[amazon_auto_links id="16922"]

Danes WBB Falls in Close Battle at Hofstra 60-56


Danes WBB Falls in Close Battle at Hofstra 60-56

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – Going down to the wire, UAlbany fell to Hofstra 60-56 after a late charge by the Pride in Long Island on Wednesday afternoon.

“Hofstra really played great today, and we lost a tough game,” says UAlbany head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson.
Shereesha Richards earned her seventh double-double of the season with a career-high 16 rebounds and 23 points, adding three steals.  Erin Coughlin matched a career-high with four three-pointers, finishing with 12 points and four assists.

For Hofstra, Anma Onyeuku had 15 points and eight rebounds, while Kelly Loftus had 14 points.

The loss for UAlbany snaps an 11-game winning streak against New York-based opponents, dating back to last season.

Each side played a zone defense early.  UAlbany (9-3) tried to break the zone with looks in the paint, while Hofstra (5-6) fired a lot of three-pointers.  After Hofstra  started up 5-2, Richards hit a jumper and one, followed by Megan Craig hitting a jumper to push UAlbany ahead.  After a Krystal Luciano three, a Margarita Rosario three sparked a 12-3 UAlbany run, helped by another jumper-and-one by Richards, to push the Great Danes ahead 19-11 with 13:20 in the 1st.

UAlbany stayed ahead despite some early foul trouble as Hofstra looked to chip away at its deficit.  Onyeuku led a late Hofstra run as down 27-18, the Pride went on a 10-1 run to finish the half, making the score 28-28 at the break.

A field goal drought of over 10 minutes from the first half for UAlbany helped Hofstra take the lead on a Loftus three.  Richards ended the streak with a couple of layups the other way to put UAlbany back in front.  Sarah Royals added a pair of free throws to make it 34-31 UAlbany at the second half’s first media.

Hofstra countered again, with a couple of Elo Edeferioka baskets and two more threes on a 10-1 run, forcing UAlbany to call timeout down 41-35 with 12:29 left.

Coughlin hit a three out of the timeout, with shots by Richards and Craig helping bridge the gap.  At 46-43, another Coughlin three followed by a Richards free throw and two baskets pushed UAlbany back ahead 51-46.

The two teams make stops back-and-forth as they tried to break the respective zone defense.  Tied with 1:27 left, Loftus hit a baseline jumper to give Hofstra a 55-53 lead. 

Craig got fouled with 22 seconds left and hit the front end, but Loftus hit a pair the other way to push Hofstra up 57-54.

Rosario tried for a quick layup, but was called for a charge in the paint.  Luciano added a free throw for a two-possession game.  A couple of late Royals free throws got UAlbany within one possession 58-56 with three seconds left.  The press defense forced Hofstra final timeout, but Loftus got the inbounds and was fouled, hitting both free throws to put the game away for Hofstra 60-56.

The Great Danes finish non-conference play on Saturday, January 4th, taking on Northeastern in Boston at 2 p.m.


ALBANY
Headline News


The Albany Student Press


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *