Feb. 5, 2012
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. Jackie Cook hit a layup with 2.7 seconds left and Andreana Thomas's last second three-point shot was off as Old Dominion University women's basketball defeated Hofstra 81-79 Sunday afternoon at the Mack Sports Complex.
With time running out Ashley Betz-White drove the lane and dished off to Cook who banked in a layup for the game-winner.
With the win, ODU improved to 8-15 overall and 5-6 in CAA play while Hofstra falls to 16-6 overall and 8-3 in conference action.
Old Dominion led by as many as 18 points midway through the second half, but Hofstra battled back to tie the score at 79 with 27 seconds left on a foul shot from Deven Green that led to Cook's game-winner.
The Pride closed the gap to one with an 8-0 run with 1:48 to play as Andreana Thomas hit a jumper and then a layup to make the score 77-76. Tia Lewis gave ODU back its three-point lead with a jumper off the right elbow.
Hofstra closed the gap to under double-digits for the first time since the 4:29 mark of the first half with a 9-0 run to cut the lead to 73-66 with seven minutes to play. Buchan broke the run with a pair of foul shots to push the lead back to nine.
The Lady Monarchs started out fast as well to start the second half, pushing the lead to 18 at 57-39 with a basket by Buchan.
ODU got jump started early as Buchan was hot from beyond the arc, nailing three treys in the first four minutes to push ODU to an 15-8 lead.
The Lady Monarchs stayed on the attack, stepping on the gas with a 21-3 run to push the lead to 28-11 at the 11 minute mark. The stretched was aided with Buchan's three as well as four points from Lewis and five points from Betz-White.
Hofstra battled back to cut the to 33-23 with a 10-3 spurt but ODU pushed the lead back to 16 and ended the half on an 11-2 run, spurred by Becca Allison and Myeisha Hall. Hall added a layup with three seconds left in the half to give ODU an 48-32 halftime lead. ODU held Hofstra to just 30.3 percent shooting from the floor in the first half.
Buchan was on fire early, scoring 14 of her game-high 20 points in the first seven minutes of the contest. Lewis notched her third-straight double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds while Cook added 15 points. Betz-White chipped in 11 points and added five assists with two steals.
Old Dominion shot 48.3 percent from the floor and 72 percent from three-point range. The Lady Monarchs finished the game with 21 assists, the third highest total of the season. JoNiquia Guilford led the team with six assists and also chipped in with seven points and two steals.
Shante Evans led the Pride with a game-high 31 points and 10 rebounds. Nicole Capurso had 19 while Marie Malone chipped in 10.
ODU continues its road trip with a Thursday night contest at Delware that tips at 7 p.m.