HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – Despite the first 30-point performance of Jason Rivera-Torres' career, the Monmouth University men's basketball team fell at Hofstra University, 67-64 in overtime, on Saturday on Long Island.

The Hawks (8-9, 2-2 CAA) held the Pride to 27 percent shooting, but the Monmouth offense scored just four points in the extra period and saw its two-game winning streak come to an end.

Rivera-Torres scored the first five points for the Hawks, who trailed 8-5 after the opening five minutes. The Monmouth defense kept the Pride to just 1-of-10 shooting over the next six minutes and led 17-12 with 7:54 left in the half. The visitors scored five of the next seven points to open up a 22-14 edge with 3:55 to play. Rivera-Torres was 5-7 from the field and had 14 of Monmouth's 22 points through 16 minutes.

The Hawks maintained their lead and were up 29-24 at the break after holding the Pride to 22.2 percent shooting in the opening 20 minutes.

The Pride came out of the locker room and went on a 14-0 run to retake the lead, 38-32, before an Andrew Ball three-pointer ended the run. The Hawks rallied back to retake the lead, 52-50, thanks to a pair of threes from Ball and Justin Ray with 6:17 left. The Pride scored four in a row as the lead changed hands for the seventh time, putting Hofstra in front by a pair.

Rivera-Torres set his career-best with a pair at the free-throw line and tied the game at 54 with 3:30 to play, but the Pride immediately scored four in a row to go up 58-54 with two minutes on the clock. Three connections from the charity stripe from Rivera-Torres got the Hawks back within a point with 1:12 left, 58-57. Hofstra went back up three, but Dok Muordar finished through contact and completed the three-point play which tied the game at 60 with 50 seconds left. Monmouth had one more shot with the game tied at the end of regulation, but Stefanos Spartalis' floater bounced off the rim and sent the game into the extra period.

Hofstra hit a three on its first possession of overtime, but neither team scored for the next two-plus minutes, until Rivera-Torres connected on a deep two, making it 63-62 midway through the extra session. Free throws represented the remainder of the scoring, with Hofstra outscoring Monmouth 4-2 the rest of the way, and when Jack Collins' half-court heave at the buzzer fell short, the Pride closed out the 67-64 victory.

Quotes
"We are getting better. Its a little frustrating today but I thought we outplayed one of the better teams in the conference. We were guarding them very well but they took advantage of the free throws."

• Monmouth Head Coach King Rice

Notes

• Jason Rivera-Torres scored a career-high 30 points, surpassing his previous best of 21 points. The guard also grabbed nine rebounds and matched his season best with four steals.
• Rivera-Torres has double figures in 11 straight games and leads the Hawks with 16.1 points per game
• Andrew Ball followed up his career-high 18 points against William & Mary on Thursday with 13 points on Saturday against the Pride, scoring in double figures for the third straight game.
• ​​​​​​​Ball hit three three-pointers, tying his career-high.
• ​​​​​​​Jack Collins grabbed eight rebounds for the second straight game, reaching at least six boards for the eighth time this season.
• ​​​​​​​The Hawks held Hofstra to 27 percent shooting, the second time in the last three games a Monmouth opponent was held under 30 percent from the floor.
• ​​​​​​​Hofstra shot 22.2 percent from the floor in the first half, the lowest by a Monmouth opponent in a half this season.
• ​​​​​​​Collins started the 112th game of his Monmouth career, moving into a sole possession of sixth place on the program's all-time starts list

Up Next

• Monmouth will return home on Thursday to host Drexel. Tipoff from the OceanFirst Bank Center is set for 7 p.m.