – their first miss was by redshirt senior forward Abayomi Iyiola just over 10 minutes into the game.
The Pride has the third-best free throw percentage in the country at 80.16%, behind only Villanova University and the University of Portland.
“Free throws are free,” Claxton said. “Everyone likes free things. We have to step up and knock them in.”
While the rest of his team handled the shooting, Kvonn Cramer provided the spark. He came off the bench in the first half and made his presence known with two blocks. Later in the afternoon, he had three dunks in a span of 2:24, which rallied the crowd in Hempstead.
“[Having Cramer come off the bench for our team] is everything,” Ray said. “He is gifted. Whenever he is in the game, no one can guard him. You can’t focus on just one player on the team. You gotta focus on everyone.”
William & Mary was held to just 28 points in a blowout 62-28 loss to Northeastern University Thursday evening. Saturday, the Tribe scored 10 points in 3:41 – and matched its point total from two days prior in just 17 minutes.
They have now lost seven consecutive road games and nine games total, whereas the Pride improved to 11-2 at home this season.
With the win, Hofstra improved to 26-15 all-time against William & Mary. The Pride has won four of the last five and seven of the last nine meetings between these two teams. However, the Tribe won this season’s earlier meeting 63-62 in Williamsburg.
“We gotta come to play no matter who we play against,” Claxton said. “We want to make an effort to come and play the right way.”
The Pride has now clinched the No. 3 seed in the Colonial Athletic Association tournament. They will battle the No. 6 seed College of Charleston on Sunday, March 6, at 8:30 p.m in Washington, D.C.
Photo courtesy of Evan Bernstein/The Hofstra Chronicle
