UNCW men beat Hofstra, women split weekend contests
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WWAY) — It was a three-day stretch mostly filled with winning for UNCW basketball, but a bittersweet one in some aspects.
The men took down Hofstra 70-66 on Saturday, their third win over a six day span. While busy, it was successful for Head Coach Takayo Siddle, who is already looking ahead towards their next contest rather than dwindle on the week prior.
“We didn’t even talk about having three games this week,” Siddle said. “We were just trying to be one-percenters and be great at the next thing. Is it a boost? It can be if we handle it the right way. Can it zap you and you can have a letdown game next week? If you don’t handle it the right way, you will.”
(Photo: Colton Emswiler/WWAY)
It was not a simple game for the Seahawks, who trailed the Pride by nine in the 2nd half. On top of that, they struggled with three-point shots and foul trouble. Despite it all, the number one team in the CAA standings took down the number two and three squads over a short period of time.
“We got a really mature group,” senior Noah Ross said. “Guys who’ve played a lot of games in college, a lot of tight games. I think down the stretch, that along with our chemistry and how connected we are is what really gets us over the hump sometimes.”
The women on the other hand had a weekend of mixed emotions.
After snapping a ten-game losing streak on Friday, the Seahawks dropped Sunday’s contest to Campbell 54-52.
(Photo: Colton Emswiler/WWAY)
UNCW led by double-digits in the 2nd quarter before the Camels managed to take the lead in the final minute, which was the last thing Head Coach Nicole Woods needed to see.
“The wind has been knocked out of my sail for a lot of reasons,” Woods said. “If you watch us practice and you are around us, you would never know what our record is or feel like we’re defeated. This is the second time that we lost to Campbell, which I think they’re third place in the conference, and the game could have went either way. We’re going to see if we can find some more players somewhere, but we’re going to keep plugging away.”
(Photo: Colton Emswiler/WWAY)
Woods confirmed after the game that leading scorer Rori Cox suffered a torn Achilles with less than three minutes to go in Sunday’s game. That leaves the team with just six healthy players who suited up in that contest.
