Pride starts CAA play looking like Hofstra of old with win over Campbell

Now 10-4 and winners of five straight, Hofstra appears to be back on track after an anomaly last season. (Photo by Joe Orovitz/Hofstra Athletics)

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — Picked eighth of 13 in the Coastal Athletic Association preseason coaches’ poll, questions surrounded Hofstra as the Pride labored through an uncharacteristically long and lackluster 2024-25 season.

Would Speedy Claxton’s program cede further ground amid the spending sprees made by CAA brethren Charleston and UNCW in the offseason? Could Cruz Davis continue the lineage of production in a backcourt affectionately dubbed Guard U? How much more would Hofstra’s supporting cast have a chance to assert itself, and would it be able to make a name for itself once conference play began?

The answer to all those questions appears to be affirmative after the Pride opened its CAA slate with a convincing, and fairly decisive 86-72 win over Campbell, the fifth consecutive victory for a team whose four losses have each come by eight points or less as it continues to resemble a vintage Hofstra outfit.

But that is not to say the Pride (10-4, 1-0 CAA) did not face its share of early adversity. Campbell (6-8, 0-1 CAA) attacked the glass in the opening minutes, racking up four offensive rebounds after a 4-for-6 start soon fell by the wayside. Hofstra would quickly regroup, however, ultimately swinging momentum for good with a 21-3 run midway through the first half to build a double-digit cushion it would not relinquish.

“We’re always gonna go as our defense goes,” Claxton said. “I think once we buckled down, we were really locked in on the defensive end, and that’s when we kind of took off and started getting out in transition, started getting easy baskets. But it starts on the defensive end.”

That defense fueled Davis’ latest commanding performance, which ended with 22 points, seven assists and five rebounds. The Pride also got 16 points from freshman point guard Preston Edmead, but the 29 combined markers from Joshua DeCady and Jaeden Roberts underscore Hofstra’s depth and further illustrate just how far his team can go.

“It just really starts with my coaches,” DeCady, who tied a career high Monday with 15 points, said of the trust and confidence instilled in him. “Coach Speedy puts a lot of trust in me and everybody else…Coach (Mike) DePaoli, Coach (Antwon Portley), Coach (Drew) Metz, all of them. They just really trust me, and one thing I’ll say, they’ve helped me a lot. They’re patient with me, even when I mess up. They’re just those types of coaches and that’s one thing I really appreciate.”

DeCady expanded and showcased his game on multiple occasions Monday, even adding a three-pointer to his repertoire. He and fellow forward Victory Onuetu are the latest dual-big tandem in Hofstra’s underrated five spot, and the results for the sophomore have left a positive mark on his coach.

Joshua DeCady tied career-high Monday with 15 points in Hofstra’s win over Campbell. (Photo by Joe Orovitz/Hofstra Athletics)

“He’s putting time in, ever since the summer,” Claxton said of DeCady. “He’s always one of the first ones in the gym (and) he’s just seeing the success right now. He’s one of our hardest workers on the team, so I’m extremely happy for him that he’s seen it come to fruition.”

Roberts, the second-generation Hofstra guard, extended the development of the program’s youth Monday, scoring 14 points in 16 minutes off the bench in an effort that sustained the uptick for the freshman as he competes for minutes in a talented backcourt.

Jaeden Roberts scored 14 points off bench for Hofstra Monday, adding to deep backcourt that will serve Pride well in CAA play. (Photo by Joe Orovitz/Hofstra Athletics)

“Jaeden Roberts is a special, special talent,” Claxton gushed. “He’s just now starting to come into his own. And when we get that kind of point production from him off the bench, we’re gonna be pretty hard to beat.”

Hofstra next heads to a somewhat familiar locale of Philadelphia for a Saturday afternoon engagement with Drexel. The Pride has won its last three games in the City of Brotherly Love, sweeping the Cathedral Classic at Penn over Thanksgiving weekend with wins over La Salle, Merrimack, and the host Quakers. That success, coupled with the recent good fortune earned Monday, has Claxton pleased with the way his team’s affairs have gone entering the new calendar year.

“It’s a confidence builder,” he said of Monday’s win. “You always want to get the first one, especially when you’re at home. So we’re happy with the way we came out, the way we performed. We came out and handled business.”