Hofstra shook up the world. Well, the metropolitan area at least.
After jumping out to a 15-point halftime lead, the Pride held on to stun the high-powered Iona Gaels, 83-75, last night at the Mack Sports Complex in Hempstead.
Going up against the highly acclaimed trio of Mike Glover, Scott Machado and Momo Jones, Hofstra responded with its own three-headed beast in Mike Moore, Nathaniel Lester and David Imes, to earn a third straight win.
Hofstra (6-7,) did not allow Iona (10-3) to get within seven points in the second half, due to the timely shooting of Moore and Lester, who combined for 45 points on 15-of-30 shooting. Moore finished with 24 and Lester with 21. Imes added 16 points and 15 rebounds.
“We had a couple games early in the season that we let get away where we had leads and we played well and weren’t able to finish, and I think this team is starting to develop a sense of urgency down the stretch,” Hofstra head coach Mo Cassara said. “I’m really just proud of our effort overall, and that’s the way we’re going to have to win games.’’
Iona, the team perceived to have limitless potential, gave the game away. The Gaels, who had won 10 of their past 11 games and entered as the fourth-highest scoring team in the nation, saw their fast-paced offense backfire while committing 18 first-half turnovers, one shy of their season high. That allowed Hofstra to end the first half on a 21-6 run and take a 43-28 lead. Machado, the nation’s leader in assists, was held to five points, 10 assists and six turnovers, fouling out after playing 27 minutes.
“I think we had zero percent effort,” said Glover, who had little help inside, carrying the load with 20 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks. “We played worse than what the score said.”
Playing their penultimate game of a program-record nine consecutive games away from home, the Gaels let down, admitting they were too happy to be back in New York, expecting a win because they were supposed to win.
“We have to do a better job of not listening to what’s said about us by [the media],” said Jones, who had 20 points, six assists and six rebounds. “We have to understand that with glitz and glamour, comes big stages and publicity that people may not have had before. We have to do a better job of handling that.’’
Iona head coach Tim Cluess summed it up best.
“It looked like it meant more to them,” he said.