Stony Brook Outlasts Men's Basketball in 69-63 Loss

STONY BROOK, N.Y.-  University at Albany men's basketball (15-6, 4-2 AE) dropped its second America East contest of the season to undefeated Stony Brook (15-4, 6-0 AE) by a score of 69-63 late Friday night. Ray Sanders (14), Evan Singletary (14) and Peter Hooley (13) all tallied double digits for the Great Danes.

“Stony Brook just had too many easy baskets,” said head coach Will Brown. “We forced them to shoot some jump shots, so we accomplished that goal tonight; but we didn't finish enough possessions. They made more toughness plays down the stretch in a game that was well within our reach.”

Both teams started slow shooting in front of a record crowd of 4,109 at Island Federal Credit Union Arena. UAlbany bore the brunt of the scoring problems, shooting just 2-16 (.125) in the first 12 minutes of the game.

Despite the shooting woes, the Purple & Gold caught a break as Stony Brook forward Jameel Warney picked up his second foul at the 12:54 mark. The Great Danes would go on to see five of its first nine points come at the charity stripe.

With baskets coming at a premium, Brown's squad was still in the game with the score 13-9 in Stony Brook's favor. Joe Cremo ended a five-minute scoring drought for the Danes on a 2-for-2 clip at the free throw line to bring the game within two. Singletary tied the game at 13 on the ensuing possession. Hooley entered the box score shortly after, going for four straight points to maintain the tie game at 17.

But the Seawolves started heating up from three-point range, as Carson Puriefoy and Ahmad Walker hit from long range for a 30-25 edge late in the half.

Singletary responded with an acrobatic traditional three-point play, narrowing the margin to one possession in a blink. Dallas Ennema tipped in an offensive board to tie the contest at 30 going into halftime.

At the break, Warney had seen just seven minutes of game action. Singletary led with eight points, and the Purple & Gold went 8-for-12 (.750) from the field to close the half. Of the 30 points on the board, 10 came at the charity stripe for Will Brown & co.

Poor shooting did not hinder the start of the second period, as Sanders and Hooley knocked down from three to give UAlbany its largest lead, 40-34 with 16:30 on the clock.

The Great Danes failed to find an answer for Warney on the defensive end, as the senior tallied seven quick points in the second stanza to fuel a 5-0 Seawolves run. Stony Brook re-took the game on two Puriefoy free throws at the 10:30 mark, 45-44.

A 5-0 Seawolves spurt quickly spiraled into a 13-1 run for the opposition. True to form, the Great Danes bounced back thanks to critical defensive plays. Singletary picked Puriefoy's pocket at the top of the key, and his pass to Sanders eventually found Cremo to tie the game again at 50.

After a slow shooting start to the game, both UAlbany (.533) and Stony Brook (.563) were shooting over 50% from the field in the first 12 minutes of the second half.

Singletary and Puriefoy continued to go back and forth. Puriefoy drained a three, but the senior guard fouled Singletary on a three-point attempt at the other end of the floor. The Seawolves still held a four-point edge with less than four minutes to play.

The senior backcourt took matters into their own hands down the stretch, as Singletary tied the game after bringing down a rebound with 2:25 on the clock. Hooley drove the lane to take the lead, 63-62 with 1:55 to go.

Stony Brook's Rayshaun McGrew went to the line after grabbing an offensive board, but missed both freebies. He again hit the offensive glass to give the Seawolves another look down one with 1:19 to play.

Steve Pikiell went to his workhorse down low, but Warney turned the ball over. UAlbany had a chance to extend its advantage, but Warney ended up at the line shooting two free throws. He made both and Stony Brook gained a 64-63 edge with 38.9 seconds remaining.

UAlbany could not convert on the offensive end, and a three-point play by Rayshaun McGrew put the game out of reach. There were 13 ties and 12 lead changes in the 2014 & 2015 America East Championship rematch on Friday night.

Ray Sanders (14) and Evan Singletary (14) led UAlbany in scoring. Peter Hooley was the only other Dane in double digits with 13; he also topped the team in rebounds with seven. Sanders and Singletary notched three steals apiece.

Next up, UAlbany men's basketball hosts UMass Lowell (7-12, 3-3 AE) at SEFCU Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 27 at 7:00 p.m.  The game will be broadcast on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.