A late dry spell hindered a double-digit comeback attempt from the Stony Brook women’s basketball team.
After a rough loss in their last outing, the Seawolves (3-3) began a two-game homestand against the Harvard Crimson (8-1) on Wednesday afternoon at Stony Brook Arena with just seven personnel at their disposal. While it competed on both ends of the court, a season-high 24 turnovers was Stony Brook’s Achilles heel in a 60-51 defeat.
“It’s a possessions game,” head coach Joy McCorvey said in a postgame press conference. “We talked about giving ourselves an opportunity to get a shot, maybe give ourselves a second- or third-chance opportunity. We definitely can’t give them easy points because of our turnovers.”
Similarly to their last outing, the Seawolves held the edge in the first period, stemming from consecutive three-pointers to open the contest from guard Zaida Gonzalez and forward Shamarla King. After a tough runner followed by a layup from Chloe Oliver, Stony Brook held a 16-11 advantage after the first quarter.
The momentum continued for the hosts in the second period, as a jumpshot by forward Elizabeth Field gave the Seawolves their biggest lead of the game at nine points. However, it took the Crimson less than two minutes to flip the contest on its head.
After Field’s make, Harvard guard Saniyah Glenn-Bello responded with a three. On Stony Brook’s ensuing possession, Harvard guard Harmoni Turner picked guard Janay Brantley’s pockets to set up Glenn-Bello for another make from beyond the arch.
With the score now at 20-17, Harvard guard Elena Rodriguez made a layup to cut her team’s deficit to two. Following a Seawolves timeout, a turnover from Oliver culminated in a three-pointer from Turner on the other side which gave the Crimson their first advantage of the game.
Gritty finishes in the paint from guard Breauna Ware and Brantley kept Stony Brook in the thick of things, but Harvard did not let up. The finishing touches on the second frame came on a buzzer-beating three from Harvard guard Alayna Rocco for a 33-25 Crimson lead going into the halftime break.
Kicking off the third period, Harvard’s foot was still on the gas, and, following a make from beyond the arch from forward Katie Krupa, it grew its advantage to double digits with 6:08 remaining in the frame. Gonzalez and Brantley answered with threes of their own, but several Seawolves turnovers kept them at bay.
Still, Stony Brook came out swinging in the fourth quarter. A three-point play from forward Dallysshya Moreno followed by a Ware layup put the exclamation point on a 12-0 to begin the period, giving the Seawolves a 48-44 lead.
However, Ware’s basket — coming with 6:04 left in the contest — was Stony Brook’s last field goal of the game.
The Crimson upped their intensity defensively, forcing critical turnovers and snapping the Seawolves’ offensive rhythm. Stony Brook was unable to recover from an ensuing 8-1 Harvard run en route to its second straight loss.
“Harvard’s a really good team,” McCorvey said. “I’m not about moral victories, and obviously we lost the game, but I’m proud of how hard we fought with limited players.”
The Seawolves mailed in a respectable offensive posting with a .404/.278/.571 shooting line compared to Harvard’s .350/.375/.900 slashline.
Although Stony Brook outrebounded the visitors 43-26, the Crimson only committed eight turnovers compared to the aforementioned 24 giveaways by the Seawolves. Eight different players on Harvard logged a steal.
Gonzalez and Ware were Stony Brook’s only double-digit scorers with 13 and 11 points, respectively. The former shot three-for-11 from the field, while the latter went five-for-nine.
Moreno led the team with 12 rebounds.
Reeling from back-to-back defeats, the Seawolves will stay home to face the Fordham Rams on Sunday at Stony Brook Arena. The Rams are also 3-3 this season after a 90-51 win over Siena. Opening tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.
