WASHINGTON, D.C. – Charleston Basketball stormed past Hofstra in emphatic fashion, 92-76, as coach Pat Kelsey made his postseason debut at The College in style. The Cougars advanced to the semifinals of the CAA Tournament for the first time since 2019, upending the Pride behind 55 percent shooting and nine triples. The Cougars scored a CAA Tournament-record 55 first-half points and staved off a Hofstra run in the second half to cement their spot in the semifinals.
 
Senior John Meeks had his best game in a CofC uniform, captaining the Cougars with a season-high 31 points, one shy of his career-high. That marked the most points by a CofC player all season as Meeks shot 11-of-16 overall, 4-of-5 from deep and a perfect 5-of-5 from the foul to dominate from start to finish.
 
Freshman Raekwon Horton made his first career start and finished with 13 points and eight boards in 25 minutes. Junior Brenden Tucker added 12 points, four boards and four assists, coming up clutch in the second half with key buckets to thwart a Hofstra comeback.
 
CofC never trailed and led for nearly 39 minutes of action. Charleston jumped ahead quick 7-0 with Meeks setting the tone, draining a deep contested trey. The Cougars' offense poured it on the first half, shooting 63 percent from the field with Meeks scoring 22 of his 31 in a torrid opening 20 minutes. CofC buried seven first-half treys to take a 55-33 advantage into halftime.
 
Hofstra caught fire in the second half, hitting 11 of its first 16 field goals in the final frame, including seven trifectas. The Pride sliced the deficit all the way down to seven before a personal 6-0 from Tucker helped CofC stop the bleeding and extend the lead back to double digits. After a hustle play from Meeks led to a Smith trey, Charleston closed the door with a game-clinching sequence.
                                                                                                                                                                  
Key Cougars

• Meeks scored his most points in a CofC uniform, reaching the 31-point mark for the fourth time in his career.
• Raekwon Horton made his first career start and finished with 13 points on 5-of-7 FGs and eight rebounds.
• Junior Brenden Tucker scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half.
• Senior Osinachi Smart tallied eight points on 4-of-5 shooting and five boards.

 
Game Notes

• Sunday marked the largest margin of victory by a CofC squad in a CAA Tournament game in program history.
• CofC shot 15-of-19 from the foul line, making 30 of its last 38 attempts.
• CofC set a CAA-Tournament record for points in a half with 55 in the first half, its most since the season opener vs. South Carolina State,
• Meeks' 31 points marked the most by a Cougar since Zep Jasper on Feb. 20, 2021.

 
 
Up Next
Charleston advances to the semifinals of the CAA Tournament to take on No. 2 seed UNCW on Monday night at the Entertainment & Sports Arena. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.