Leading by 10 points with 1:41 remaining, Stony Brook seemed to be in control. But the Seawolves missed 7 of 15 free throws down the stretch, leaving the door open for host Fairleigh Dickinson to battle back. But the Seawolves' resolve was not shaken.
Led by Bryan Dougher's 14 points and freshman Dave Coley's 11 points and four steals, Stony Brook outlasted FDU, 66-59, last night in a non-conference game.
With Stony Brook (3-1) up 61-52 with 57 seconds left, guard Chris Martin missed two free throws. FDU followed with a three-pointer from Terence Grier and a layup by Briahn Smith to cut the lead to four with 30 seconds remaining. But with so little time on the clock, the Knights were forced to foul the Seawolves on almost every possession.
"I think we just kind of relaxed on defense and weren't getting stops and giving them easy buckets," Dougher said. "We just didn't execute at the end. We've played a lot of games in a small amount of time. I guess maybe we were tired."
But despite playing their fourth game in less than a week, the Seawolves managed to stave off their opponent's comeback.
"We've been on that bus for a long time. I think that played a part, too," said Stony Brook coach Steve Pikiell, whose team outrebounded FDU 51-41. "But we made a big run in the second half. We had a lot of guys contribute."
The Seawolves took their largest lead (10 points) 45 seconds into the second half on an inside basket from Dallis Joyner (seven points, eight rebounds) and Dougher's three from the top of the circle for a 39-29 lead.
But Fairleigh Dickinson kept clawing back. Stony Brook took a 10-point lead twice more during the next 61/2 minutes, but the Knights found a way to trim the lead each time.
"We just didn't make two free throws like we should down the stretch," Pikiell said. "Or it wouldn't have come down to a heart attack."
The Seawolves also had trouble keeping guard Mike Scott out of the lane and 6-8 junior Kamil Svrdlik off the boards. Scott scored 20 points and the forward from the Czech Republic scored 11 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and had four blocks.
Danny Carter chipped in with nine points and four rebounds for the Seawolves. Martin had eight points and nine rebounds.
