Seawolves clinch No. 1 seed in next week's America East Tournament.
Stony Brook, N.Y. - Senior Muhammad El-Amin (Lansing, Mich.) led four Seawolves in double-figures with 23 points and Stony Brook University men's basketball team shot a season-high 54.7 percent from the field as it clinched its first America East regular season title with an 82-78 victory over Vermont before a sellout crowd at Pritchard Gymnasium. It was the 10th straight win for the Seawolves, who clinched the No. 1 seed in next week's America East Tournament with the victory.
"This is a great day for our program and our University," Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell said. "I'm just really happy for our team especially our seniors. We got contributions from a lot of guys and our defense was outstanding for most of the night. This program has come a long long way and it is because of the contributions of a lot of great people at this University."
El-Amin scored 15 of his 23 in the second half for the Seawolves (21-7, 13-2), while sophomore Dallis Joyner (Norfolk, Va.) added a career-best 20 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore Bryan Dougher (Scotch Plains, N.Y.) chipped in with 18 points, while junior Chris Martin (Springfield Gardens, N.Y.) scored 15.
Stony Brook led by 20 with 8:07 remaining in the game following a Martin jumper but Vermont answered with 27-11 run over the next several minutes to cut the Seawolves lead to 75-71 with 1:27 remaining. Joyner knocked down two free throws on Stony Brook's ensuing possession before Maurice Joseph drilled a three to slice the SBU lead to three with 51 seconds left.
The Seawolves worked the shot clock down on their next possession and got the ball to sophomore Tommy Brenton (Columbia, Md.) on the right baseline. Brenton then knocked down a short floater, his first field goal of the game, with 15 seconds left to push the Seawolves lead back to five. He finished the contest with a game-high 11 rebounds.
Vermont again closed to within three on another Joseph three with 2.8 seconds remaining but Martin knocked down one of two free throws with 1.5 seconds left to seal the game for the Seawolves. Martin and Joyner led a Stony Brook bench that outscored Vermont's bench, 39-12.
Stony Brook jumped on the Catamounts early, building leads of 15-3 and 21-7 over the first nine minutes of the game. Vermont got within eight on three occasions, the last time coming on a Brendan Bald jumper with 5:24 remaining in the half.
But Stony Brook answered with a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to take a 40-21 lead with just over a minute remaining until halftime. Joyner had six points in the run, including a thunderous dunk off a feed from Martin. Vermont scored the final four points of the half to close within 15 at the break.
A Joyner put-back early in the second half pushed the Stony Brook advantage back to 18 before Vermont scored nine of the next 12 points to get within 12. But El-Amin then hit one of two free throws and Martin followed with a three-point play as the Seawolves went on a 11-3 run over the next three minutes to take a 20 point lead.
Evan Fjeld scored a game-high 24 points for Vermont and was named their America East Player of the Game. Joseph chipped in with 21 points including five threes. El-Amin was named the America East Player of the Game for Stony Brook.
Stony Brook closes the regular season on Sunday, traveling to take on New Hampshire. Game time is set for 1 p.m
"This is a great day for our program and our University," Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell said. "I'm just really happy for our team especially our seniors. We got contributions from a lot of guys and our defense was outstanding for most of the night. This program has come a long long way and it is because of the contributions of a lot of great people at this University."
El-Amin scored 15 of his 23 in the second half for the Seawolves (21-7, 13-2), while sophomore Dallis Joyner (Norfolk, Va.) added a career-best 20 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore Bryan Dougher (Scotch Plains, N.Y.) chipped in with 18 points, while junior Chris Martin (Springfield Gardens, N.Y.) scored 15.
Stony Brook led by 20 with 8:07 remaining in the game following a Martin jumper but Vermont answered with 27-11 run over the next several minutes to cut the Seawolves lead to 75-71 with 1:27 remaining. Joyner knocked down two free throws on Stony Brook's ensuing possession before Maurice Joseph drilled a three to slice the SBU lead to three with 51 seconds left.
The Seawolves worked the shot clock down on their next possession and got the ball to sophomore Tommy Brenton (Columbia, Md.) on the right baseline. Brenton then knocked down a short floater, his first field goal of the game, with 15 seconds left to push the Seawolves lead back to five. He finished the contest with a game-high 11 rebounds.
Vermont again closed to within three on another Joseph three with 2.8 seconds remaining but Martin knocked down one of two free throws with 1.5 seconds left to seal the game for the Seawolves. Martin and Joyner led a Stony Brook bench that outscored Vermont's bench, 39-12.
Stony Brook jumped on the Catamounts early, building leads of 15-3 and 21-7 over the first nine minutes of the game. Vermont got within eight on three occasions, the last time coming on a Brendan Bald jumper with 5:24 remaining in the half.
But Stony Brook answered with a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to take a 40-21 lead with just over a minute remaining until halftime. Joyner had six points in the run, including a thunderous dunk off a feed from Martin. Vermont scored the final four points of the half to close within 15 at the break.
A Joyner put-back early in the second half pushed the Stony Brook advantage back to 18 before Vermont scored nine of the next 12 points to get within 12. But El-Amin then hit one of two free throws and Martin followed with a three-point play as the Seawolves went on a 11-3 run over the next three minutes to take a 20 point lead.
Evan Fjeld scored a game-high 24 points for Vermont and was named their America East Player of the Game. Joseph chipped in with 21 points including five threes. El-Amin was named the America East Player of the Game for Stony Brook.
Stony Brook closes the regular season on Sunday, traveling to take on New Hampshire. Game time is set for 1 p.m
