The losing skid for the Hofstra Pride men’s basketball team reached four on Thursday as they dropped one to the Elon Phoenix, 96-80. The loss was also Hofstra’s fourth consecutive in conference play. “Not a good time to be soft defensively,” said head coach Joe Mihalich. “I don’t want to take anything away from how well (Elon) played and how they shot the ball.”
The Pride falls to 9-9 overall and 1-4 in Colonial Athletic Association play. Elon improves to 10-8 and 2-3 in conference play.
On an off night - especially on the scoreboard - Hofstra had several strong performances that can be considered positive signs as conference play heats up.
Deron Powers turned in 21 points, eight assists and four rebounds, while Brian Bernardi compiled 13 points to move into 32nd place all-time with 1,026 in his Hofstra career. It was the eighth time this season Powers had 15 or more points.
The first half was something the Pride probably wishes it had back. While Elon shot 56 percent from the field, Hofstra struggled to find rhythm on offense, converting less than 40 percent of its shots by the intermission.
A 9-9 score early in the contest would quickly get out of hand as the Phoenix went on a 15-2 spurt approaching the midway point of the frame. Elon received big buckets from Steven Santa Ana and Tyler Seibring in the first to pull away. Santa Ana and Seibring totaled 17 and 10 points respectively in the half.
“You’ve got to have a toughness to make shots and theirs were tougher than ours,” Mihalich said. “You’ve got to want that ball to go in. All of (Elon’s players) did. They’re an extremely good offensive team.”
It showed.
By the end of the contest, Elon had three players with 18 or more points. Eight of Elon’s nine players touched the score sheet in points, boards and assists.
“We’ve got great respect for them. It’s not a surprise they can score that well. I think it’s disappointing we had a hand in them scoring that many points but it’s a good team,” Mihalich said.
For the fifth time this season, Hofstra allowed at least 90 points. Hofstra’s poor defensive effort put some questions in the coach’s mind about possibly adjusting their scheme.
“I thought our zone defense would be good, otherwise we wouldn’t have done that,” Mihalich said. “It certainly wasn’t good tonight. But we’re thinking about it, ourselves.”
Trailing by 16 at the break, the Pride needed to mount a comeback in the second half. Elon made sure any positive vibes the Pride was feeling in the locker room went away after Santa Ana pushed the lead to 22 points on a three-pointer.
For most of the second half, the Phoenix held strong to their 20-point advantage. A 7-0 run for the Pride trimmed it - capped by Eli Pemberton. The blue and gold followed that with an 11-0 run to make things interesting.
Justin Wright-Foreman led the charge back for Hofstra with 14 points. It was his eighth straight game in double figures but it wasn’t enough, as Elon never broke a sweat.
“(During those scoring runs) I thought we played hard and competed,” said Mihalich. “We learned how to fight, play hard and compete. [It] wasn’t enough.”
Santa Ana’s 29 points, Seibring’s 22 and Dainan Swoope’s 18 proved to be the backbreaker and ultimate downfall for Hofstra.
The Pride is now 5-1 all-time against Elon since the series began in 2009.