HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – William & Mary shot a season-high 62.5% from the floor, turned in a strong defensive effort and used a balanced attack to win a no-doubter, 88-61, at Hofstra on Thursday night. The Tribe picked up the second-largest margin of victory on the road in the program's 35 years in the Colonial Athletic Association and improved to 2-0 in league play. In the process, W&M won its nation-leading sixth road game and halted the Pride's five-game win streak.
 
The Tribe (10-5, 2-0 CAA) scored the game's first seven points and never looked back, leading from start to finish and 39:22 overall. The Green and Gold hit nine of its first 11 shots from the floor offensively, and on the other end, put the clamps on the CAA's top-scoring team in Hofstra (11-5, 2-1 CAA). The Pride, who entered the game averaging 77.4 points per game, missed 14-straight shots at one point in the opening half and finished at just 21.4% shooting in the opening 20 minutes. For the game, W&M limited Hofstra to 34.3% from the field, including just 4-of-25 from 3-point range.
 
Senior Andy Van Vliet led a balanced attack that featured eight players scoring at least six points on the evening. The 7-footer finished with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range. Senior Nathan Knight posted his nation-leading 11th double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds. He was a perfect 7-of-7 from the floor marking the 12th time a Tribe player hit all seven of his field-goal attempts in a game.
 
Junior Luke Loewe was 6-of-7 from the floor to finish with 12 points, while graduate students Bryce Barnes and Tyler Hamilton both notched nine. Sophomore Quinn Blair led the Tribe reserves with eight points. The Tribe led by 22 at the half and the margin never dipped below 20 in the final 20 minutes, reaching its climax at 34 points with 5:17 remaining.
 
How It Happened
- The Tribe scored the game's first seven points as Nathan Knight found Andy Van Vliet for a corner 3-pointer to force a Hofstra timeout less than two minutes into the contest.
- Eli Pemberton, who led HU with 15 points on the night, netted five in a row for the Pride, including an old-fashion 3-point play to close to 7-5 with 16:42 remaining.
- Van Vliet scored five in a row to start an 18-1 Tribe run. Defensively, the Green and Gold held the Pride to 0-of-14 from the floor during the seven and half minute stretch.  
- As part of the 18-1 run, six different Tribe players scored during the run and W&M scored 13-straight points to close the run. Tyler Hamilton added four and his free throws extended the Tribe lead to 27-8.
- A Van Vliet 3-pointer at the 7:52 mark pushed the Green and Gold lead to 20 for the first time at 30-10.
- A 7-0 Tribe run extend the margin to 23. Freshman Miguel Ayesa started the spurt with a triple and Van Vliet found sophomore Quinn Blair for a lay-up to give W&M a 39-16 lead at the 3:33 mark. The lead reached its highest of the opening half at 45-21 on a Knight hook shot with 13 seconds remaining.
- W&M used an early 7-0 run in the second half over a 1:11 to push the lead to 29. Sophomore Thornton Scott knocked down a left-wing 3-pointer, before Knight followed up a miss for two to give the Tribe a 57-28 lead and force a Hofstra timeout with 15:23 left.
- Hofstra scored eight in a row to cut the margin to 57-36. Jaylen Ray, who finished with 11 points, scored four during the spurt, including a jumper at the 13:59 mark to close the gap to 21.
- Bryce Barnes drove the left side of the lane, got the lay-up and was fouled. His old-fashion 3-point play with 11:11 remaining capped 7-0 run and gave the Green and Gold a 66-38 lead.
- The Tribe advantage ballooned to as much as 34 points with 5:17 remaining. W&M scored nine points in a row, including six-straight from Luke Loewe. Van Vliet's fourth triple of the night ended the run and extended the Tribe cushion to 82-48.
 
Inside the Numbers
- The Tribe shot 64.3% (18-of-28) in the opening half and finished the game at 62.5% (35-of-56), which was a season-high.
- W&M held a 48-30 advantage on points in the paint.
- Defensively, the Green and Gold limited Hofstra to 34.3% (23-of-67) shooting, including just 21.4% (6-of-28) in the first half.
- W&M connected on 11-of-12 (91.7%) from the free-throw line, while Hofstra, which entered the game in the top-20 nationally in free throw %, hit just 11-of-23 (47.8%) at the charity stripe.
- The Tribe held a 25-12 advantage in bench scoring.
 
Notes
Senior Nathan Knight moved into seventh on the Tribe's career scoring list (1777), passing W&M Hall of Famer Thomas Roberts '93 … The 27-point win was the Tribe's largest in CAA play since downing Charleston by 30 during the 2015 season … It marked the Tribe's largest road win since it downed James Madison by 29 on Jan. 14, 1998 … The 27-point margin was the Tribe's second-largest CAA road win in program history … W&M started CAA play 2-0 for the 13th time … The Tribe leads the nation with six road wins … W&M's 62.5% shooting from the floor was the best against a Division I opponent since shooting 63.3% at Savannah State on Dec. 2, 2017 … Graduate student Tyler Hamilton tallied nine points and six rebounds, which were both highs for him in a Tribe uniform … Freshman Thatcher Stone tallied a career-high two steals in five minutes of action of the bench.
 
Up Next
- The Tribe wraps up its three-game CAA-opening road trip at Northeastern on Saturday, Jan. 4. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. from Matthews Arena in Boston.
- The game will be broadcast on FloHoops. All Tribe home games and the program's remaining 16 CAA games will be streamed on FloHoops. A FloHoops subscription is $12.50 per month or $95.88 per year ($7.99 per month) and provides access to 130 CAA men's basketball games, as well as special features.
- Tribe fans can catch the men's basketball action over the William & Mary Sports Network with Jay Colley on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM and 107.9 Bach FM are the flagship stations of the William & Mary Sports Network and the audio is also available over the Web via the Tune-In app.