Fifth-Seeded Hofstra Rallies to Capture 57-52 Win Over #4 Northeastern
To watch any of the videos mentioned in this story on your mobile device or tablet download one of our newly redesigned apps or visit us on YouTube.
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (March 15, 2013) - Fifth-seeded Hofstra
rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit and knocked off #4 Northeastern,
57-52, in the quarterfinals of the CAA Women's Basketball Championship,
presented by Jani-King, on Friday afternoon.
The Pride (14-16) advances to the CAA semifinals for the
first time since 2007, where they will face top-seeded Delaware at 2 p.m. on
Saturday. Northeastern dropped to 17-13 with the loss.
Sophomore guard Andreana Thomas contributed a team-high 15
points and five assists for Hofstra, while senior forward Deven Green added 11
points in 17 minutes off the bench. Senior Shante Evans, the all-time leading
rebounder in CAA history, grabbed 10 of her team-high 11 boards in the second
half after being limited by first-half foul trouble. Freshman Asia Jackson tied
a career-high with seven steals.
Northeastern was led by junior forward Jewell Tunstull, who
recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 12 points and a game-high
17 rebounds. Guard A'lece Mark added 12 points and five assists, while
backcourt mate Amencie Mercier scored 11 points.
Hofstra opened the second half on a 16-5 run after trailing
29-22 at intermission. A steal and layup by Jackson with 15:35 to go gave the
Pride their first lead, 36-34, since the opening minute of the game. The
Huskies battled back to tie the contest at 40-40 on a Tunstull layup with 11:47
left.
However, the Pride reeled off seven consecutive points as
Thomas drained a three-pointer, Jackson converted a layup off a steal and
Alexis Carter hit a baseline jumper to put Hofstra ahead to stay, 47-40, with
8:29 remaining.
The Huskies closed to within 51-49 on a Mercier
three-pointer with 3:02 to go, but a jumper by Evans and a pair of Candace Bond
free throws pushed the Pride advantage back to six. NU's Kashaia Cannon hit a
three-pointer to make it a one-possession game, 55-52, with 13 seconds left,
but Thomas sealed the victory by converting a pair of free throws a second
later.
Northeastern led for the majority of the first half and took
advantage of Evans going to the bench with two fouls at the 15:59 mark. The
Huskies scored seven straight points after Evans' departure, taking a 12-3 lead
on a Mark layup with 13:41 to go. The Pride battled back to within 17-14 on a
steal and layup by Jackson midway through the period, but the Huskies slowly
pulled away again and led 29-22 at the break. Mark finished with nine
first-half points, while Tunstull had eight rebounds as the Huskies had a 26-14
advantage on the glass.
Hofstra shot 38.9% from the floor for the game and came up
with 11 steals defensively. Northeastern made only 30.3% from the floor,
including 9-of-35 (25.7%) in the second half. The Huskies finished with a 49-39
advantage on the glass, but were hurt by 19 turnovers.
All quarterfinal games will be available for FREE on CAA.TV.