On the back of heroics by guard C.J. Luster II and forward Andre Snoddy, the Stony Brook men’s basketball team won a shootout over its main rival.

In enemy lines in Hempstead, N.Y., the Seawolves (6-19, 2-10 CAA) took down the Hofstra Pride (12-13, 4-8 CAA) on Saturday. In a game that featured nine lead changes and a combined 53 points from Luster II and Snoddy, Stony Brook relied on clutch shotmaking to carry it to an 80-75 win.

After a 33-31 deficit at halftime, the Seawolves allowed the Pride to expand their lead even further in the first seven minutes of the second period. Hofstra outscored Stony Brook by four during that stretch on the back of depth scoring, as it received contributions from four players.

With the contest in danger of slipping away, and the Seawolves desperately needing to sway the momentum back to their side, Luster II took matters into his own hands. Kicking off a run that brought Stony Brook back into the thick of things, Luster II maneuvered to the far corner and connected on a three-pointer after being found out by Collin O’Connor. He was also fouled during his shooting motion and was sent to the free throw line for a four-point play opportunity, which Luster II converted.

“My teammates put me in the position to make that play,” Luster II said in a postgame interview with The Statesman. “Whenever they are able to make a play for me, I need to make sure I knock down the shot and finish the free throw as well.”

After the teams traded buckets for the ensuing six minutes, Luster II delivered another pivotal shot as the Pride once again looked to pull away. Down 62-55 with 5:47 remaining in the affair, the Seawolves’ marksman nailed a three to pull Stony Brook within four.

Although Hofstra guard Jean Aranguren earned a trip to the charity stripe on the other end, he split his shots, giving the Seawolves a chance to make it a one-possession game. Stony Brook took that opportunity in stride, as forward Ben Wight bottomed a layup.

For the next scene of this back-and-forth game, the Seawolves constantly found their way to the line. After Wight’s bucket and a missed jumpshot by O’Connor, they made three consecutive trips to the stripe. Wight, Luster II — who was once again fouled during an attempt from deep — and Snoddy all had a crack, and combined to be successful, as the trio went 6-for-7. 

Defensively, Stony Brook tightened up during this stretch, forcing four straight misses from the hosts and even a turnover, which led to a fastbreak opportunity where Snoddy was fouled.

However, the Pride broke their cold run in a big way after Snoddy made both free throws, as a dunk by Hofstra forward Michael Graham trimmed the Seawolves’ lead to 66-65. In response, Snoddy — not typically known for his three-point shooting — worked his way open off-ball and swished a wide-open attempt to put Stony Brook up by a pair of possessions for the third time all afternoon; a shot that also gave him 24 points, a career-high.

“I’ve worked tremendously hard to try to expand my game over the summer,” Snoddy said. “Whatever the defense gives me I try to take. I don’t try to do too much and just try to make the right play for us to win in that scenario.”

Down by four in crunch time, the Pride refused to let their rivals off the hook with ease. Wight — one foul away from five and disqualification — roughed Graham as the two battled for a rebound, sending Hofstra’s big man to the stripe. He took full advantage, sinking both free throws to make it a two-point contest with 1:38 left to play. 

On the Seawolves’ ensuing possession, they could not get the ball to their primary ball handler — O’Connor — Luster II or Snoddy courtesy of the Pride’s suffocating man-to-man defense. Therefore, guard Sabry Philip went to work. With the shot clock close to running out, Philip hit a fadeaway jumper from the near elbow to give Stony Brook some breathing room.

Down 71-67 and after a turnover from Hofstra guard Cruz Davis, the Pride resorted to intentionally fouling. The strategy initially proved successful, as Luster II made one of two attempts — which accounted for his only miss from the line of the contest.

The misfire left the door open for Hofstra. Off the inbound, Davis quickly took the ball coast-to-coast and was fouled by O’Connor before making both of his free throws to bring his team back to within a single possession. 

After forward Leon Nahar and Snoddy combined to go 3-for-4 from the stripe on two separate trips — sandwiched by a layup by Davis — the Pride once again handed responsibilities to Davis, who drilled a long-range three to claw Hofstra to just a 75-74 deficit.

With 25 seconds remaining, Luster II sank a pair of charity tosses. After Aranguren was sent to the line himself — but split his trip — Luster II continued to excel from the stripe, as another two points effectively iced the game. 

As a last ditch effort, Davis attempted another deep three but was promptly stuffed by Luster II.

The Seawolves put up a .489/.529/.750 shooting line while turning the ball over 10 times. Conversely, Hofstra registered a .426/.393/.667 triple slash and committed seven giveaways.

Snoddy posted a double-double, with a career-high 27 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field and 13-for-14 from the free throw line alongside 12 rebounds while playing all 40 minutes. He also made both of his attempts from beyond the arc.

Luster II was not far behind, putting up 26 points — his 10th 20-plus point outing of the season — on also 6-of-9 efficiency, including 5-for-7 from deep. He went 9-for-10 from the charity stripe.

“[Luster] made several big shots and Snoddy was just elite,” head coach Geno Ford said. “[Snoddy] was just fantastic and really willed us to that win. There’s a lot that goes into winning and we needed all of it because that was a game that could’ve gone either way in 30 seconds.”

O’Connor and Philip each dropped eight points. 

Guard Joe Octave was out of the lineup for a sixth consecutive time, as he is dealing with a knee injury. Guard Jared Frey also missed the Battle of Long Island; in his case, with an ankle problem.

Davis spearheaded the Pride’s effort with 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting. Aranguren chipped in 17 while Graham picked up the rear with 13.

The Seawolves will return to the North Shore on Thursday when they welcome the Monmouth Hawks to Stony Brook Arena. The Hawks are 8-17 overall and 6-6 in Coastal Athletic Association play, which includes a 78-56 win over Stony Brook. They are coming off a 73-67 loss to Towson. Opening tip-off is set for 5 p.m.