Stony Brook Women’s Basketball entered the second quarter of Sunday afternoon’s matchup against Northwestern trailing 14-13, courtesy of a late layup from Wildcats sophomore guard Byrdy Galernik.
The score was stagnant for the first few moments of the second, until Stony Brook freshman forward India Pagan hit a layup in the paint to put the Seawolves up by one point.
That would turn out to be the last time Stony Brook held the lead in the game, and the Seawolves went on to lose to the Wildcats 68-36 by the time the final buzzer sounded.
“I thought we came out strong in the first quarter, and from there Northwestern really dominated the game,” head coach Caroline McCombs said in a press release. “We did not stop them in transition, and they were two steps ahead of us all night.”
Stony Brook continued to have problems with ball security on Sunday, registering 20 turnovers against just nine total assists, as many as Northwestern freshman guard Jordan Hamilton had by herself. The Wildcats capitalized off the Seawolves’ errors to score 18 points off turnovers.
While Stony Brook junior guard Jerell Matthews had a solid night from the floor, with a team-high 13 points on 60 percent shooting, the rest of the team’s offense was lacking throughout the game. The Seawolves shot 24 percent overall from the field, under 16 percent if Matthews’ shots are removed from the equation. Junior guard Shania Johnson, the team’s leading scorer this season, hit just two of the 13 shots she took.
By contrast, Northwestern shot 49 percent overall as a team, hitting 28 field goals to Stony Brook’s 13. The Wildcats led the Seawolves in bench points, points in the paint and second-chance points.
The Seawolves have not lost by more than 32 points since their 78-40 loss at Iona on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013. Stony Brook’s 36 points were the team’s lowest total in a game since Jan. 30, 2013, a 68-35 loss to Albany.
The loss was the polar opposite of the Seawolves’ early-season offensive successes, which saw them more than double their 36 points from Sunday in three of their first four games. After the game, McCombs acknowledged the team has room to grow, and called on her squad to become more consistent.
“We have to become more consistent,” McCombs said. “We have a lot of room for growth, and will continue to be resilient in our approach.”
The loss drops Stony Brook’s overall record to 5-4, the team’s fourth-straight loss after going undefeated through five games for the first time in program history. The Wildcats advance their regular-season record to 6-4 with the win, snapping a three-game losing streak in the process.
The Seawolves will look to get back in the win column when they return home to play Iona on Thursday, Dec. 14. Tipoff against the Gaels is scheduled for 7 p.m.
