Omar Silverio, Jalen Ray, Kvonn Cramer help Hofstra click in win over William & Mary

Hofstra coach Speedy Claxton was asked what winning 20 games in his first season as a head coach meant to him.

He grinned — and his response surprised exactly no one.

"We still got more work to do," Claxton said after Hofstra’s 83-67 win over William & Mary at the David S. Mack Sports & Exhibition Complex on Saturday afternoon.

The Pride improved to 20-10 overall and 12-5 in the Colonial Athletic Association.

"Twenty is nice," Claxton said, "but 21, 22 will be better."

Omar Silverio scored 20 points, Jalen Ray 19 and Darlinstone Dubar 12 for Hofstra. Aaron Estrada added 11 points, 10 rebounds, five steals and three assists for the Pride, who are locked into the third seed in the upcoming CAA Tournament.

Hofstra, which will host Charleston on Monday night, will meet the Cougars again in the quarterfinal round on March 6 in Washington.

"We have to come to play no matter who we play against," Claxton said.

In theory, William & Mary was as close to a perfect opponent as possible for a team coming off an 81-55 loss to Elon. William & Mary (5-26, 4-14) entered the game having lost eight straight, including a 62-28 decimation at the hands of Northeastern on Thursday night.

It took a half, but the reality matched the thesis. Somewhat.

The Pride outscored William & Mary 19-7 in the first 9:03 of the second half to turn a 41-31 lead into a 60-38 advantage. During the stretch, reserve Kvonn Cramer scored eight points, six on highlight-reel dunks.

"He’s gifted," Ray said. "He’s very athletic."

William & Mary, which beat Hofstra, 63-62, on Dec. 29, twice cut the deficit to 12 but was outscored 8-4 in the final 2:25.

"We definitely want to make the effort to come and play the right way," Claxton said. "I think we did."

The Pride shot only 11-for-32 (34%) in the first half but led 41-31 at the break partly because they were 12-for-13 at the free-throw line (they were third in the NCAA with an .802 free-throw percentage coming in).

Silverio scored all 20 of his points in the first 20 minutes.

"When Omar’s hitting, it really changed the look of our team," said Claxton, who added that Hofstra was "always a pretty decent free-throw shooting team, so I don’t see that changing."

Before the game, Silverio, Ray, Zach Cooks and Jarrod Simmons were feted by the school during the senior day ceremony, and the four — along with Estrada — were in the starting lineup.

"My first senior day as a head coach," Claxton said. "I’m glad to be part [of it]."