The Stony Brook men’s basketball team did not have much of a chance with its top weapon struggling.
The Seawolves (6-21, 2-12 CAA) were in Boston, Mass. on Saturday afternoon to take on the Northeastern Huskies (15-12, 7-7 CAA) in a Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) matchup. Although Stony Brook kept it close early, severe shooting woes led to an ugly 71-60 loss.
The contest looked competitive early. Following a three-pointer from Northeastern guard Rashad King that opened the scoring, guard Harold Woods drove the lane just a minute later and banked one in, giving the Huskies a 5-0 lead. However, the Seawolves responded, tying the score after a steal and dunk from guard Sabry Philip as well as a three from forward Andre Snoddy.
Thereafter, the teams continued to trade buckets and, with 14:20 left in the first half, forward Ben Wight drilled his first attempt from beyond the season’s arc. Still, Northeastern held a slight, 13-12 advantage.
After two minutes of scoreless basketball, things went downhill for Stony Brook. Following a missed shot from deep by the Huskies, center Collin Metcalf grabbed an offensive board and flipped it to Woods, who went up and laid it in off the glass to extend Northeastern’s lead to three. As the Seawolves looked to respond, King picked forward Nick Woodard’s pocket to regain possession for his team and passed it ahead to Woods, who drove down the court and converted another layup. Wood’s back-to-back buckets kickstarted a 12-4 run that put Northeastern up 25-16 with 7:03 remaining in the half.
Once again, both teams went momentarily silent. But the second cold spell of the affair was ended after Woodard ended a near seven-minute-long field-goal drought for Stony Brook with a three-pointer that cut its deficit to six.
However, that was the last time the Seawolves found themselves in striking distance. First, Northeastern guard J.B. Frankel negated Woodard’s make with a three-pointer of his own. On the Huskies’ ensuing possession, Woods drove the lane once again and banked one in, drawing a foul in the process and successfully converting the and-one attempt to make it 31-19.
With 3:20 left in the period, Wight tried to cut the deficit to single digits as he jumped up inside the paint and drew a foul while converting a layup. However, Wight was unable to hit the free throw and Northeastern maintained a double-digit lead.
As the first half dwindled, three-pointers from Frankel and guard William Kermoury, along with a mid-range jumper by guard L.A. Pratt, highlighted a 14-2 run in favor of the Huskies, who dominated down the stretch for a 39-23 halftime advantage.
Stony Brook struggled mightily in the opening 20 minutes, shooting just 33.1% from the field and going just 3-for-11 from three. Conversely, Northeastern shot 55.2% overall and punched in 5-of-14 shots from deep.
Although they shot an improved 43.3% from the field after the break, the Seawolves found themselves in a hole dug too deep, which became insurmountable in the second half. The Huskies’ lead got to as many as 29, but a late effort from the visitors softened the blow, as it took the double-digit loss.
Head coach Geno Ford did not speak to the media after the game.
In the end, Stony Brook put up a .383/.280/.875 shooting line with eight turnovers. On the other side of the coin, Northeastern boasted a .491/.385/.500 triple slash with 10 turnovers.
Snoddy notched his third double-double in his last four games, putting up 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting with 15 rebounds. Guard Collin O’Connor (12) and Wight (11) were the Seawolves’ only other double-digit scorers.
Guard C.J. Luster II struggled immensely, shooting just 2-for-13 from the field and making just one of his eight three-point attempts.
King led the way for the Huskies with 25 points on 10-of-18 shooting, which included going 3-for-5 from deep. Woods contributed 16 while Frankel chipped in 12.
Stony Brook will be back in action on Thursday in Virginia. It will take on the Hampton Pirates, who are 14-13 overall and 6-8 in CAA play this season after a 67-49 win against Hofstra. Opening tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
