The calendar may have just recently turned to December, but the Hofstra Men's Basketball team is already preparing for its conference opener when it hosts Delaware on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Hofstra Arena.
The Pride comes into the weekend with a solid 3-1 record on the season, after picking up a pair of wins earlier this week. Hofstra defeated St. John's 64-51 on Tuesday, its third straight win over the Red Storm and fourth in the last six meetings. Hofstra then avoided a potential letdown when it hosted Binghamton on Thursday and came away with a 69-55 win.
The Pride's defense has been the big story this week, as it held both opponents to less than 35 percent shooting from the floor. In the second half against St. John's, Hofstra held the Red Storm to only 11 points, the fewest it has allowed in a half during the 20 years of the shot clock era. The previous low had been only 15 points, which was accomplished three times, most recently in the first half against Vermont in 1999-2000. St. John's shot only 3-24 from three-point territory, while Binghamton managed to shoot just 5-24 from beyond the arc on Thursday.
Offensively, Hofstra's three-man backcourt has predictably carried most of the load in the early part of the season. Junior guard Carlos Rivera (San German, PR - pictured) has been in double figures in scoring in all four games and is averaging 12.3 points and 4.0 assists per contest. Rivera had a solid floor game in the Binghamton win, tallying 13 points, a career-high seven assists and only one turnover. Rivera also scored his 13 points without making a three-pointer, which is typically his specialty.
Sophomore guard Antoine Agudio (Huntington Station, NY) leads Hofstra in scoring at 15.0 points per game after tallying 19 in the Binghamton win (and 16 against St. John's). Junior guard Loren Stokes (Buffalo, NY) is also in double figures at 11.5 points per game, including a 19-point, eight-rebound, five-assist effort in the St. John's win. Stokes needs just 31 more points to become the 26th member of the Hofstra 1000-point club, and has a chance to score 2,000 points by the end of his senior season next year if he stays healthy.
Senior forward Adrian Uter (Queens, NY) has also been a key part of the Pride's success this season. Uter, who is coming off a double-double in the Binghamton win with 12 points and 10 rebounds, has provided the inside presence to balance the Hofstra perimeter attack. He is averaging 8.8 points and 8.0 rebounds, but his presence in the St. John's game was particularly vital to the Pride's success. With Uter on the floor, the Pride outscored St. John's 55-25, while the Red Storm outscored Hofstra 26-9 with Uter on the bench.
Hofstra and Delaware are long-time rivals from their days in the America East Conference. Delaware, in fact, handed the Pride its first ever loss at Hofstra Arena on November 30, 2000 in an America East game. Hofstra later got revenge by winning at Delaware and taking the rubber game at Hofstra Arena in the America East Championship. Hofstra has defeated the Blue Hens the last five times the teams have met at Hofstra Arena, including all four as members of the Colonial Athletic Association. The Pride also swept the home-and-home from Delaware last year and has won the last three meetings (and five of the last six) overall.
The Hofstra-Delaware game on Saturday will be televised live in the Metropolitan New York area on Fox Sports New York.
