Stony Brook Women’s Basketball was defeated by in-state rival Albany 72-68 in overtime on Wednesday night. The loss extends Stony Brook’s losing streak to four games.
Despite the loss, head coach Caroline McCombs viewed this matchup as progression for her team.
“Tonight was a hard fought game that came down to the wire,” McCombs said in a press release. “We were right there, and we had our share of opportunities. We are growing up fast as a group and need to learn from these tough lessons and respond.”
Stony Brook missed two clutch free throws with 1:06 remaining in regulation that would have put the team up by four points. Despite shooting well from the free throw line, Stony Brook’s issues were critical, with the team shooting just above 50 percent with a nine-for-17 total from the line.
Albany capitalized on Stony Brook’s missed free throws and scored the game-tying layup on the other end with 52 seconds left in regulation, sending the game into overtime.
Albany gained momentum with a three-pointer to start off the overtime period, followed by a layup by junior guard Shania Johnson to bring the game within one point. Turnovers late in the game became crucial for Stony Brook. A charging foul on Johnson late in the game gave Albany the ball with 28 seconds remaining. Albany hit two free throws with 10 seconds remaining and sealed the victory.
Stony Brook had a 31-25 lead over Albany going into the second half. However, the Seawolves’ defense was beginning to be outplayed by the rapid scoring of the Great Danes. Albany started the quarter on a 6-0 run and scored a total of 26 points in the quarter, nearly doubling Stony Brook’s third quarter total of 14 points.
Albany out-rebounded Stony Brook throughout the match, finishing with a total of 19 rebounds to Stony Brook’s 14 at the half. Albany finished the game with 44 total rebounds to Stony Brook’s 35. Seventeen of the 44 boards were offensive rebounds, which allowed for 11 second-chance points from Albany.
The Seawolves’ offense had an impressive showing throughout the game, shooting a total of 43.9 percent from the field, including going 8-21 from beyond the three-point line.
Johnson set a career high in points scored, accumulating for 25 points against the Great Danes. The guard also added five three-pointers during the contest, three of which were in the game’s first 15 minutes.
Johnson now has the highest number of three-point field goals per game in the America East Conference, averaging 3.1 three-pointers per game. Johnson is also second in three-point field goal percentage with .331 percent.
Junior guard Jerrell Matthews also had an impressive showing. Coming off her career-high 25 point performance last game, Matthews finished the matchup with 16 points, two assists and four rebounds.
Stony Brook’s record now falls to 8-8, with the team still searching for its first win of the new year and in conference play. The Seawolves managed to break both losing streaks in their 80-57 win against conference foe Vermont at the Island Federal Credit Union Arena on Saturday, Jan. 13 at 2 p.m.
