By Jordan Walsh
HEMPSTEAD, NY — Coming off of their first conference road win of the season, the Northeastern Huskies (12-8) floundered on the offensive end as they fell to the Hofstra Pride (5-12) by a final score of 56-43.
The Huskies tied their season low in points (also netting 43 against Harvard in December) in a game that saw them score just 10 points in the second and third quarters combined.
The contest at the Mack Sports Complex on Long Island was the second meeting of the season between the two teams. Northeastern hosted the Pride last month and won by double digits against a Hofstra team that had not played in more than four weeks due to COVID-19-related cancellations.
The Pride squad the Huskies faced on Sunday afternoon was much more energetic and determined, especially on defense. Northeastern had trouble moving the ball around, with Hofstra forcing their way into passing lanes and getting deflections.
Northeastern head coach Bridgette Mitchell emphasized her team’s efforts to “own the paint” after their previous game, a win at James Madison, but the Huskies were outscored 24-12 in the key against Hofstra. Redshirt senior forward Jaylen Hines led the way for a Pride team that used just three players off the bench, scoring 18 points and grabbing 15 rebounds, earning her third double-double of the season.
It was apparent that turnovers would be an issue for Northeastern early on in the game, as the Huskies gave the ball away eight times in the first quarter. Initially, they were being bailed out, with Hofstra missing some good looks and scoring only four points off turnovers in the first 10 minutes. On the offensive end, senior guard Kendall Currence was keeping the Huskies in the game, scoring 14 of Northeastern’s 22 first-half points, including the only made shots for her team during a 20-5 extended Hofstra run.
Another bright spot for the Huskies was sophomore forward Leyla Öztürk, who came off the bench and performed well in the limited minutes she played. Öztürk scored all four of Northeastern’s points in the third quarter and played solid interior defense.
The Huskies had relied on Currence in the first half to keep them in the fight, so the team had no answer on offense when she went 0-for-8 from the field in the final 20 minutes. The lowest Northeastern cut the deficit to in the second half was eight points, off a second-chance three from freshman guard Camille Clement. Clement had two three-pointers in four minutes of action, and her six points were a season high.
The Huskies will next take to the court Friday evening at 6 p.m., hosting Delaware at the Cabot Center. WRBB’s Mike Puzzanghera and Jordan Walsh will have the call on Mixlr.