Dec. 22, 2003

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Stony Brook had its two-game win streak snapped following an 80-75 overtime loss to Columbia on Saturday. The Seawolves have now lost three straight at home as they fell to 3-4 on the season. The matchup against BC is Stony Brook's second against a Big East opponent this season. SB has won two straight road games.

Media: Radio: WLIE 540-AM - Ray Alexander (play-by-play), Curt Hylton (analyst)

About the Eagles: The Eagles are 8-1 after a 58-54 overtime win over Kent State on Saturday. Craig Smith scored 14 points to lead the Eagles while freshman Jared Dudley added 12 points, including the go-ahead three-pointer in overtime. Smith is the team's top scorer (14.8 ppg.) and rebounder (8.1 rpg.) while Dudley checks in at an 11.2 points per game clip. The Eagles are 5-0 at home this season.

About the Seawolves: The Seawolves dropped an overtime decision to Columbia on Saturday, snapping a mini two-game win streak. SB was undone on the defensive end, allowing the Lions to shoot 56 percent from the field, 60 percent from three-point range, in the loss. It was Stony Brook's first overtime game since a 70-69 loss to Rider on January 3, 2001. SB has played Columbia five times -- three of the games have gone to overtime. The Seawolves combine both youth and experience in 2003-04 as the roster features a combined three freshman, three sophomores, three juniors and five seniors. Leading the Seawolves into battle will be head coach Nick Macarchuk who enters his 27th season as a Division I head coach. Macarchuk has 355 career wins and is one of 33 active Division I coaches who have at least 350 wins. He ranks 33rd on the all-time Division I winningest active coaches list.

BC vs. Stony Brook: BC is 1-0 against Stony Brook, winning the first matchup between the two teams last year. The Eagles posted a 79-61 win behind Craig Smith's 28 points and 11 rebounds. Jairus McCollum had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Seawolves.

Hey Mister D.J.: Two-time All-America East selection D.J. Munir is on fire. The captain has hit 30 of his last 60 shots, averaging 28 points per game in the last three outings. Last week's America East Player of the Week scored a season-high 31 points on 10-for-17 shooting against Columbia. It was his fifth 30-point game of his career, making him one of only three players in school history to score 30 or more points in a game on at least five occasions. Emeka Smith (13 times) and Charlie Bryant (six times) are the other two players that did so -- both at the Division III level.

Moving Up The Charts: Like a hit record, Munir is moving on the SBU all-time scoring list. Munir has scored 84 points in his last three games to soar up the list into the No. 7 spot with 1,258 career points. Next up on the list is Larry Tillery who finished with 1,372 career points.

Versus The Big East: Stony Brook is 0-12 all-time against members of the Big East Conference.

Defense Wins Games: Stony Brook has shot 46 percent from the field in its last three games but in its last outing it allowed its opponent to shoot a robust 56 percent from the field and notch a season-high 80 points.

We Like Mike: Freshman Mike Popoko has made strong showings in his last three games. The rookie set new season-highs with 14 points and eight rebounds against Columbia. He has averaged 10.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and three blocks in his last three games. He now is averaging 7.6 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.

Kudos For Bennett: Senior J.B. Bennett is making the most of his final season in a Seawolf uniform. A role player of much of his first three seasons, Bennett is emerging as a key player on the 2003-04 team. He came away with 12 points and eight rebounds against Columbia and is currently the team leader at 5.7 rebounds per game. Bennett entered the season averaging 2.9 rebounds per game in his first three years.

The Cori Story: Junior Cori Spencer has struggled in the early part of the season. Returning as the team's second-leading scorer and top rebounder from a year ago, Spencer is at only 6.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. Spencer has totaled four points in the last two games and has scored in double figures only twice in seven outings.

SB Can Rally: Stony Brook has shown the ability to fight back in games. The Seawolf registered a comeback win against Dartmouth in the opener and rallied to victory after being down nine points in the second half to Hofstra on December 13. The Seawolves trailed Columbia by as many as 11 points in Saturday's game before rallying to send the game into overtime.

Bobby Struggling Too: Sophomore Bobby Santiago is also looking to find his shooting touch. Santiago is shooting 19 percent from the field this season.

Orfini Hits The Boards: Junior Mike Orfini has been tough on the boards for SB this year with a 5.0 rpg. average. He has grabbed five or more rebounds in five of seven games this season.

The Offense Is Back: Through the first four games of the year, Stony Brook struggled on the offensive end shooting only 37 percent and averaging 53.5 points per game. After a 10-day layoff, the Seawolves have discovered their offense in the last two outings. In the last three games, the team shot over 46 percent from the field and is averaging over 70 points per game.