Jan. 5, 2005

Game 10
Stony Brook (2-7, 0-0 America East)
vs. UMBC (5-4, 0-0 America East)
January 5, 2005 • 7:00 p.m.
SBU Sports Complex • Stony Brook, N.Y.

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Today's Match Up
Stony Brook (2-7) opens up America East Conference play when the Seawolves host UMBC (5-4) tonight. Stony Brook owns a 2-0 all-time record vs. the Retrievers, winning both matchups a year ago.

Scouting the Retrievers
UMBC enters tonight's contest on a two-game losing streak. Last time out, the Retrievers fell at Towson, 60-43.

UMBC is led by Matea Pender, who is averaging 14.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

Last Time Out
Reka Cserny led five players in double-figures as Harvard topped Stony Brook 87-69 on Monday. Harvard came out on fire in the first half behind the dominant play of Cserny, who dropped 17 of her game-high 26 points in the first stanza as the Crimson took a 55-34 lead at the break and never looked back. Harvard shot a blistering 64.7 percent (22-of-34) in the half, while the Seawolves shot just 37.1 percent (13-of-35). Mykeema Ford led the Seawolves with 19 points, while Jessica Smith netted 14.

Ford, Smith Top Scoring Duo in America East
Sophomores Mykeema Ford and Jessica Smith are once again the top scoring duo in America East so far this season.

The pair, which finished their freshman campaign as the top scoring duo after averaging a combined 25.0 points per game, have teamed up to score 32.3 points per outing. The next closest pair is Northeastern's Maralene Zwarich and Shaleyse Smallwood at 29.7 points per game.

Ford Earns All-Tourney Honors
Mykeema Ford was named to the FIU Sun and Fun Classic All-Tournament Team after averaging 18.0 points in the two-day tournament. Ford, who netted 16 points in the Seawolves loss to FIU, was key in SB's win over Brown in the consolation game, posting game-highs of 20 points, six assists and four steals.

Smith Breaking Through
After netting just 13 points combined in SB's first two contests, Jessica Smith finally broke through in the Holiday Inn Express Invitational. In the tourney opener vs. Pittsburgh, Smith netted 22 points after shooting 7-for-10 from the field and 8-for-9 from the free throw line. She followed that performance by recording 21 points, 14 rebounds and four assists vs. Long Beach State.

In the Seawolves four outings between Dec. 4 and 11, Smith averaged 21.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game while shooting .700 (35-of-50) from the field and .842 (16-for-19) from the free throw line.

Inbar in the Mix
Inbar Orion has quietly become a key player in the Stony Brook lineup this season. The sophomore had a breakthrough performance at St. Bonaventure on Dec. 11, netting a career-high 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field to go with nine boards.

Orion, who's previous best was 13 points vs. Charlotte a year ago, ranks second on the team and fourth in America East with a .549 field goal percentage and third on the team with 10.7 points per game, which is more than double her career average of 4.7.

Boylan Heating Up
Junior Jessie Boylan has quietly made her presence felt so far this season. Boylan, who is averaging 6.6 points per game, more than double her career average of 2.8, has scored in double figures three times in nine games, a feat she had not accomplished once before this season. In the Seawolves win vs. Brown on Dec. 29, she collected career-highs of 12 points and nine boards.

Keep It Comin' Keema
Mykeema Ford was outstanding for the Seawolves in early December. The sophomore averaged 22.7 points after netting 26 points vs. Delaware, 24 vs. Pittsburgh and 18 vs. Long Beach State.

Ford, who started off the season shooting just .316 (12-for-38) in SB's first two outings, responded with her best shooting performance so far this year against Pitt, hitting 8-of-18 (.444) shots from the field.

Ferraro On the Boards
Dana Ferraro has made a huge impact on the boards for the Seawolves through their first nine games. The freshman forward, who ranks second on the team with 6.4 rebounds per game, pulled down a game-high 11 boards in SB's season opener at Bradley, while collecting a team-best nine rebounds at Delaware and a game-high 10 at Providence.

League Leaders
Several Seawolves rank among the America East leaders in games played through Jan. 3.

Mykeema Ford leads the league with 17.2 points, while ranking tied for first with 5.2 assists per game, fourth with a 1.31 assist/turnover ratio and tied for fourth with 2.0 steals per game. Jessica Smith leads the conference with a .587 field goal percentage and stands fourth in scoring (15.1 ppg) and eighth in rebounding (6.8 rpg), while Inbar Orion is fourth in field goal percentage (.549) and Dana Ferraro is 10th in rebounding (6.4 rpg) and fourth in defensive boards (4.78).

Smith Can't Miss
Jessica Smith was nearly unstoppable at Providence on Dec. 7, tying a career-high with 23 points in the victory.

The sophomore set a school record after shooting 11-for-11 from the field. That feat marked the first time in school history a player - men's or women's - has shot 100 percent from the floor with more than 10 attempts.

Watson's Not so Bad Either
Kelly Watson also had a career night at Providence on Dec. 7. The sophomore set new career-highs with 25 points, nine field goals made, five three point field goals made and a .500 (5-for-10) three point field goal percentage.

Ford Named America east Co-Player of the Week
Mykeema Ford was named the Wilson Co-Player of the Week for the week ending Dec. 5. The sophomore guard averaged 22.7 points and 5.7 assists per game in three outings last week after collecting a season-high 26 points at Delaware, 24 points and seven assists vs. Pittsburgh and 18 points and eight assists vs. Long Beach State.

Offensive Turn-Around
Stony Brook picked up its offensive output vs. Pittsburgh and Long Beach State in the Holiday Inn Express Invitational. The Seawolves entered the weekend averaging 59.0 points, 11.5 assists and 4.0 three point field goals per game, while shooting .389 from the field and .276 from the three point line. After its two contests vs. Pittsburgh and Long Beach State, however, SB is now averaging 71.5 points, 15.0 assists and 6.0 three point field goals while shooting .441 from the field and .333 from downtown.

The Seawolves, who were previously ranked last in America East in scoring offense, jumped to first place after netting 86 points vs. Pitt and 82 vs. Long Beach St.

SB vs. Big East Teams
With their win over Providence on Dec. 7, the Seawolves improved to 2-6 all-time vs. Big East teams. Stony Brook, which lost to Big East member Pittsburgh on Dec. 4, picked up their first win over a Big East team in 2001 when it earned a 65-51 road victory at St. John's.

Second Half Struggle
Stony Brook was done in by its second half shooting struggles vs. Delaware. SB trailed by as many as 11 in the first half, but managed to cut the lead back to three late in the half. The Seawolves were hurt by poor shooting in the second half, however, as SB connected on just 8-of-21 (38.1 percent) attempts from the field.

Mykeema Ford, who with 21 points was the only player to score more than three points in the second stanza, connected on five of the Seawolves eight field goals, while the rest of the team shot just 3-for-9 in the half.

Barlett Stepping Up
Senior Stephanie Barlett posted her best outing in over a year with her 11-point effort vs. Delaware. The guard, who shot 3-for-5 from downtown for the game, netted eight points in the first half behind a pair of three-pointers.