Hofstra women's team upsets No. 5 NC A&T in CAA Tournament

Behind a season-high 62.5% from three-point range and a trio of double-digit scorers, the 12-seed Hofstra women's basketball team upset five-seed North Carolina A&T, 66-59, in the second round of the CAA Tournament on Thursday on the campus of Towson University.

The win propels Hofstra into the quarterfinals, making the Pride the first 12-seed to reach the quarterfinals of the CAA Championship since Georgia State achieved the feat in 2006.

Hofstra will face four-seed William & Mary (17-12) on Friday at 2:30 p.m.

Hofstra moves to 12-19 on the year following Thursday's win. North Carolina A&T ends its first season of CAA competition with an 18-12 record.

Sorelle Ineza paced the Pride with 19 points on 7-12 shooting, 3-4 three-point shooting, and 2-2 from the free throw line. Brandy Thomas finished with 18 points against the Aggies on 6-15 shooting, including 3-4 from beyond the arc, and 3-5 from the charity stripe, in addition to five rebounds and three assists. Emma Von Essen scored 11 points for Hofstra, while Zyheima Swint pulled down a team-best seven rebounds to go with eight points, and Ally Knights dished out five assists.

After a third quarter that saw Hofstra own its biggest lead of the game – 14 points – and lead 57-45, North Carolina A&T made a 14-2 run in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 59-59 with 3:45, keeping Hofstra scoreless aside from a Von Essen basket at the 7:54 mark.

Von Essen ended North Carolina A&T's momentum with a three-pointer in front of the Hofstra bench, giving the Pride the lead back with 3:24 to play. Hofstra's defending came up big once again late in the fourth quarter, as they kept the Aggies without a point for the remainder of the game. A layup from Thomas, plus free throws from Knights and Rosi Nicholson, iced the game and sent Hofstra onto the quarterfinals.
 

MEN'S RESULTS

Rutgers KOs Michigan

Cam Spencer and Derek Simpson scored 23 of their combined 31 points in the second half and Rutgers beat Michigan, 62-50, on Thursday in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago.

Spencer scored 18 points and Simpson 13 for the ninth-seeded Scarlet Knights (19-13), who rebounded to shoot 52% in the second half after a 29% first half. They will play top-seed Purdue in Friday’s quarterfinals.

Hunter Dickinson scored 24 points for eighth-seeded Michigan (17-15), which had just one second-half field goal until the final minute.

Self misses game with illness

Kansas coach Bill Self missed the third-ranked Jayhawks' quarterfinal game against West Virginia in the Big 12 Tournament on Thursday with what the school called an undisclosed illness.

Kansas officials announced the news about five hours before tipoff between the top-seeded Jayhawks and eighth-seeded Mountaineers. Assistant Norm Roberts served as the acting coach for the Jayhawks, a role he filled earlier in the season when Self served a school-imposed four-game suspension and won each of the games.

“Self is doing well and receiving great care at the University of Kansas Health System,” the school said Thursday in a statement. It did not say whether Self would be back should the Jayhawks advance to the semifinals. The 60-year-old Hall of Fame coach led Kansas to the regular-season championship.

AP and staff reports