Men's #CAAHoops Recap: Feb. 13
Bill Potter
Hofstra 76, Charleston 63
Hofstra led from start to finish, solidifying its grasp on first place in the CAA following a 76-63 victory over Charleston on Thursday night.
Eli Pemberton matched his career high with 28 points for Hofstra (19-7, 10-3 CAA), which won its fifth straight game and now holds a one-game lead atop the CAA with five games to play in the regular season.
Pemberton was 10-of-14 from the floor while adding five rebounds. Four of Hofstra's five starters finished in double figures, with Jalen Ray adding 14 and Desure Buie 13 points and six assists. Isaac Kante collected an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Buie scored five of Hofstra's first seven points as the Pride raced out to a 7-0 lead 1:53 into the game, and Charleston was never able to get within a single possession the remainder of the night.
Grant Riller led Charleston (15-11, 9-5 CAA) with 27 points, extending his streak with 10 or more points to 54 games.
William & Mary 77, Drexel 72
William & Mary snapped a 3-game losing streak as four players finished in double figures in a 77-72 win at Kaplan Arena.
William & Mary (17-10, 9-5 CAA) moved into a tie with Charleston for third place in the CAA with four games remaining in the regular season. Nathan Knight finished with 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists to lead the Tribe, including a game-clinching 3-point play with 22 second remaining.
After Coletrane Washington connected on a 3-pointer while being fouled to draw Drexel (13-13, 6-7 CAA) within a single point at 71-70 with 47.1 seconds left, William & Mary gave the ball to Knight on the left baseline.
The senior drove and went up and under the rim; as he was being fouled, he flipped the ball high off the glass, with it dropping through the net. His ensuing free throw boosted William & Mary's lead back to four, 74-70.
Knight capped his performance with two more free throws with 0.7 seconds to play.
The senior was boosted by classmate Andy Van Vliet, who carried William & Mary for stretches at a time with 17 points and 13 boards. Bryce Barnes added 18 points, while Luke Loewe chipped in 10.
Camren Wynter nearly posted a triple-double for Drexel, leading the team with 24 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Zach Walton added 14 points for the Dragons, while Washington came off the bench to add 13.
Delaware 81, Elon 75
Delaware extended its winning streak to seven games, using a late Nate Darling 3-pointer and opportunistic defense to outlast Elon, 81-75, at the Schar Center.
Delaware (19-7, 9-4 CAA) moved into sole possession of second place in the CAA after outscoring Elon (9-18, 5-9 CAA), 7-0, in the final 1:07 of the game.
Chuck Hannah's layup with 1:20 to play gave Elon a 75-72 lead, but the Blue Hens responded behind a Dylan Painter layup with 67 seconds remaining.
After the teams traded empty possessions, Nate Darling connected on his fifth 3 of the night, lifting the Blue Hens back in front with 21 seconds remaining. On Elon's next possession, Johnny McCoy stole an inbounds pass and hit 1-of-2 free throws to push the lead to 78-75 with 15 seconds to play.
A steal by Kevin Anderson resulted in another 1-of-2 free throws for Delaware, and Ryan Allen closed out the game with two more at the line.
Darling finished with 24 points, leading four Blue Hens in double figures as Allen, Anderson and Painter all had 13 points.
Marcus Sheffield II matched Darling with 24 points while Hunter McIntosh added 14 for the Phoenix.
Northeastern 71, UNCW 63
Jordan Roland recorded 27 points as Northeastern led wire-to-wire in a 71-63 win over visiting UNCW at Matthews Arena.
Northeastern (12-13, 6-7 CAA) moved into a tie for sixth place in the CAA, shooting 48.0-percent in the game. The Huskies scored the game's first 10 points over the first 5:51, with Tyson Walker's steal and fastbreak layup capping the run.
Roland had 17 of his 27 in the game's first 20 minutes as the Huskies built a 10-point lead at the half.
Northeastern pushed its lead to as many as 18 points, 44-26, in the second half.
Bolden Brace collected 14 rebounds to go along with 11 points, while Maxime Boursiquout added 12 for Northeastern. Shaquille Walters made it four starters in double figures with 10 points.
UNCW (8-19, 3-11 CAA) saw Marten Linssen come off the bench to notch a career-high 20 points. Linssen and Jaylen Sims (17) helped the Seahawks' bench outscore the Northeastern bench, 42-7. Brian Tolefree had 13 points for UNCW.