Nov. 26, 2002

Game Backdrop: Stony Brook comes off a tough weekend at the Hoops for the Cure Classic at SMU in Dallas, Texas. The Seawolves hope to win their home opener for the third straight season.

About the Raiders: Wright State opened its Northeastern swing against UConn last Friday, falling to the Huskies by a score of 85-39. Fifth-ranked UConn went on a back-breaking 31-9 run in the first half and held the Raiders to just 20 second-half points to take command. Five Huskies reached double figures, while sophomore guard Tiffany Webb led Wright State with 16 points.

Series History: The two teams have never met.

Home Debut: Stony Brook has not lost its home opener since the 1999-2000 season, the Seawolves' first season in Division I and head coach Trish Roberts' first with Stony Brook. St. John's handed SBU a 54-39 setback at the SBU Sports Complex.

Key Matchup: Stony Brook will have to figure out a way to stop Raiders star Tiffany Webb, who tallied 16 points to led Wright State against UConn. The 5-10 senior was named a preseason second-team All-Horizon League selection prior to this year. The Seawolves are untested and young in the backcourt, with three newcomers (Kelly McManus, Jessie Boylan, Akia Booker) and two returners (Stephanie Barlett, Danielle Ingram) who did not see much playing time last season.

Injury Update: Stony Brook has struggled with injuries and illness during the early part of this season but the Seawolves may be on the road to recovery. Danyelle Ingram suffered a season-ending injury last season but has shown no ill effects so far this year. Theresa LoParrino missed the final six games in 2001-02 with an ACL injury and is still easing back into action. The junior has been sidelined with a hamstring strain but will be available tonight. Freshman Meghan Barrett battled ankle problems throughout preseason and is awaiting results of an MRI she had last week, but she played in both games last weekend.

Turn the Beat Around: Stony Brook hopes to avoid opening this season with three losses tonight. The last time the Seawolves lost their first three games was the 1999-2000 year. However, Stony Brook went on a tear that season after dropping its first three contests. The Seawolves then won eight consecutive games and 10 of their next 11.

Cold From Outside: Stony Brook struggled from the field against SMU and La Salle, connecting on less than 30 percent of its shots in both outings. The Seawolves hit just 13-of-53 (25 percent) of their shots against SMU, including just five field goals in the first half. Meanwhile, the Mustangs scored more than twice as many (27-of-60) field goals. Stony Brook wasn't much better against La Salle, hitting 14-of-48 for 29 percent.

Sloppy Beginning: One of Stony Brook's biggest downfalls at last weekend's tournament was its inability to take care of the basketball. The Seawolves had a whopping 60 turnovers in the two games combined, 29 against SMU and 31 against La Salle. Stony Brook had just nine assists in each game.

Caught Stealing: Stony Brook showed a glimpse of its defensive tenacity in last weekend's games, with 11 steals against La Salle and 13 against SMU. Last season, the Seawolves collected 10 or more steals on 13 occasions, winning 11 of those contests.

Book 'Em!: Junior transfer Akia Booker provided a bright spot for Stony Brook despite its loss to SMU in the opener. Booker came off the bench to score a team-high nine points, grab six rebounds and record a game-high seven steals.

Magnificent Malica: Senior Malica Jibowu narrowly missed recording a double-double in her first collegiate start against SMU. Jibowu scored nine points and grabbed nine boards, both team-highs.

McManus Leads the Way: Freshman Kelly McManus was the Seawolves' only double figure scorer during the weekend, tallying 11 points against La Salle in the consolation game.

Missing in Action: Junior forward Sherry Jordan, heralded to be one of the top players in the America East this season, will not be in action due to an indefinite suspension. Jordan, the Seawolves' returning leading scorer and rebounder (17.1 ppg and 7.9 rpg last year) was named preseason All-America East. She was recognized as an All-Conference and All-Met selection after her sophomore campaign.

Seawolves Ranked Fifth in America East Preseason: The Seawolves, who finished in seventh place in the America East last year, were picked to finish fifth this season after Stony Brook's runner-up finish in the conference tournament in 2001-02. Vermont, last year's regular season champion, received seven first place votes in a predicted first place finish. 2001-02 conference tournament champion Hartford received one first place vote and was picked to finish sixth.

Last Time Out: La Salle used runs at the beginning of each half to pull away from Stony Brook and earn a 60-38 victory in the consolation game of the Hoops for the Cure Classic on the campus of SMU in Dallas, Texas, on Saturday. The Explorers (1-1) opened the game with a 13-2 run to take their first double-digit lead of the evening and scored the first 11 points of the second half to take control of the game. Stony Brook (0-2) pulled within nine with 1:15 left before the break, as sophomore Stephanie Barlett's layup cut the deficit to 31-22. However, then the Seawolves went cold, unable to score for the next nine minutes. Meanwhile, La Salle opened the second stanza with an 11-0 run to stretch the lead to 42-22 with 12:41 remaining. Freshman Kelly McManus finally stopped the drought, connecting on two free throws for two of her eight second-half points. But the Seawolves got no closer than 14 the rest of the way and totaled just 16 points in the second half. McManus was the only double figure scorer for Stony Brook, finishing with 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting. For La Salle, Kat Foley led the way with game-highs of 27 points and nine rebounds. In addition, Davineia Payne narrowly missed notching a triple-double with 14 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.