CAA Men’s Basketball Recap – Feb. 15
Elon halts UNCW’s nine-game winning streak, while Towson and William & Mary remain unbeaten at home in league play.
CAA Men’s Basketball Recap – Feb. 15
Charleston 69, N.C. A&T 59
Box Score
Deywilk Tavarez sank four treys and posted an 8-for-12 showing at the line for a team-best 20 points in Charleston’s 69-59 victory over N.C. A&T (5-22, 1-13 CAA). AJ Smith also added 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the floor. CJ Fulton registered 11 assists in the win, while Justas Stonkus rounded out those in double figures with 10 points.
Charleston (20-7, 10-4 CAA) jumped out to a 12-6 lead following three consecutive makes by Tavarez at the charity stripe to close the run at 13:57. The Aggies pulled to within one following a jumper from Nikolaos Chitikoudis, but the Cougars turned it on with a trey from Derrin Boyd to spark a 9-0 run for a double-digit lead, 28-18, with 5:06 remaining in the first. Charleston maintained an 11-point lead at the break, 40-29, after a Brzovic finish at the rim. AJ Smith pushed the Cougars lead to as many as 14 after scoring eight straight points for the visiting team. Chitikoudis fired off six straight points to slash the Aggies’ deficit down to as few as nine. However, Tavarez knocked down a trey on three consecutive possessions before a CJ Fulton triple put the Cougars back up by 16, 66-50, with under six minutes to play. Jahnathan Lamothe, who finished with a game-high 21 points and 10 rebounds, cut the deficit back down to 10 before the final horn, scoring five of the team’s final nine points. Chitikoudis chipped in 19 points of his own to go with 11 rebounds.
Hampton 67, Hofstra 49
Box Score
Wayne Bristol Jr. drained four of his six makes from behind the arc en route to a 16-point effort with eight boards and three steals in Hampton’s 67-49 win over Hofstra (12-15, 4-10 CAA). Noah Farrakhan and George Beale Jr. added 14 and 11 points apiece.
After both teams went over three minutes without a field goal, Hampton (14-13, 6-8 CAA) jumped out to an eight-point lead, 14-6, after Wayne Bristol Jr. scored the final five points of an 11-2 run at 11:49. The Pirates doubled its advantage, 26-11, as Farrakhan orchestrated a 12-2 stretch as his six points were balanced by treys from Etienne Strothers and Bristol. George Beale Jr. put Hampton ahead 35-16 at the break with the team’s fifth triple of the half. Hofstra cut into Pirates’ lead to open the second stanza as Cruz Davis closed out a 12-4 spurt to pull within 11, 39-28, with 15:46 to play. It was all Hampton from that point, conducting a 20-8 stretch to make it a 23-point game, 59-36, with 5:18 to play. Hofstra outscored the Pirates 10-4 in the final 2:40 with Jaquan Sanders scoring six of his team-best 12 points during that stretch. Jean Aranguren also chipped in 10 points for the Pride.
Towson 80, Monmouth 54
Box Score
Four players in double figures helped extend Towson’s winning streak to 12 games with an 80-54 victory over Monmouth (9-18, 7-7 CAA). The Tigers (18-9, 13-1 CAA) joined elite company with their win on Saturday, becoming just the third team in league history to win 12 or more consecutive conference games in a single season. Towson joins 2010-11 George Mason (14) and 2011-12 Drexel (16). Tyler Tejada scored a team-high 15 points, while Nendah Tarke chipped in 14 points. Christian May and Dylan Williamson both knocked down a trio of 3-pointers en route to 13-point efforts.
After seeing three lead changes, Towson surged with a 19-6 run capped off by back-to-back treys from Christian May and Dylan Williamson to claim a 23-11 lead at 10:51. May also closed out the stretch of five straight triples with another make from deep to put the Tigers ahead by 17 with under five minutes to play in the first half. Towson saw its lead grow to as many as 21 before Monmouth’s Aric Demings pulled up for a jumper that slashed the deficit to 39-20 heading into the break. The two teams exchanged buckets to open the second half before Tarke and Williamson led a 12-3 Towson run to take a 59-31 advantage. The Tigers drained 10 triples in the win while holding Hawks to just three in total, including the nation’s leader in treys, Abdi Bashir Jr., to just one made 3-pointer. Towson secured the 80-54 victory without allowing any Monmouth player to reach double figures in scoring.
William & Mary 72, Drexel 59
Box Score
William & Mary (16-11, 10-4 CAA) remained unbeaten at home with a 12-0 mark after earning a 72-59 victory over Drexel (13-14, 5-9 CAA). It marks the longest home winning streak in a single season since Drexel won 13 consecutive games from Nov. 17, 2023-March 2, 2024. Matteus Case shined with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting, while Gabe Dorsey went 5-of-8 from distance with seven boards.
The Tribe scored the first six points before a flurry of treys from Drexel’s Yame Drake, Kobe MaGee and Shane Blakeney put the Dragons ahead, 11-8, with 13:30 to play. After four ties, Drexel eventually went up by as many as six after another MaGee triple, only to take a five-point lead, 43-38, into the break. William & Mary matched the Dragons with seven made treys through the first 20 minutes. The Tribe tied the game at 43 as Case finished at the rim and Gabe Dorsey drained a 3-pointer less than two minutes into the second frame. After the Dragons went back up by six, William & Mary retailed with an 11-2 run capped off by a Caleb Dorsey trey with 9:33 remaining in regulation. The Tribe surged down the stretch, outscoring Drexel 15-2 over the final 6:47 to secure the 13-point win. Blakeney paced Drexel with 15 points, while Butler and Jason Drake rounded out those in double figures with 14 and 11 points, respectively.
Campbell 96, Delaware 91
Box Score
Colby Duggan scored 23 of his career-high 33 points in the second half to erase a 12-point deficit and help Campbell (15-12, 10-4 CAA) to a 96-91 victory over Delaware (12-15, 5-9 CAA). The sharpshooting guard went 12-of-18 from the floor with a perfect 4-for-4 showing from distance to with six boards and two blocks. Tasos Cook also produced a career-high scoring total with 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting. The Camels shot 22-of-24 from the charity stripe, while posting 59.6 percent (34-57 FG) from the field and 54.5 percent (6-11 3FG) from distance.
After 10 lead changes in the first 10:20 of the game, the 11th change put Delaware ahead by nine, 36-27, as the Blue Hens’ Cavan Reilly sank a trey to cap off a 12-2 run. After a retaliatory trey from Reilly again, John Camden and Macon Emory went back-to-back from distance to claim a 10-point lead before intermission. Nolan Dorsey knocked down a pair of free throws for the final points of the half and pulled Campbell within eight, 46-38, at the break. With the Blue Hens leading by as many as 12 at the 15:27 mark of the second half, the Camels caught fire over the next six minutes. Colby Duggan scored 11 straight points on Campbell’s 23-6 run to eventually take a five-point lead, 72-67. The Camels grew its lead to as many as double digits as Cook drained a jumper at 4:17 to take an 87-77 lead. Delaware did not go quietly as Erik Timko and Reilly combined for a trio of consecutive makes from deep before Izaiah Pasha brought the Hens to within four, 89-85, with 2:38 to play. The Camels capitalized down the stretch to hold on for the five-point win. Reilly led Delaware with 24 points, while Timko and Pasha chipped in 18 and 17 points apiece. The Blue Hens shot 65.5 percent from the floor (36-55 FG) with 13 treys.
Elon 81, UNCW 70
Box Score
TK Simpkins went off for 32 points on 11-of-15 shooting from the floor and 8-for-10 from distance to help Elon snap UNCW’s nine-game winning streak with an 81-70 victory. TJ Simpkins added 13 points, four boards and four assists, while Isaac Harrell and Sam Sherry chipped in 11 and 10 points apiece.
Elon came out firing on all cylinders, knocking down six of its first seven shots, including four 3-pointers evenly split between the Simpkins brothers to take a 16-7 lead with 15:25 remaining in the first. The Phoenix’s Harrell continued to light it up from distance with back-to-back treys before a 6-0 spurt as the visiting team took a 12-point advantage, 28-16, at the midway point. UNCW’s Greedy Williams and Sean Moore fought back with a 9-1 run to bring the Seahawks within four, 29-25, with 7:33 remaining. Elon had an answer for Moore down the stretch as the guard scored 10 points in the final 5:22 of the half. TK Simpkins hit a triple with 25 seconds left in the first half and carried his momentum into the second, putting Elon ahead by double digits, 56-46, after scoring eight of the team’s first 10 points of the frame. Khamari McGriff scored five straight points before a Bo Montgomery triple slashed the UNCW deficit to four, 58-54, with under 11 minutes to play. The Seahawks pulled to within one as Noah Ross hit a trey with 6:54 remaining. However, Elon stifled UNCW’s chances with a pair of triples from Ben Crump and TK Simpkins before holding on for an 11-point victory. UNCW’s Moore finished with 28 points, sinking five of his 10 makes coming from beyond the arc to go with eight rebounds. Hodge notched 18 points for the Seahawks.
Northeastern 71, Stony Brook 60
Box Score
Rashad King shined with 25 points on 10-of-18 shooting to go with eight boards and four assists as Northeastern (15-12, 7-7 CAA) earned a 71-60 victory over Stony Brook (6-21, 2-12 CAA). Harold Woods added 16 points, seven boards and five assists, while JB Frankel drained four treys en route to a 12-point showing.
Neither team had a lead greater than five until Rashad King finished off a 15-5 run with a jumper to take a 21-14 lead with 8:51 remaining. Northeastern surged as Frankel knocked down a pair of triples before William Kermoury finished off the 18-7 stretch with a trey of his own to claim a 16-point lead, 39-23, at the break. King scored the first five points of the second half for Northeastern before a Frankel 3-pointer capped off an 11-2 spurt for a 50-28 lead with 15:35 to play. LA Pratt and King rattled off three straight treys shortly after to claim a 29-point advantage with 11:42 to play. Stony Brook leaned on Andre Snoddy and Collin O’Connor to try and make a comeback as the duo combined to score 23 points down the stretch, part of a 28-10 run to end the game before the Huskies secured the 11-point win. Snoddy finished with 20 points, 15 boards and four assists on Saturday. O’Connor chipped in 12 points and registered his sixth-straight game with a full 40 minutes played.