NCAA News Wire
North Carolina State 76, Hofstra 64
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
North Carolina State broke out to a 19-5 lead and never looked back in knocking off Hofstra 76-64 on Monday in Raleigh, N.C.
The Pride (1-1), coming off a 33-point win over Jacksonville in the season opener, had a nightmare of a first half, shooting 32.3 percent from the field and turning the ball over 10 times. The Wolfpack (2-0) led by as many as 18 in the half, and were up 49-25 at the break.
The second half was a different story. After trailing by 19 early on, Hofstra came back to get within eight on guard Dion Nesmith’s three-pointer with 10:48 to play, forcing the Wolfpack to call timeout.
But N.C. State responded with a 7-0 run over the next 2:55, and kept the margin at double digits the rest of the way. Hofstra would make just one shot from the field in a 6:15 stretch where it was outscored 13-3. That gave N.C. State a 70-56 lead and the game was effectively over.
Guard Juan’ya Green led the Pride with 19 points. Guard Aheem Tanksley finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Nesmith had 13 points as well. Hofstra finished just 21-for-68 from the field (30.9 percent), and also missed eight free throws.
The Wolfpack were led by guard Ralston Turner’s 24 points. Guard Trevor Lacey added 16 points, and guard Anthony Barber 15.
