Iona dominates Hofstra, 87-62
Hofstra University men's basketball head coach Mo Cassara talks to his players during team practice held at Mack Sports Complex. (Nov. 4, 2010) Credit: James Escher
NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. - Next week is when the real fun starts for Hofstra, with a long, winding stretch of nearly uninterrupted conference play until March. Fun, because with a new coach in Mo Cassara and All-America candidate Charles Jenkins, the Pride has a real shot to make a dent in the CAA.
Next week, because last night's visit to Iona was more unwelcome pit stop than pre-conference tuneup.
Iona defeated the Pride, 87-62, behind the play of forward Mike Glover (16 points) and guard Scott Machado (17 points) and a debilitating 27-13 run that helped transform a 13-13 game to 40-26 at halftime. And, for all the things Glover did in his 11-point first half, there were all the other things that Jenkins, the Pride's go-to guy, did not.
Jenkins scored a game-high 20 points, but 15 came in the second half, when Hofstra never threatened. In the first half, he took only one shot until his three-pointer off an inbounds pass from Brad Kelleher with 1:07 left gave him five points, two on free throws, for the first 20 minutes.
The Gaels (8-5) frustrated Hofstra with their shifting man-to-man and 2-3 zone defenses, opening a 28-19 lead with 6:14 left in the half.
Iona kicked off the game on a 5-0 spurt and never trailed, mostly taking advantage of Hofstra's lack of a third scoring option behind Jenkins and Mike Moore (18 points).
"We needed to get him some more shots tonight," Cassara said of Jenkins, who was 7-for-12 from the field. "Charles has got to keep moving. He didn't get enough attempts for us to have a chance to win."
Hofstra (7-5) shot only 37.5 percent from the field compared to Iona's 61.1 and, though Jenkins asserted himself in the second half, the damage was done. Iona led by 22 with 5:37 left and cruised the rest of the way.
The Pride mixed things up a bit, starting Brad Kelleher at point guard as Dwan McMillan sat out with a stomach virus, marking the first time Hofstra has switched around its starting five this season.
A sluggish Pride looked off kilter throughout, putting minimal offensive pressure on the Gaels and proving unable to stop Iona's strong dribble-penetration, leading to the Pride's being outscored 48-20 in the paint.
"They were more aggressive as a team tonight," Cassara said. "We didn't do a good job executing on offense or defense. We were a step slow to the ball. They outhustled us.
"We get back to work tomorrow. We're a work in progress."
