By Frank Aimetti - STAFF WRITER
A second-half offensive surge by the Pride helped to stave off the upset-seeking Appalachian State Mountaineers, 86-80, in the Madison Square Garden Holiday Festival.
A lackadaisical beginning for the Pride led to an early deficit, with second-chance points and potent outside shooting proving to be the main ingredients in the Mountaineers’ impressive start. Appalachian State pounded the offensive glass early and often, leading to put-backs or kick-outs for wide open three-pointers due to a scrambling Hofstra defense.Speaking after the game, Coach Joe Mihalich said, “[Early on] we were more excited about being [at Madison Square Garden] than playing defense.”
The Pride was able to narrow the deficit however, as Appalachian State’s hot shooting began to cool off. What didn’t change was Hofstra’s inconsistent defense, which struggled to chain together stops.
Slow defensive rotations were a thorn in Hofstra’s side the entire game with Appalachian State players continually finding holes in the Pride’s defense. The Pride’s relative lack of rim protection was especially apparent when compared to the numerous athletic shot blocks provided by the Mountaineers’ defense.
The Pride managed to cut the deficit to only two going into the half, despite generally being thoroughly outplayed over the first 20 minutes. Brian Bernardi was the lone first-half bright spot for the Pride, adding in timely buckets and displaying improved off-the-dribble chops. Bernardi finished with a team-high 23 points, continuing an impressive junior campaign. “I worked the whole summer on my ball-handling, [how to] get better use out of pick-and-rolls and how to get my shot if they’re guarding me tight like that,” said Bernardi after the game. “I mean, it was all summer, I worked.”
Hofstra came out of the break energized, where the increased activity level was especially apparent on defense. Swarming perimeter defense helped to force turnovers, which led to easy buckets for the Pride in transition.
While the Pride kept trying to pull away, Frank Eaves of the Mountaineers had other ideas. Eaves poured in a game-high 38 points, with 18 points coming from downtown, while adding in six more points from the charity stripe. Eaves almost single-handedly kept the game in range for Appalachian State heading into the closing minutes.
“Whatever we did [on defense], didn’t work,” said Coach Mihalich, speaking on Eaves’s performance. “I think our biggest mistake was letting him get comfortable early on. With the really good scorers, you let them make their first few shots and the basket gets bigger and bigger for them.”
It was an ending to remember at Madison Square Garden, capped off by a sensational sequence where Hofstra had a shot rejected at the rim, before stealing the ball back, then having a second shot sent back, before the ball finally bounced to Juan’ya Green who coolly knocked down a pivotal three-pointer. Green wasn’t done, drawing ooh’s and aah’s from the crowd after a spectacular behind-the-back pass to the rolling Rokas Gustys, who laid it in. Green finished with 17 points, chipping in five rebounds, six assists and four steals in a well-rounded performance.
A well-designed out-of-timeout play by Coach Mihalich led to a wide-open Ameen Tanksley three-pointer, giving Hofstra an unassailable seven point lead with 32 seconds remaining.
Hofstra (6-2) will head to Siena (5-4) for their next game on Wednesday, Dec. 9.