RICHMOND, Va. – Sophomore guard Charles Jenkins continued his sparkling play against UNC Wilmington with a game-high 27 points and sophomore forward Greg Washington added 14 points off the bench as fifth-seeded Hofstra eliminated the 12^th-seeded Seahawks, 79-66, in an opening round game of the Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Tournament Friday at the Richmond Coliseum.

      The Pride (21-10, 12-7) led wire-to-wire to down the Seahawks for the third time this season behind 52.7 percent shooting and a 43-30 rebounding advantage. The Seahawks (7-25, 3-16) wrapped up their third season under Benny Moss with their third consecutive loss.

      Jenkins, who scored 33 and 35 points against UNCW during two regular season contests, went 9-for-16 from the floor and added a perfect 8-for-8 at the free throw line for his total. Washington, meanwhile, went 7-for-9 from the field and added 12 rebounds for a double-double, junior guard Cornelius Vines chipped in 13 points and sophomore guard Nathaniel Lester had 10.

      Junior guard Johnny Wolf poured in 22 points to lead three Seahawks in double figures. Junior guard Montez Downey scored 14 points and sophomore playmaker Chad Tomko had 10 points for UNCW, which shot a chilly 31.6 percent from the field.

      UNCW trailed 39-29 at halftime and had opportunities to close the gap early in the second half, but untimely turnovers proved costly for the Seahawks.

      After sophomore forward Dominique Lacy converted a pair of free throws to pull the Seahawks within 41-35 with 17:29 remaining, the Pride reeled off eight straight points to push the margin back to 49-35.

      The Seahawks forced five turnovers in the opening minutes of the second half, but couldn’t capitalize as the Pride regrouped behind Jenkins and Washington. Jenkins scored six points in the 8-0 run and Washington added a jumper on the right baseline in the spurt.

      Hofstra maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the second half, connecting on 13-for-25 field goals in the final 20 minutes. The Pride picked up their first CAA Tournament victory against UNCW in three tries.

      In the first half, Hofstra was clinging to a 17-13 edge before piecing together a 12-0 run that provided some separation. After Daniel Mercer’s layup cut the lead to four points at 11:15, Jenkins drained a 3-pointer from the right wing to get the Pride going and a trey by Vines capped the run, pushing the Hofstra lead to 29-13.

      The Pride took a 10-point lead into halftime after holding the Seahawks to 27.6 percent shooting and hitting 53.3 percent from the floor.

      Game Notes: UNCW committed just eight turnovers...The Seahawks went 23-for-29 at the free throw line...Both teams made seven triples...UNCW had only five assists on its 18 baskets...Junior guard Johnny Wolf went a perfect 9-for-9 at the charity stripe...Hofstra’s bench outscored UNCW’s, 37-13...Charles Jenkins added nine assists to go along with his 27 points and four rebounds...Jenkins played all 40 minutes.