Hofstra Edges W&M In Semifinal Thriller
Rob Washburn
BALTIMORE (March 6, 2016) – Graduate forward Denton Koon hit a layup with 8.5 seconds left to cap Hofstra’s 70-67 comeback victory against William & Mary in the first semifinal at the Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Championship Sunday afternoon at Royal Farms Arena.
The top-seeded Pride, who improved to 24-8 this season, advances to their second CAA championship game since joining the league in 2002 and will face the winner of No. 2 UNCW and No. 6 Northeastern Monday night at 7 p.m. in a nationally-televised broadcast on NBC Sports Network. The loss dropped the Tribe’s record to 20-11 this season.
William & Mary scored eight straight points in just 73 seconds to take a 67-65 lead with 2:55 to play, but the Pride tied the game at 67 when senior guard Juan'ya Green knocked down a pair of free throws with 1:49 left. HU’s defense clamped down in the final minutes, as W&M missed its last three shots, setting up the game-winning play where Green found Koon down low for the go-ahead basket.
Senior forward Ameen Tanksley, who poured in a game-high 23 points and had seven rebounds, made one of two free throws to extend the Hofstra lead to 70-67 and the Tribe’s inbounds pass with one second left trickled out of bounds as time expired to advance the Pride into the title game for the first time since 2006.
Tanksley was one of four Hofstra players to score in double figures as junior guard Brian Bernardi and Green both scored 14 points and Koon added 10. Bernardi made a team-best four 3-pointers and Green knocked down three treys while dishing out a game-high five assists and blocking two shots. Despite playing in foul trouble much of the second half, sophomore center Rokas Gustys finished with a game-high 13 rebounds, six coming on the offensive glass.
Sophomore guard Greg Malinowski came off the bench to have a career day for the Tribe, finishing with 22 points on 7 of 10 shooting, which included making a game-high five triples. Junior guard Daniel Dixon was the only other W&M player to score in double figures, chipping in 10 points.
Both teams shot 46 percent for the game, but the Pride hit two more threes than the Tribe, making 11 to W&M’s nine, while also winning the rebounding edge by a 32-29 margin. The teams combined for 30 turnovers as the Tribe outscored Hofstra 20-9 off turnovers and 9-0 in transition.
Trailing for much of the first half, William & Mary held Hofstra without a point for 4:40, scoring six straight to grab a 22-20 lead with less than five minutes remaining. The Tribe gave up the lead briefly but outscored the Pride 9-3 over the final 2:13 to go up 34-30 at the break. Neither team led by more than six points in a half which produced four ties, four lead changes and a 21 combined turnovers.
W&M led 56-52 past the halfway point of the second half but Hofstra produced a 13-3 run, capped off by a Tanksley layup with 4:27 to go to put the top seed ahead 65-59. The Pride made five straight shots and a pair of free throws during the stretch while the Tribe missed four of five field goal attempts with a turnover.
A Dixon trey ended the run, which sparked William & Mary’s 8-0 run before Hofstra finished the game with the game’s final five points over 1:49.
It was the second straight year that Hofstra and William & Mary battled in a thriller in the CAA semifinals. The Tribe won last year’s meeting 92-91 in double overtime on a last-second three-pointer by Dixon.