Hempstead, NY - Andreana Thomas flirted with a triple-double
with 11 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds, and Shante Evans added 18 points
and eight rebounds as Hofstra held off a late rally from Georgia State to post
a 64-63 win. The victory was Hofstra's fifth consecutive win.
The Pride improved to 6-7 on the season and 2-0 in Colonial
Athletic Association play, while Georgia State drops to 8-5, 0-2 in the CAA
with its third straight loss.
With her 18 points, Evans is now four points from breaking
Dia LaBella's school scoring mark of 1,840 points. Evans now has 1,837 career
points.
The two teams played a tightly contested first half, with
Hofstra taking a 34-31 advantage at the break thanks to a buzzer-beating
three-pointer from Thomas. Georgia State had taken a 15-10 lead 8:38 into the
half, using an 11-6 run to snap a 4-4 tie. Cody Paulk and Ashley Watson each
had four points for the Panthers in the run.
The Pride responded with six straight points to take a 16-15
lead with 9:55 to play on a Thomas layup. The teams traded the lead twice
before the Panthers went ahead 21-18 on a pair of Kayla Nolan free throws with
7:57 on the clock. But Annie Payton tied the score with a three-pointer, and
later gave the Pride a 25-24 lead with a layup with 4:27 remaining. Hofstra
would build the lead up to five, 29-24, layups from Evans and Payton with 2:43
to play. But the Panthers had one last run in them and tied the score at 31
with 1:21 to play on a three-pointer from Gaby Moss. Each team had three empty
possessions in the final minute, before Thomas' half-ending basket that gave
the Pride the three-point edge.
Hofstra opened the second half with a 13-0 run to take a 47-31
lead with 16:46 left to play. Evans had seven points in the run, while Deven
Green added four points. The Panthers finally got on the board in the second
half on a Paulk layup after missing its first five shots and committing four
turnovers. The Pride would build the advantage up to 17, 51-34, on an Asia
Jackson jumper with 12:32 to play.
The Panthers would claw back to within eight, 58-50, on
Maryam Dogo's put back on an offensive rebound with 7:32 to play. But a long
Candace Bond two-point jumper gave the Pride a double-digit lead once again
with just over seven minutes remaining. Georgia State cut the deficit to seven,
64-57, on a three-pointer from Ashlee Cole with 3:56 to play.
That basket keyed a 9-0 run for the Panthers that made it a
one-point game with 1:43 to play. But neither team could convert on the
offensive end the rest of the way as the Pride held on for the one-point win.
Hofstra, which did not score for the final 4:58, also got a
strong contribution from Payton who had 16 points (14 in the first half). Paulk
led Georgia State with 14 points, eight rebounds and five steals.
The contest ended a five-game home stand for the Pride, who
take to the road for a CAA contest at George Mason on Sunday at 2 p.m.
