Jan. 4, 2012
• 2011-12 Virtual Guide
2011-12 Stony Brook Men's Basketball
Game #13: Stony Brook Seawolves (6-6) at Binghamton Bearcats (0-13)
Thu., Jan. 5 • Events Center • Vestal, N.Y. • 7 p.m.
On the Radio
WUSB 90.1 FM & GoSeawolves.org with Mike Solano
LIVE: STATS | AUDIO | VIDEO | TWITTER
INFO: GAME NOTES (PDF)
Stony Brook Seawolves (6-6, 1-0 America East)
Head Coach: Steve Pikiell, seventh season
Overall Record: 84-132
Record at SBU: 79-114
Binghamton Bearcats (0-13, 0-1 America East)
Head Coach: Mark Macon, third season
Overall Record: 21-54
Record at Binghamton: same
About the Game: Stony Brook seeks its fourth straight victory and first road win of the season as it takes on SUNY rival Binghamton. The Seawolves are also looking to start 2-0 in America East for just the second time ever. Binghamton is Stony Brook’s most played opponent of all-time. This is the 57th matchup, and the Seawolves lead the series 31-25, but BU is 14-8 against SBU since the two teams became Div. I in 1999.
Scouting Binghamton: The Bearcats, having lost their top three scorers from the 2010-11 season, are struggling to find offense this season. Binghamton is at the bottom of America East and nearly last in the nation in scoring offense (56.0 PPG) and field goal percentage (36%) as it has not yet found a replacement for departed seniors Greer Wright (13.4 PPG), Moussa Camara (11.2 PPG) and Mahamoud Jabbi (9.9 PPG). The team’s only two games of coming within 10 points of winning were a four-point loss to Colgate in the season opener and a nine-point loss at Canisius last week. Although BU has had trouble scoring as a team, 6’9 freshman forward Ben Dickinson offers signs of hope. He averages 13.0 PPG and has had two 20-point outbursts this season. He had 18 points and 10 rebounds vs. Maine on Monday.
Last Time Out: Stony Brook shot 44 percent, held Vermont to a season-low 34 percent shooting and got 17 points from Al Rapier and 15 points from Dave Coley in a 65-59 win over the Catamounts Monday night. The Seawolves dominated in the paint, holding a 28-14 scoring edge there while only allowing the Catamounts back into the game by sending them to the free throw line 15 times in the second half. SBU outrebounded UVM 37-29 and converted 12 Catamount turnovers into 15 points.
A Stony Brook win...
- Gives the Seawolves their first road win of the 2011-12 season.
- Makes the Seawolves 2-0 in America East for just the second time ever (2009-10).
- Will give the Seawolves their first win at Binghamton in 10 years (Jan. 15, 2002).
Heated Rivalry: Stony Brook and Binghamton have been playing each other for decades. The Bearcats are SBU’s most played opponent, having met 56 times since the very first meeting on Feb. 2, 1963. Back then, Binghamton was known as Harpur College. The Bearcats have dominated the Seawolves in Binghamton, having won the last nine meetings.
Balanced Team Efforts: Stony Brook has outstanding depth on its team, evidenced by the fact that seven different Seawolves have led the team in scoring on a particular night. Last season in 32 games, SBU had six different leading scorers.
Home Cooking: Stony Brook is unbeaten at home and winless on the road, and the stats have shown how important home games are for the Seawolves. SBU is averaging 73.7 points and 44% shooting at home while averaging only 60.8 points and 36% shooting on the road.
Home Streaks: Stony Brook has won seven consecutive home games, dating back to last season. Between the end of 2009-10 and the beginning of 2010-11, the Seawolves won 10 straight home games. The program’s Div. I record is 12 straight home wins, which occurred between Nov. 29, 2000 and Dec. 4, 2001.
Getting off to a Good Start: With its 65-59 win over Vermont on Monday, Stony Brook has now won four consecutive America East conference openers, also beating UMBC in 2011 and 2009 and Boston University in 2010. In all three previous years with wins, SBU finished .500 or better in the league. Prior to 2009, the Seawolves had lost seven consecutive conference openers.
Regular Season Matters: Although to win the America East, all you have to do is win the tournament in March, the regular season does matter. History shows that only two teams have ever won the conference tournament as a No. 3 seed or lower. No. 3 seed Delaware won it in 1999 and third-place Holy Cross won it in 1980.
Dougher Loves Pritchard: Perhaps no one benefits from the confines of Pritchard Gymnasium better than
Bryan Dougher. The senior guard is shooting 42% from the field and 47% from three-point range in his home games, but only 31% from the field and 29% from three-point range in road/neutral games.
Rebounding Machines: Stony Brook has done a nice job on the glass so far this season, outrebounding opponents by a 5.8 margin (38.2 to 32.4), which leads America East. What’s more impressive is the work on the offensive end, grabbing a league best average of 15.5 offensive rebounds per game. That is leading to an average of 14.3 second chance points per game.
Non-Conference Home Success: The Seawolves went undefeated (5-0) at home during the non-conference season, the first time SBU accomplished the feat in its Div. I history.
The Plus-Minus Game: Plus-minus is attributed to a player by determining how many points are scored for and against while that player is in the game. Leading the Seawolves is Dave Coley, who is a +99 this season. While he is on the floor, SBU is outscoring opponents 524-425.
The Line's the Key: Stony Brook’s win-loss record could be tied to its ability to get to the free throw line more than its opponent. The Seawolves are 6-1 in games in which they have more free throw attempts than their opponents (averaging 22.8 attempts in wins) and 0-5 in games in which they have fewer attempts than their opponents (averaging 11.0 attempts in losses). Last season, Stony Brook was 12-3 when shooting more free throws than its opponent, 3-14 when shooting fewer.
Camera Ready: Stony Brook appeared on television a school-record 11 times in 2010-11, including four broadcasts on the ESPN family of networks. This season, the Seawolves will appear on television at least 18 times, which will shatter the school record. The full schedule, released Nov. 30, includes three national television broadcasts. Stony Brook will host Boston University on Jan. 27 on ESPNU, and will host Maine on Feb. 26 on CBS Sports Network. The Seawolves will also be on CBS Sports Network Feb. 12 at Vermont.
Up Next: Stony Brook has a stiff challenge on Sunday as it hosts SUNY rival Albany in the first game of a Seawolves men’s & women’s basketball doubleheader. Tip-off is at 2 p.m., live on Optimum Local Channel 118.
