Seven times on Friday, the lead changed between Stony Brook University and Boston University men’s basketball teams, theoretically changing possession of first place in the America East conference along with it.
When the final buzzer sounded at Pritchard Gymnasium on Long Island, the Seawolves beat BU for the first time in the pair’s last six contests, 66-57.
Stony Brook (13-7, 8-1 America East) moves into sole possession of first place in the conference while BU (11-12, 7-2 America East) dropped its first game since the Terriers received a drubbing at the University of Vermont on Jan. 5 to open conference play.
BU opened the game in control, working its way to a nine-point lead 9:07 into the first half, limiting the Seawolves to only ten points. Momentum would switch, however, and Stony Brook spent the latter portion of the half building a four-point lead, 37-33.
Most of the Terriers’ points in the first came from beyond the arc, as they completed 7-of-9 3-point attempts. The 77.8 percent performance was well above BU’s season average of 32.8 percent entering the game.
Senior guard Darryl Partin found the hoop on 3-of-4 first-half 3-pointers while BU was building its lead. Sophomore forwards Dom Morris and Travis Robinson, as well as redshirt freshman guard Malik Thomas, each contributed one trey during the half.
Stony Brook, in contrast, worked the inside with 18 of the Seawolves’ 37 points coming from inside the paint – more points in that region than BU would have in the entire game (16). The Seawolves finished with only three 3-pointers in the first, but made 11 baskets within the arc.
The Seawolves carried their momentum from the end of the first half into the second. After senior forward Patrick Hazel scored the first point for either team off of a free throw 1:17 into the half, Stony Brook went on a run, scoring 10 points to open its lead up to 13 points. The run would not come to an end until after BU coach Joe Jones was issued a technical foul by the referees.
Following the technical, the Terriers’ offense began a turnaround. BU scored 15 points while Stony Brook’s offense fell silent. With 6:04 left in the game, the Terriers held a four-point lead.
The Terrier run came to an end as both teams went back and forth for the next few minutes.
A jumper from Stony Brook sophomore Dave Cooley tied the game, and the Seawolves slowly pulled ahead, taking advantage of a number of BU turnovers and fouls. Stony Brook would hold BU to just one more 3-pointer and no other shots or free throws in the final 3:55 as it closed in on the win and the top of the America East standings.
Partin was the only Terrier to break double digits, scoring 21 points on 7-for-17 shooting, including a 5-for-9 performance from beyond the parabola. He also led the Terriers in rebounding with six total boards.
Partin’s fellow senior guard, Matt Griffin, led BU with six assists, with sophomore guard D.J. Irving right behind at five. Hazel made BU’s only two blocks of the game.
The Terriers’ primarily struggled from the free-throw line, as they shot 7-for-17 from the charity stripe during the contest.
“[Poor free throw shooting is] what did us in down the stretch,” Jones said. “We didn’t complete the opportunities at the line and that really hurt us.”
For Stony Brook, senior Brian Dougher was the only player to break double digits, dropping 20 points and making 5-of-9 field goals. Junior Tommy Brenton led the Seawolves in offensive and total rebounds, with four and eight, respectively, while Dougher grabbed five off the defensive glass.
Jones thought there were two things his team needed to do better in order to grab the win.
“We’ve got to execute better down the stretch,” Jones said. “We’ve got to rebound the ball much better.”
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