Hofstra gets second-half jump on Stony Brook

For 40 minutes, bodies collided.

For 40 minutes, bodies crashed to the floor.

For 40 minutes, Hofstra and Stony Brook engaged in a fight. It was tense. It was desperate. It was two rivals trying to prove which was the better team.

It was .  .  .

“Really not pretty,” coach Speedy Claxton said with a grin after the Pride earned a 67-58 victory over the Seawolves at David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex on Saturday night.

No, it was not a work of art. But then, that is not how Hofstra approached the regular-season series finale between the programs. Instead, what was foremost on the Pride’s minds was earning another win at home.

“Tonight was a Super Bowl for us,” Claxton said.

Hofstra (20-10, 11-6 Coastal Athletic Association), which clinched a double bye in the CAA Tournament, has won three in a row and seven of eight dating to Jan. 31. The Pride have one game remaining in the regular season, Tuesday night against visiting Drexel.

“It’s easier to win three [games] in three [days] than four in four,” Claxton said. “Thankful that we got the double bye and hopefully we go out there to D.C. and take care of business.”

Whereas the Pride appear to be rounding into form at the right time, Stony Brook (17-13, 9-8) has dropped two straight and is 3-4 in its last seven games. The Seawolves finish their regular season Tuesday against Towson at Stony Brook Arena.

“We just couldn’t make enough big plays,” Stony Brook coach Geno Ford said. “I’m not sure we stopped them enough [and] we couldn’t score it like you need to down the stretch.”

Biggie Patterson scored 17 points, German Plotnikov had 15 and Preston Edmead added 14.

“When I got a clear head and [am] playing with so much energy throughout the game, my teammates feed off it. So I just try [my] best to stay that way the whole game,” Patterson said. “Any time it [goes] in, a shot feels good. So when it [goes] in, I feel good.”

As did Plotnikov, who entered the game wanting to prove that his 3-for-16 shooting in Hofstra’s 76-71 loss to the Seawolves on Jan. 15 at Stony Brook “was a fluke.”

“That was definitely in the back of my head even though I was trying to resist it,” Plotnikov said. “I was definitely trying to come out and make a statement.”

The score was tied at 32 after the opening 20 minutes. Plotnikov and Patterson each scored 11 points for the Pride, whose defense limited the Seawolves to 32% shooting (10-for-31) in the first half. But Stony Brook used an 11-1 run in the final 3:23 to send the teams into halftime in a tie.

Hofstra outscored Stony Brook 21-16 in the first 11 minutes of the second half to take a 53-48 lead. Cruz Davis, Joshua DeCady and Edmead each scored five points in the stretch for the Pride.

Hofstra extended its lead to 60-50 with six minutes to go, but Stony Brook closed to 63-58 on Rob Brown III’s three-pointer with 2:15 left.

Stony Brook, which was led by Ethan Simmon’s 14 points, shot 19-for-65 (29.2%).

“Hofstra is a great defensive team,” Ford said. “They do a great job. Working hard, and they have length and athleticism, and I give them all the credit .  .  . They are great on defense.”