Despite leading late in the game, the Stony Brook men’s basketball team could not close things out, extending its losing streak to three.
In a true David versus Goliath matchup, the underdog could not get it done, as the Seawolves (5-19, 1-10 CAA) fell to the Towson Tigers (15-9, 10-1 CAA) on Thursday night at Stony Brook Arena. The Coastal Athletic Association’s best narrowly came out on top against the second-to-worst team in the conference — Stony Brook — in 66-59 fashion.
The Tigers started strong in the opening minutes of the contest, holding a five-point lead over the Seawolves courtesy of hot shooting from beyond the arch. Guards Christian May, Dylan Williamson and forward Tyler Tejada all drilled three-pointers en route to their team jumping out to a 13-8 advantage.
Towson continued to build its lead thereafter thanks to strong attacks in the paint, resulting in a layup and two trips to the charity stripe. However, once the visitors were up 17-8, the affair’s dynamic changed.
Following a highlight-reel dunk from guard Sabry Philip, Stony Brook woke up. Contributions from guard C.J. Luster II alongside forwards Andre Snoddy and Ben Wight allowed it to chip into the deficit. With 6:49 remaining in the first half, Luster II knocked down a three to make it just a two-point game at 24-22. On the Seawolves’ ensuing possession following a miss from deep by Tejada, Wight converted a jumpshot to tie things up.
Stony Brook continued to shine down the stretch, particularly on the offensive end. Following Wight’s bucket, it finished the period shooting 4-for-7 from the field en route to a 33-32 advantage at the break. The Seawolves also tightened up defensively, forcing several misses from the Tigers.
“[Towson] had a couple of guys that, percentage-wise, don’t make a lot of threes, that made some,” head coach Geno Ford said in a postgame press conference. “That always hurts. Because you have to give up something. Towson’s a ‘Pound the lane, get it inside.’ In the first game, they had most of their success driving us.”
Coming out for the second frame, the Tigers were determined to regain their lead and retain their status as the conference’s top dog. Williamson headed that charge, dropping eight points in nearly five minutes to open the half, helping his team to a 42-37 advantage.
Nonetheless, Snoddy and Wight continued to respond to Towson’s brilliant shotmaking from the perimeter with work inside the paint. The tandem combined for the Seawolves’ next eight points. Stony Brook also held the Tigers without a point for just over three minutes following Williamson’s hot stretch.
“Coach said in the beginning of the game and after the game that we have to find our identity,” Snoddy said. “We knew coming in that Towson was a very physical team and they wanted to play hard and tough. The main focus was to be gritty, match their intensity, match their energy. Be very physical with them.”
After a layup by forward Nick Woodard to complement Snoddy and Wight’s efficient play, the Seawolves led 47-42. However, they struggled against the best defensive team in the league from there.
Towson’s adjustments resulted in more bodies being thrown in the paint, forcing Stony Brook to either shoot the ball from the perimeter — an area from which it has struggled this season, ranking 12th in the CAA in team field goal percentage — or attempt to force the ball inside, resulting in turnovers.
Conversely, the Tigers figured it out offensively, relying on their stars to carry them down in the closing minutes. Guard Nendah Tarke served as Towson’s closer, putting up seven points in the final 7:20 to lead his squad to victory.
The Seawolves registered a .424/.143/.667 shooting line with 16 turnovers. Contrarily, the Tigers posted a .355/.310/.867 triple slash along with just four giveaways.
“Our bad offense is what got us beat,” Ford said. “They shot 35 percent, that’s a good number. The game was lost, we ha[d] 16 turnovers, they ha[d] four. They pressed us a half-dozen times. We had no turnovers against the press. So all of our turnovers were after we got it across halfcourt. We are blessed with a ton of guys [who] can put it on the deck and go get in the paint. There’s going to be some difficulty running an offense because they’re able to pressure you so hard because you’re not able to knife by them and go score it easily.”
Stony Brook won the battle on the glass 45-32.
Guard Joe Octave was not in the lineup for a fourth consecutive contest, as he is dealing with a lower-body injury.
Snoddy finished with 18 points on 9-of-11 shooting and also brought down 10 rebounds. Wight posted 16 points on 7-for-10 efficiency. Luster II was the Seawolves’ only other double-digit scorer but struggled shooting the ball. He finished with 14 points on 4-of-15 shooting, including 2-for-8 from downtown.
Williamson led Towson with 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting. Off the bench, Tarke put up 16 points on 5-for-12 efficiency.
The Seawolves’ next game is this campaign’s first edition of the Battle of Long Island. Stony Brook will visit the Hofstra Pride in Hempstead on Saturday. Its rivals are 12-12 overall and 4-7 in conference play following a 77-68 loss to Northeastern. Opening tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.
