CAA Men’s Basketball Recap – Jan. 9
Dylan Smith
William & Mary 78, Elon 65
Box Score
In a battle of unbeaten teams, William & Mary emerged victorious and moved to 3-0 in conference play with a 78-65 home victory over Elon.
Trailing by as many as eight in the first half, the Tribe utilized a pair of 3-pointers from W&M’s Kyle Frazier and Chase Lowe to erase the deficit across a span of 1:36 to tie the game at 18. However, Elon secured a 31-30 lead at the break following an and-one finish from Nick Dorn in the final minute. William & Mary’s Keller Boothsby took over following the intermission, scoring 14 of his game-high 19 points with a 6-for-7 showing and two triples in the second half alone. The Tribe and Phoenix combined to shoot 29-for-30 from the free-throw line in Thursday’s game on CBS Sports Network.
Charleston 67, Hofstra 61
Box Score
Charleston remained unbeaten in conference play following a 67-61 victory at Hofstra. Ante Brzovic recorded his sixth double-double with team-highs of 23 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Cougars, while CJ Fulton dished out 12 assists with no turnovers. For Hofstra, Jean Aranguren and Michael Graham led the charge with 19 and 16 points, respectively.
Aranguren knocked down a corner 3-pointer with three seconds remaining in the first half, only to see Charleston’s Deywilk Tavarez beat the buzzer with a triple from beyond halfcourt to cut its lead to four, 31-27, at the break. The Cougars carried momentum into the second stanza with 10 unanswered points to open the frame and take a 37-31. Hofstra chipped its deficit down to as few as one, but the Cougars staved off the Pride over the final 10 minutes with matching runs down the stretch.
UNCW 64, Monmouth 55
Box Score
Sean Moore led two players in double figures with 13 points and seven boards to lift UNCW to a 64-55 victory over Monmouth.
The Seahawks jumped out to a 15-2 lead through the early going before the Hawks battled back to tie the game at 27 with a 16-6 run finished off by an Abdi Bashir Jr. 3-pointer with 3:13 to play. UNCW took a seven-point edge, 34-27, into the intermission. Nolan Hodge, who also reached double figures with 10 points, grew the Seahawks’ lead to 13 midway through the second half after draining a 3-pointer through contact and finishing off the four-point play. Bashir once again pulled Monmouth’s deficit down to as few as four with another 3-pointer at 5:05 remaining, only for UNCW to secure the 64-55 victory.
Towson 80, Northeastern 73
Box Score
A pair of 17-point efforts from Christian May and Nendah Tarke led Towson to an 80-73 victory over Northeastern. May also chipped in a double-double performance with 12 boards and five assists.
The Tigers erased a seven-point halftime deficit, 37-30, despite a 22-point effort from Northeastern's LA Pratt and an 18-point showing from Rashad King. Towson’s Tarke rattled off five straight points to secure a 46-45 lead at 15:34 of the second half. After six lead changes, the Tigers pulled away by outscoring the Huskies, 24-13, over the final eight minutes to hold on at home.
Delaware 98, North Carolina A&T 88
Box Score
The largest scoring output of the night saw Delaware capture a 98-88 victory at North Carolina A&T. The Blue Hens’ Izaiah Pasha and John Camden produced 20-point efforts with 22 and 21 points, respectively. Niels Lane also chipped in 18 points of his own.
The two programs combined for 88 points through the first 20 minutes of the game with the Blue Hens taking a 47-41 lead at the break. Ryan Forrest (26 pts.) and Nikolaos Chitikoudis (18 pts.) pulled the Aggies to within two, 51-49, just over three minutes into the second half with both registering four-point spurts. Delaware utilized a 16-2 run across the five-minute mark, capped off by a Camden triple to go up, 84-66. North Carolina A&T finished the game on a 17-7 run.
Campbell 66, Hampton 55
Box Score
Led by a 21-point performance from Jasin Sinani, Campbell secured a 66-55 victory on the road against Hampton. The senior guard also chipped in seven boards, five assists and two steals in the win.
Trailing by as many as 14 late in the opening stanza and chasing a 10-point deficit at halftime, the Camels utilized the trio of Sinani, Colby Duggan and Nolan Dorsey with 22 points on the team’s 24-6 run to begin the second half. Campbell continued to pull away as Sinani knocked down all six of his shots from the floor in the final 20 minutes.
Drexel 67, Stony Brook 51
Box Score
A 24-point effort from Kobe MaGee propelled Drexel to a 67-51 wire-to-wire road win at Stony Brook.
Both teams exchanged blows through the under-12 media timeout before a 20-7 run expanded the Dragons’ lead to 30-16 with under five minutes remaining in the first half. Stony Brook pulled to within four, 32-28, at the break as CJ Luster beat the buzzer on a floater in the paint. A back-and-forth affair opened the second stanza, only to see Drexel’s Yame Butler break out for eight points on the team’s 13-2 stretch to end the game and secure the victory.