CAA Men’s Basketball Recap – Dec. 29
Dylan Smith
William & Mary 84, Towson 70
Box Score
William & Mary (10-3, 1-0 CAA) staved off a late surge by CAA preseason favorite Towson (8-6, 0-1 CAA) to pick up an 84-70 victory to open the conference slate. All 10 Tribe players to see action on Monday registered at least three points in the win, led by 12-point efforts from Jo’el Emanuel and Kyle Pulliam. Finn Lally joined the duo in double figures with 11 points, seeing three of his four makes coming from distance.
After an opening triple from William & Mary’s Pulliam, the Tigers jumped out to a seven-point edge, 16-9, behind back-to-back treys from Jaquan Womack and Tyler Tejada with 12:55 to play in the first half. The Tribe retaliated with a 19-4 run, a stretch that finished with 12 unanswered points to take a 33-24 lead with 5:03 left. William & Mary distributed the ball effectively to capture a double-digit advantage, 38-27, at the break, seeing nine different scorers and logging assists on 10 of the team’s 13 makes from the floor. The Tribe drained six straight shots to open the second half, including an emphatic slam down the lane from Kilian Brockhoff, before growing their lead to as many as 22. Towson did not go down quietly, utilizing a 19-6 run with Jack Doumbia Jr. scoring eight points on the stretch to pull the Tigers to within six, 72-66, with 3:40 to play. Pulliam put the game away with a breakaway finish at the rim to reclaim a double-digit lead with under two minutes to play before securing an 84-70 win. Dylan Williamson led Towson with 15 points on the evening, while Tejada put forth a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double.
UNCW 87, N.C. A&T 78
Box Score
UNCW (12-2, 1-0 CAA) staved off a hungry North Carolina A&T (7-5, 0-1 CAA) team with an 87-78 win on the road. Senior Nolan Hodge led the way with a 24-point effort, watching five of his six makes come from distance and shooting 7-of-8 from the line. Greedy Williams produced a 19-point, six-assist effort for the Seahawks. Gavin Walsh added 11 points and 10 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.
Neither team led by more than one possession through the opening 6:30 of the contest. The Aggies turned on the jets with 12 consecutive points, seeing Dwayne Pierce nail a triple and Will Felton drawing contact through the lane for the three-point play to secure a 27-17 lead with 10:53 remaining in the first half. The Aggies’ Zamora Weluche-Ume helped bump the lead to as many as 11, finishing at the rim with 4:37 remaining to take a 40-29 edge. UNCW rallied over the final four minutes, closing the half on a 13-7 stretch and pulling within five, 47-42, at halftime. The Seahawks flipped the switch in the second half, opening the frame with a 22-8 run to secure a 63-55 lead with 12:11 to play. It took less than three minutes for the Aggies to storm back and tie the game at 63 following a midrange jumper from Lewis Walker. The deadlock lasted 13 seconds as Madison Durr completed a three-point play and sparked an 8-0 run. Durr finished with 13 points and a pair of assists. N.C. A&T pulled to within one possession down the stretch; however, UNCW closed the game with eight straight makes at the free-throw line to hold on for the nine-point win. Walker finished with 23 points, while Ume-Weluche and Pierce posted 19 and 18 points, respectively.
Elon 103, Northeastern 91
Box Score
Chandler Cuthrell and Kacper Klaczek registered 28 points apiece, while Elon (9-5, 1-0 CAA) shot 62.1% from the floor (36-58 FG) to capture a 103-91 win over Northeastern (4-8, 0-1 CAA). Klaczek went 10-for-12 from the floor with four triples, adding 12 boards and five assists to his final line. Cuthrell also knocked down 10 shots in the contest and added a game-best three steals. Randall Pettus II nearly eclipsed the 20-point threshold with 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting.
Elon and Northeastern exchanged blows to open the game, neither team gaining a lead larger than two possessions. The Phoenix unleashed six straight makes shortly after, including three consecutive from distance, to secure a double-digit edge, 41-31, with 4:20 left in the opening stanza. Northeastern surged again as William Kermoury registered 14 of the team’s final 18 points of the half to bring the Huskies to within three, 46-43, at the break. The seesaw battle continued in the second half, starting with Elon claiming a nine-point lead early in the frame. The Huskies rattled off eight straight points and worked their first tie, 62-62, since the opening tip after Luca Soroa Schaller completed a three-point play at 12:28. Northeastern remained within striking distance; however, Elon closed the game shooting 13-for-17 from the floor to claim the 12-point win. The Huskies' Kermoury scored 20 points in the setback, while Ty Francis led the team with 23 points on 9-of-11 shooting. As a squad, Northeastern shot 56.9% from the field (33-58 FG) and 66.7% from deep (14-21 3FG).
Hofstra 86, Campbell 72
Box Score
Junior guard Cruz Davis registered 22 points, seven assists and five rebounds in a stellar shooting night, helping Hofstra (10-4, 1-0 CAA) to an 86-72 win over Campbell (6-8, 0-1 CAA). The CAA’s leading scorer also went 9-for-9 at the charity stripe. Big man Joshua DeCady matched Davis with a 6-for-11 showing from the floor, finishing with 15 points. Freshman Preston Edmead notched four 3-pointers en route to a 16-point showing.
The Camels jumped out to an early 13-10 lead after CAA Player of the Week Jeremiah Johnson scored six points in the early going. The tide quickly turned in favor of the Pride as Davis rattled the rim with a one-handed slam to cap off an 18-2 run that put Hofstra up, 28-15. The Pride continued to apply pressure down the stretch as Edmead knocked down two 3-pointers over the final 90 seconds, including a trey to beat the halftime buzzer that put Hofstra ahead 49-31 at the break. The Pride shot 62.9% from the floor (19-29 FG) and 58.3% from distance (7-12 3FG) in the opening stanza. Hofstra maintained its lead throughout the second as Campbell nearly went shot-for-shot with the home team. The Camels ended the game hitting 10 of their last 15 shots. Jeremiah Johnson produced a 25-point performance, going 6-for-7 inside the arc with a pair of treys and a 7-of-10 showing from the charity stripe. Dovydas Butka produced a 13-point, 12-rebound double-double in the win.
Hampton 62, Stony Brook 59
Box Score
Hampton (7-7, 1-0 CAA) stormed back from down double digits to remain unbeaten at home with a 62-59 win over Stony Brook (8-6, 0-1 CAA). Xzavier Long recorded 11 of his 16 points in the second half, adding 10 rebounds and five assists to his final line. Jalyke Wyatt-Gaines posted 12 points in the win, while Daniel Johnson and Christian Watson chipped in 11 points apiece.
Stony Brook erased an early three-point deficit with 10 unanswered points, seeing Erik Pratt cap off the run with a three-point play to jump out to a 17-10 advantage. Hampton and the Seawolves exchanged scoring surges through the midway point of the first half. Pratt once again took over down the stretch of the opening frame. The Seawolves’ leading scorer notched the final nine points for the Seawolves, countering Hampton’s Daniel Johnson and his personal five-point spurt to give Stony Brook a 34-33 lead at the intermission. In a game of runs, momentum shifted in favor of the Pirates to start the second half as Long scored four of the team’s first seven points to take a 41-36 lead. Stony Brook took a 10-point lead following a 19-4 run that featured four 3-pointers, including two from Pratt, who finished with 20 points. Hampton retaliated with a Quentin Cooper jumper at the 8:00 mark, sparking nine unanswered points and a 17-4 run to end the game. After Johnson tied the game at 57, Watson sank a pullup jumper at the free-throw line to take a lead with 2:05 remaining. Wyatt-Gaines hit a trio of free throws to close out the game for the Pirates and capture a three-point victory. Stony Brook's Ethan Simmon scored 17 points in the setback, going 6-of-7 from the floor with a pair of boards.
Charleston 72, Drexel 63
Box Score
Jlynn Counter racked up a career-high 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting to guide Charleston (8-6, 1-0 CAA) to a 72-63 win over Drexel (6-8, 0-1 CAA). The graduate guard also went 3-for-3 from deep and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe, while logging six assists, five boards and three steals. Chol Machot went 7-for-8 inside the arc en route to a 14-point, six-rebound showing. Colby Duggan added 10 points in his season debut with the Cougars.
After shooting 2-for-14 to open the game and trailing by as many as 14 points, Charleston orchestrated a valiant comeback with seven straight makes to close out the opening frame. Counter and Duggan drained back-to-back treys to spark a 14-3 run and tie the game at 28 with 95 seconds remaining in the first half. However, Drexel’s Victor Panov sank consecutive triples of his own to put the Dragons back up six, 34-28, heading into halftime. The Cougars caught fire again, going 10-for-13 from the floor and securing a 50-44 lead to open the second half. Charleston’s lead grew to double digits, 57-46, after Counter knocked down his third and final triple with 8:30 to go in regulation. After Charleston’s lead grew to 15, the Dragons’ Eli Beard slashed the deficit down to as few as seven after scoring eight of his team-high 17 points in the final minute. Drexel’s Shane Blakeney flirted with a double-double, posting 12 points and nine boards.