The second free throw from Eric Gilchrese, which would have put New Hampshire up four points, arced through the air. The ball caught the side of the rim, and landed in the hands of Demetrius Young with seven seconds remaining.
Young turned quickly, and passed the ball to Muhammad El-Amin.
“I just ran down the court looking for an open shot and I got it,” El-Amin said after the game. “I just missed it. It’s a desperation shot, 50-50 chance, but I just missed it.”
So ends the season of the Stony Brook Seawolves men’s basketball team, another in a long line of close loses to the teams just above them in the standings.
Stony Brook and New Hampshire, the two best defensive teams during conference games, played an uncharacteristically high-scoring 76-73 game on Saturday night at SEFCU Arena in Albany.
“I’m just disappointed,” Seawolves Head Coach Steve Pikiell said. “I thought we were ready to make that next step as a program. What got us here was great defense, and unfortunately we didn’t play great defense tonight.”
With starters Demtrius Young and Dallis Joyner in foul trouble just ten minutes into the game, Coach Pikiell turned to seldom used big man Andrew Goba and freshman Danny Carter to fill the void.
“You have to do what you have to do when you get in foul trouble,” Pikiell said. “I thought those guys did a good job holding the fort down.”
It was the second half when the game nearly got totally away from the Seawolves.
A three-point basket by New Hampshire’s Tyrone Conley pushed the Wildcats lead to 60-47 with 12:18 remaining in the contest. That 60 points nearly matched the number of points the Seawolves usually allow in an entire game.
“We did not play defense the way we prepared to play defense this week,” Pikiell said. “It’s as simple as that.”
But the Seawolves never gave in.
“Stony Brook deserves an awful lot of credit,” UNH Head Coach Bill Herrion said. “The job Steve Pikiell did with that basketball team, the people from Stony Brook should be so proud.”
A three-pointer by El-Amin with 1:06 remaining got the Seawolves back within four, but UNH’s leading scorer, Tyrece Gibbs, had an answer.
Gibbs, who scored 18 in the game, worked the shot clock all the way down before he attempted to split two Stony Brook defenders on the way to the basket.
“I heard the ref blew the whistle and just threw it up and hoped it went in,” Gibbs said. “And thank god it went in.”
But five quick points and three UNH missed free throws left the door open for the Seawolves. But there would be no late game heroics from El-Amin this time, although he did lead all scorers with 23 points.
“I’m just disappointed because I think we could have won this game,” Pikiell said. “It’s a humbling game, one jump shot here, or get off to a better start in the second half and I think we would have won the basketball game. But we didn’t do it.”
“I told the guys before the game you have to play well for 40 minutes,” he said. “Unfortunately we didn’t and you go home.”
