By Joe Barone – STAFF WRITER
In the most anticipated matchup of the season between the top two teams in the conference, Hofstra defeated William & Mary 75-45 at the Mack Sports Complex Sunday afternoon. The Pride’s win came with a performance of the ages from guard Krystal Luciano.
Luciano dropped a career-high 21 points and added five rebounds and seven assists in the 30-point victory over a struggling William & Mary team.
The Pride improve to 13-3 overall, 4-1 against conference opponents. The Tribe extend their losing streak to three straight games and is now 11-5 overall, 2-3 in the CAA.
On paper, these two teams were as evenly matched as possible. Defensively, both teams allow an average of 55 points per game and offensively have some of the best shooters in the conference.
However with the Pride defending their home court, a place where they are a perfect 6-0, there was no legitimate competition.
From tip-off, Hofstra proved why they are in first place. The opening five minutes was more than the Pride could have asked for, as they built a 16-9 lead while shooting 60 percent from the field.
Luciano asserted her dominance early as she converted on three consecutive three-pointers that had Hofstra’s confidence at an all-time high.
Their lead swelled to a 15-point margin, 24-9, as Kelly Loftus finished a 10-0 run with a three-pointer well beyond the arc.
“We are a talented team,” said Hofstra head coach Krista Kilburn-Steveskey. “We came out being the aggressor against a good team, but in the end, we had more depth.”
Once again, Hofstra’s depth was on full display. They outscored William & Mary 21-8 in bench points. When the Tribe made multiple attempts to get back into the game, the Pride immediately shut them down.
At the end of the first quarter, senior guard Asia Jackson cashed five consecutive points for Hofstra to take a commanding 29-15 lead.
Nearly everyone in uniform contributed on the scoresheet. Hofstra’s “big three” – Luciano, Loftus and Ashunae Durant – combined for 41 points.
Plus, Jakelle King-Gilchrist had another impressive outing off the bench with 10 points. Darius Faulk finished the afternoon with five points and five assists. Sandra Dongmo was also clutch as well finishing with six points and 11 rebounds.
“There is nobody like her in the CAA,” Kilburn-Steveskey said about Dongmo. “She is a great person to have on your team and is someone who can definitely help us down the road.”
Not to be forgotten was Hofstra’s stellar defensive performance as the Pride allowed less than 50 points for the fifth time this season.
Collectively, they held William & Mary to a mediocre 28 percent shooting from the field and 13-percent shooting from the three-point line.
Fresh off of her 11-point performance in an overtime loss to Northeastern on Friday, the Tribe’s Marlena Tremba, a member of William & Mary’s “big three” was held to just three points on three shot attempts.
Darius Faulk had a tremendous game defending Tremba with four blocks and three steals.
“Darius Faulk is not someone to reckon with when she is defending people,” said the Hofstra head coach. “She did a great job on not giving [Tremba] any looks offensively.”
In front of a regional audience on SNY, the Hofstra Pride did not disappoint. There was no threat of a miraculous William & Mary comeback as the Pride outscored the Tribe, 25-11, in the third quarter, later increasing their lead to as much as 32 points in the final frame.
A dominant team effort led the Pride to tie the program’s best record after 16 games (13-3) since the 2006-07 and 2011-12 teams.
Their next game is against Northeastern on Friday, Jan. 22, at 12 p.m. Northeastern is a team that defeated the William & Mary Tribe back on Jan. 15.