Justin Wright-Foreman tied school record with 48 points as Hofstra held off William & Mary for 18th win in last 19 games. (Photo by Vincent Simone/Daly Dose Of Hoops)
By Vincent Simone (@VTSimone)
HEMPSTEAD, NY -- Hofstra’s annual matchups against William & Mary are quickly taking on the reputation of must-see events.
Nine of the last eleven meetings between these heated rivals have been decided by six points or fewer with three lasting into overtime, including this season’s first meeting, which Hofstra claimed by three in triple overtime.
The latest rendition of the rivalry saw the Pride – playing this Saturday under Hofstra’s bygone Flying Dutchmen nickname on throwback night at the Mack Sports Complex – overcome a 10-point second half deficit to defeat the Tribe, 93-87, and improve its first-place record to 11-1 in Colonial Athletic Association play.
Justin Wright-Foreman rewrote the Hofstra record book as he authored the Pride’s comeback. The senior scored 37 second-half points en route to matching the program single-game record with 48, first accomplished by Bill Thieben against Wilkes University during the 1954-55 season. With his 19th point of the night, Wright-Foreman became the eighth player in program history to surpass the 2,000 point plateau, and after putting home his 34th, passed current Hofstra assistant coach Speedy Claxton for seventh place on the program’s all-time scoring list.
“Speedy recruited me, and being able to surpass him is just incredible,” Wright-Foreman said. “I told him before the game, ‘I’m going to pass you,’ and after, I just gave him a hug and told him thank you.”
“I was lucky enough to be an assistant coach for Lionel Simmons, who’s the third all-time leading scorer in the history of the game,” Hofstra coach Joe Mihalich said. “He never did this. He scored 3,200 points, but he never did this. I coached two guys who led the country in scoring and they never did this. It wasn’t just the 48 – every bucket was hard. As you’re coaching, you’re trying not to also be in awe.”
After his record-setting night, Wright-Foreman now stands with 2,029 career points, just 16 shy of Thieben in sixth place. At his current pace of 26 points per game, the Queens native could potentially reach second place on the list by season’s end. Charles Jenkins occupies the top spot with 2,513 points, with Antoine Agudio just behind at 2,276.
Wright-Foreman’s heroics became necessary after William & Mary built on a four-point halftime advantage with a 9-3 run to open the second stanza and push its lead to double digits. Syracuse native Nathan Knight, who may very well be the best player in the CAA outside of Wright-Foreman, put together a career game of his own as he continued a history of terrorizing the Pride. The 6-foot-10, 245-pound junior matched Wright-Foreman with a 16-of-24 shooting night, good for a career-high 39 points alongside 14 rebounds. In four games against Hofstra since his sophomore season, Knight is averaging 29.3 points per game on 63.2 percent shooting, with 10 rebounds per game.
After Knight put the Tribe on top by 10 with a jumper a little more than five minutes into the second half, Wright-Foreman slashed the deficit in half with a personal 5-0 swing. The Pride finally pulled even on a Wright-Foreman jumper with 8:27 left to play. When the Tribe’s Paul Rowley connected on a three-pointer to put the visitors ahead once more, it was Wright-Foreman who again answered the call with a triple of his own 19 seconds later. On Hofstra’s next possession, Wright-Foreman drew a shooting foul and knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Pride up for good.
Desure Buie joined Wright-Foreman in double figures, with 16 points alongside six assists. Eli Pemberton contributed 12 points and five assists of his own, while Jacquil Taylor put together his third double-double, amassing 11 points and 15 rebounds.
Hofstra hits the road for its next two contests, first traveling to Charleston to take on the defending CAA champion Cougars on Thursday before visiting UNCW Saturday, looking for a regular-season sweep against both.
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