The Stony Brook men's basketball team was clinging to a one-point lead late in its game against Wagner, but the Seahawks' Tyler Murray drained a three-pointer with 1:43 remaining to lift Wagner to a 58-54 victory over the Seawolves Sunday at Pritchard Gymnasium.
Stony Brook was held to just 15 field goals in the game and shot just 23.8 percent from the field.
"You have to make shots to win basketball games, and we didn't do that tonight," Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell said. "We've been making big shots down the stretch the last few games that helped us win, but we didn't make them tonight. However, It is comforting to know that we shot so poorly and still had a chance to win the game."
After a sloppy first half full of turnovers and fouls for both teams, Wagner went ahead by nine, 39-28, after back-to-back three-pointers by Latif Rivers and Danny Mundweiler with 15:40 left. However, Stony Brook fought back despite not hitting a field goal between 11:11 and 2:58. The Seawolves took advantage of a bunch of Wagner fouls and used free throws to narrow the gap. Dallis Joyner (Norfolk, Va.) ended the basketless streak with a dunk at 2:58 after grabbing two offensive rebounds, putting the Seawolves on top 48-47.
Two Wagner possessions later, Murray got an open look from long range and buried the three-pointer to put the Seahawks on top for good. Wagner went up six before Bryan Dougher (Scotch Plains, N.J.) hit a three-pointer to cut the game to one possession. After a Wagner turnover, Dougher then had two game-tying three-point attempts that just didn't find the bottom of the net.
Dougher led Stony Brook with 15 points. Danny Carter (Windsor, England) had his first career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Joyner chipped in a game-high 13 rebounds as Stony Brook outrebounded Wagner 49-30 and had 20 second chance points.
Wagner shot 39.5 percent (17-for-43) and won the game at the free throw line with near perfect success (18-for-19) while Stony Brook was only 20-for-28 from the charity stripe, including seven misses in the second half. Murray led all scorers with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting.
After playing five games in 10 days, Stony Brook will break for the Thanksgiving holiday. The Seawolves return to action Wednesday, Dec. 1 against Lehigh at Pritchard Gymnasium at 7 p.m. For tickets, call (631) 632-WOLF or visit the Stony Brook Athletics ticket office online.
