Hofstra improves hold on first place as Mihalich picks up 400th career win

Joe Mihalich earned 400th win Saturday as Hofstra defeated UNC Wilmington. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Vincent Simone (@VTSimone)

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — Joe Mihalich hardly broke a sweat as Hofstra routed UNC Wilmington, 78-64, Saturday, giving the coach his 400th career victory.

In his seventh season leading the Pride, Mihalich has turned Hofstra into one of the Colonial Athletic Association’s most consistent programs. Its victory Saturday clinched the fourth 20-win season of Mihalich’s tenure as Hofstra extended its lead in the conference standings to a game-and-a-half over William & Mary.

“It’s a brotherhood from the last player on the bench to the coaching staff,” senior guard Eli Pemberton said of the culture built under Mihalich. “It’s fun to win for a coach like this, and it’s fun to play for him when he lets you play your game.”

The visiting Seahawks could find no answer for Hofstra’s powerful center Isaac Kante. The junior tallied career highs in both points (23) and rebounds (14), and drew and impressive 13 fouls.

“I’m just trying to be strong inside,” Kante said. “Those two centers on their team, they play hard and they got me last time.”

UNCW notched the game’s first basket on a layup from Marten Linssen, but Hofstra swiftly took over and never looked back. A 14-0 run midway through the first half helped the Pride push its lead to 17, while a 7-0 stretch to cap the opening stanza gave Hofstra a 21-point advantage at the break. The Hofstra lead ballooned to as much as 28 in the second half before being cut to half as much by the final whistle.

Pemberton matched Kante’s game-high 23 points. In the process, the senior guard passed David Taylor for ninth place on Hofstra’s all-time scoring list. Pemberton’s next target on the list? Current Hofstra assistant coach Craig “Speedy” Claxton.

“I have specific orders from Speedy once [Eli] gets close to take him out so he doesn’t pass him,” Mihalich joked after the game.

Hofstra’s defensive focus has been a clear focal point in its current six-game winning streak. Over that stretch, the Pride have held opponents to an average of 63.3 points per game and outscored the opposition by 15 points, on average.

“Let me start first with my coaching staff, those guys are unbelievable, and they know what the other team is going to do before they’re doing it,” Mihalich said of the defensive game-planning. “It starts with a want to for these guys. They want to play defense. They take pleasure in blowing up the other team’s actions and guarding guys.”

The CAA’s hottest team, Delaware, had won seven in a row before suffering a loss to William & Mary Saturday. With the Blue Hens’ loss, the Pride now have more than a game’s advantage in the conference standings as it eyes a second consecutive regular season league title.

Hofstra will cap the regular season with a road trip to Drexel and Delaware this Thursday and Saturday before returning home to host Towson and CAA basement-dweller James Madison.