CAA Men’s Basketball Recap – Jan. 8
Dylan Smith
Hofstra 78, Towson 67
Box Score
A 32-point effort from Cruz Davis guided Hofstra (12-4, 3-0 CAA) to its seventh-straight win with a 78-67 victory over Towson (8-9, 0-4 CAA). The Pride’s leading scorer went 8-for-19 from the floor with three makes from distance, while adding a 13-of-14 showing from the charity stripe. Preston Edmead notched an 18-point, seven-rebound performance in the triumph, while German Plotnikov added 17 points of his own.
A pair of 3-pointers from Towson’s Jaquan Womack countered early success at the free-throw line from the Pride to take a one-point lead, 11-10, early in the first half. Hofstra’s Davis flipped the momentum after scoring seven straight points for the Pride to take a two-point lead, 19-17, at the 8:20 mark. The two teams traded six ties and 11 lead changes in the opening frame until Hofstra rattled off three 3-pointers, including a pair from Davis, to spark a 13-3 run to end the half and secure a 39-30 advantage. Davis eclipsed the 20-point threshold in the first half for the second time this season, finishing the frame with 21 points.
The Pride’s Edmead helped expand the lead to begin the second frame, hitting a pair of shots from deep before Plotnikov sank two free throws to record a 56-40 lead with 11:44 remaining in regulation. Hofstra maintained a double-digit lead through the majority of the second half before Towson’s Tyler Coleman made it an eight-point game, 70-62, on a baseline jumper with 89 seconds on the clock. The Tigers’ Tyler Tejada scored 16 of his 22 points in the final 20 minutes of action. Coleman and Womack chipped in 16 and 14 points apiece, respectively.
UNCW 87, Northeastern 78
Box Score
UNCW (15-2, 4-0 CAA) outlasted a valiant effort from Northeastern (5-10, 1-3 CAA), watching six Seahawks score in double figures en route to an 87-78 win on Monday. Patrick Wessler led the charge with his league-leading eighth double-double of the season, posting 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting to go with 11 boards. Nolan Hodge scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half, finishing the game with an 11-of-11 shooting clip from the charity stripe. Madison Durr also went a perfect 7-for-7 from the line to log 14 points on the evening. Greedy Williams and Christian May notched 11 points apiece, while Noah Ross rounded out those in double figures with a 10-point, seven-rebound showing.
The Seahawks quickly responded to a pair of triples from Northeastern’s William Kermoury with an 11-2 run of their own to go up, 11-8, with 15:20 to play in the opening frame. The Huskies’ Youri Fritz succeeded through traffic for a three-point play that sparked a 16-4 spurt that put the home team ahead by seven, 24-17, at the 11-minute mark. UNCW stormed back and capitalized on a 17-5 stretch to claim a nine-point edge, 42-33, just before the two-minute mark. Northeastern worked back to a one-possession game, but the Seahawks’ Greedy Williams sank a floater at the top of the key as time expired to give the visitors a four-point lead, 44-40, at halftime.
The Huskies battled back to take a 51-49 edge at the 12:41 mark as Fritz and JB Frankel orchestrated a 12-3 run, combining for 10 points on the run. Fritz finished in double figures with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor. Neither team led by more than one possession over the next eight minutes, trading six lead changes and seven ties at the under-four media timeout. Coming out of the stoppage, Hodge rattled off seven free throws before draining a trey with 2:19 remaining to put the Seahawks ahead by six, 76-70. UNCW closed the game on a 21-10 run to secure the nine-point win. Xavier Abreu added 15 points for the Huskies.
Elon 69, North Carolina A&T 64
Box Score
A 22-point, seven-rebound performance from Chandler Cuthrell propelled Elon (10-6, 2-1 CAA) to a 69-64 road win over North Carolina A&T (7-8, 0-4 CAA). The Phoenix’s top scorer went 7-of-15 from the floor with eight makes at the charity stripe. Randall Pettus II notched four of his five makes from distance, finishing with 15 points and six boards.
The Phoenix found themselves up 8-2 through the first three minutes following back-to-back treys from Ja’Juan Carr and Pettus II. After N.C. A&T cut their deficit down to three, Cuthrell finished off an 11-point spurt for the Phoenix at the free-throw line to claim a 21-7 lead with 11:17 remaining. The Aggies stormed all the way back behind a hot-handed Zamora Weluche-Ume, who scored 11 points on the team’s 19-5 run that deadlocked the score at 30 with 18 seconds left in the half. Six seconds later, Bryson Cokley hit a shot from distance to give Elon a 33-30 halftime lead. The sophomore guard scored all 10 of his points in the opening stanza.
Cuthrell doubled the Phoenix’s lead out of the gate, getting his contested attempt to fall and completing the three-point play for a 36-30 edge in the opening minute. The Aggies tied the game again, 43-43, with 14:52 remaining as Dwayne Pierce notched eight of the team’s next 13 points. It was all Elon over the next three minutes as the visitors rattled off a 13-4 run, capped off by a Cuthrell slam to claim a 53-44 lead at the 10:39 mark. The Aggies locked down defensively and held Elon to just three makes from the floor down the stretch. Mujahiid Burton helped slash A&T’s deficit down to as few as two, with 13 of his team-high 19 points coming in the final 11 minutes of action. The Phoenix’s Carr staved off the final push with a trio of free throws with under 20 seconds to play to secure the five-point win. N.C. A&T’s Weluche-Ume posted 15 points, 13 boards and four assists, while Pierce finished with 10 points on the evening.
Monmouth 81, William & Mary 70
Box Score
Monmouth (8-8, 2-1 CAA) utilized 10 3-pointers and four players in double figures to take down William & Mary (11-5, 2-2 CAA). Jason Rivera-Torres did it all with a team-best 19 points with four of his six makes coming from behind the arc, while adding seven boards, four assists, three blocks and two steals in 35 minutes of action. Andrew Ball tallied 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting and a pair of triples. Cornelius Robinson Jr. matched Ball from distance with two 3-pointers, racking up 17 points on 8-for-13 shooting with eight boards. Justin Ray posted 12 points with two of his four makes coming from deep.
After Monmouth found themselves trailing by five through the first seven minutes, a Jack Collins triple capped off a 7-0 run to claim a two-point edge, 13-11, with 11:36 to play in the first half. The Tribe quickly responded with eight straight points to claim an 18-13 lead with nine minutes to play. The Hawks caught fire and drained nine of their next 11 shots from the floor, including four triples, to take a 35-28 lead with 3:10 left. Monmouth took a three-point edge, 37-34, into the break.
The Hawks’ Rivera-Torres helped his team to an eight-point advantage over the first nine minutes of the second half, providing three 3-pointers over that span to take a 56-48 lead. Monmouth had an answer for William & Mary over the final 11 minutes and maintained a two-possession lead or better down the stretch. The Hawks grew their advantage to as many as 15 points behind a collaborative shooting effort from the team’s top four scorers before holding on for an 11-point win. The Tribe’s Chase Lowe fell a rebound shy of a double-double with a team-high 15 points and nine boards. Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi and Reese Miller recorded 13 and 11 points apiece, respectively.
Campbell 86, Hampton 72
Box Score
A 43-point scoring effort from Hampton’s (8-9, 2-2 CAA) Michael Eley was not enough as Campbell (9-8, 3-1 CAA) picked up its fourth win in its last five games with an 86-72 victory at home. The Camels’ DJ Smith led the way with a team-high 26 points and a 12-for-13 shooting clip from the free-throw line. Jeremiah Johnson chipped in 18 points of his own with a 13-of-14 mark from the charity stripe. Cam Gregory registered five of the team’s 10 triples and logged 17 points in the win. Tasos Cook chipped in 11 points in reserve.
After the Pirates scored the first four points of the contest, the Camels surged with 13 unanswered points and a 17-3 run, featuring a pair of treys from Gregory, to take a double-digit lead. The two teams went back and forth until Campbell’s Smith put his squad ahead, 29-16, with a 3-pointer of his own. The Camels took a 43-30 advantage into halftime. Campbell continued to pour it on out of the break and watched its lead grow to as many as 25 as Smith rattled off 14 of his 16 second-half points in the opening 10 minutes of the frame. The Camels maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second stanza before locking in a 14-point win. Hampton’s Eley provided 30 of the team’s 42 second-half points. The Pirates’ leading scorer produced the highest scoring output (43 pts.) in a conference contest since Hofstra’s Desure Buie posted 44 points against Elon on Jan. 4, 2020.
Drexel 56, Stony Brook 37
Box Score
Drexel (7-10, 1-3 CAA) picked up its first win of the conference slate with a 56-37 win over Stony Brook (9-8, 1-3 CAA). Dillon Tingler produced 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting and a 2-for-3 mark from behind the arc. Shane Blakeney and Victor Panov notched 11 points each, with the latter logging eight rebounds and two blocks.
Stony Brook’s Erik Pratt scored six of the team’s first eight points to put the visitors ahead by four, 8-4, in the opening three minutes. After the Seawolves grew their lead to five, Drexel’s Panov finished off a 15-2 run from behind the arc to give his squad a 21-13 lead with 8:05 remaining. The Dragons’ Tingler halted Stony Brook’s six-point spurt with a trey to cap a 9-3 run and put the home team ahead by eight, 30-22, at the intermission. A defensive battle ensued to open the second half as the two teams combined for just 20 points through the first 11 minutes of action. Drexel’s Eli Beard hit his second triple of the frame to put his team ahead by double figures, 41-31, with 8:38 to play. The Dragons held Stony Brook to just 15 points in the second half before securing a 19-point win. The Seawolves’ Pratt finished with 13 points and five rebounds.