Desure Buie led Hofstra with 17 points as Pride defeated Monmouth Saturday afternoon. (Photo by Vincent Simone/Daly Dose Of Hoops)
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Joe Mihalich was nothing less than satisfied Wednesday night after Hofstra lost its season opener to San Jose State, noting the Pride got what it deserved in defeat.
Three days later, the script, as it is so often apt to do in college basketball, was turned on its head.
A 34-4 run over the final ten minutes of the first half and six double-figure scorers -- the first such instance in almost three years -- took a tie game at the first media timeout into a runaway, one from which Hofstra emerged 94-74 victors over Monmouth Saturday to claim its third victory over the Hawks in as many seasons.
"We talked the last few days about attitude and effort," Mihalich recalled as Hofstra (1-1) shot over 63 percent from the floor in the opening stanza to shake loose from a Monmouth team looking to win its second straight road game to begin the season. "If anything, we learned a lesson that this is how it has to be. There's one way to play the game, and I thought we did that today."
The Pride was able to essentially dictate tempo in the first half, luring Monmouth (1-1) into a track meet through the opening minutes, relying on a high-octane offense still adjusting to life without Justin Wright-Foreman. The Hawks managed to stay within earshot for the early part of the period, but an Omar Silverio three-pointer with 10:37 remaining before halftime ignited a stretch of 15 unanswered points that put Hofstra in front to stay.
"He gave us a boost," Mihalich said of Silverio, the sophomore transfer from Rhode Island who chipped in for 13 points off the bench. "He can do that. He can score."
In addition to Silverio, Tareq Coburn recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds, Jalen Ray tallied 14 points, Isaac Kante added 15, and the backcourt duo of Eli Pemberton and Desure Buie amassed 17 points apiece, the latter also supplementing his offense with eight assists and drawing six fouls to contribute in a way the final score neglected on the surface.
"He's just so important to our team," Mihalich said, praising Buie. "When he has the ball in his hands, he makes everyone else better. He just fills the stat sheet up."
Hofstra placed six players in double figures for the first time since a 38-point drubbing of crosstown rival Stony Brook on December 13, 2016, and the Pride's collective performance left Monmouth head coach King Rice brutally honest with what his squad was left to endure.
"We got big brothered today," Rice said after Monmouth would get no closer than 13 points midway through the second half. "I knew they would make shots, I didn't think they'd shoot 65 percent in the first half. It was a good game for seven minutes. I thought they looked tired, so we subbed and then their kids buckled down and whooped us from there forward."
The loss of Wright-Foreman -- drafted by the Utah Jazz this past June -- is an irreplaceable void even for a team such as Hofstra that returns every other piece of its core this season, experience that proved pivotal in the Pride being selected as the Colonial Athletic Association favorite entering the year, but the balance exhibited in victory Saturday proves that although it takes time to reveal itself, the sum of the whole is still greater than the parts.
"We're trying to find out who we are," Mihalich admitted. "We have a lot of returners, but it's still a whole new team. We're trying to figure out what this team is and what we're all about. We think we know, but it's a marathon, not a sprint. Every day, we're trying to get better and build toward something good."
Three days later, the script, as it is so often apt to do in college basketball, was turned on its head.
A 34-4 run over the final ten minutes of the first half and six double-figure scorers -- the first such instance in almost three years -- took a tie game at the first media timeout into a runaway, one from which Hofstra emerged 94-74 victors over Monmouth Saturday to claim its third victory over the Hawks in as many seasons.
"We talked the last few days about attitude and effort," Mihalich recalled as Hofstra (1-1) shot over 63 percent from the floor in the opening stanza to shake loose from a Monmouth team looking to win its second straight road game to begin the season. "If anything, we learned a lesson that this is how it has to be. There's one way to play the game, and I thought we did that today."
The Pride was able to essentially dictate tempo in the first half, luring Monmouth (1-1) into a track meet through the opening minutes, relying on a high-octane offense still adjusting to life without Justin Wright-Foreman. The Hawks managed to stay within earshot for the early part of the period, but an Omar Silverio three-pointer with 10:37 remaining before halftime ignited a stretch of 15 unanswered points that put Hofstra in front to stay.
"He gave us a boost," Mihalich said of Silverio, the sophomore transfer from Rhode Island who chipped in for 13 points off the bench. "He can do that. He can score."
In addition to Silverio, Tareq Coburn recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds, Jalen Ray tallied 14 points, Isaac Kante added 15, and the backcourt duo of Eli Pemberton and Desure Buie amassed 17 points apiece, the latter also supplementing his offense with eight assists and drawing six fouls to contribute in a way the final score neglected on the surface.
"He's just so important to our team," Mihalich said, praising Buie. "When he has the ball in his hands, he makes everyone else better. He just fills the stat sheet up."
Hofstra placed six players in double figures for the first time since a 38-point drubbing of crosstown rival Stony Brook on December 13, 2016, and the Pride's collective performance left Monmouth head coach King Rice brutally honest with what his squad was left to endure.
"We got big brothered today," Rice said after Monmouth would get no closer than 13 points midway through the second half. "I knew they would make shots, I didn't think they'd shoot 65 percent in the first half. It was a good game for seven minutes. I thought they looked tired, so we subbed and then their kids buckled down and whooped us from there forward."
The loss of Wright-Foreman -- drafted by the Utah Jazz this past June -- is an irreplaceable void even for a team such as Hofstra that returns every other piece of its core this season, experience that proved pivotal in the Pride being selected as the Colonial Athletic Association favorite entering the year, but the balance exhibited in victory Saturday proves that although it takes time to reveal itself, the sum of the whole is still greater than the parts.
"We're trying to find out who we are," Mihalich admitted. "We have a lot of returners, but it's still a whole new team. We're trying to figure out what this team is and what we're all about. We think we know, but it's a marathon, not a sprint. Every day, we're trying to get better and build toward something good."
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