STONY BROOK, N.Y. – The Stony Brook men's basketball team extended its winning streak to four on Tuesday night, defeating Norfolk State 79-73 in Norfolk, Va., withstanding the Spartans' heavy second-half push that had them within three with under four minutes to go after the Seawolves' lead ballooned to 18 early in the second half.
 
Senior Jaron Cornish (Abaco, Bahamas) matched a career-high with 22 points, 14 of which came in the second half, and five rebounds, leading the Seawolves to victory for the team's fifth win away from home this season.
 
Sophomore Jeff Otchere (Bronx, N.Y.) recorded his first double-figure scoring game as a Seawolf, putting in 12 on 3-for-5 shooting, along with seven rebounds. He was one of four players with 10 or more that included redshirt-junior Akwasi Yeboah (Chigwell, England) with 16 and redshirt-sophomore Andrew Garcia (Harlem, N.Y.) with 11.
 
BOALS' REACTION
"Really proud of the way the guys stepped up tonight and do what they did in order to pull out this victory. We were able to take care of the ball in the second half and that was definitely key to us winning. We had to play some young guys and younger lineups and they really showed a lot. I'm really happy about the performance that Jaron [Cornish] put together. He was able to lead us down the stretch and to the win."

HIGHLIGHTS

• The first five minutes started even, with both teams splitting the first 12 points evenly. After Norfolk State took the lead, five quick points for the Seawolves put them ahead. Garcia made a reverse layup to tie things then Cornish added a triple to put Stony Brook on top.
• The Seawolves then got hot from deep, making five of six from long range to open up a 25-18 lead with 7:22 to go. Cornish chipped in five during the 11-4 stretch in favor of Stony Brook.
• After the Spartans cut the lead to 35-32, Yeboah drained a pair of free throws and sophomore Corry Long (Cincinnati, Ohio)made a layup at the buzzer to put Stony Brook up seven at the break.
• Yeboah powered Stony Brook out of the break, making his first three shots and putting the Seawolves up as big as 18 at 53-35 with 15:36 to play in the half.
• Norfolk State was able to come back though, going on an 11-2 run in a four-minute span, but Stony Brook's lead remained double digits at 11. 
• The Spartans cut the lead to single digits, getting it all the way to three with 3:58 to go, but Stony Brook withstood the run, outscoring them 9-6 down the stretch to take home the victory.

NOTES

• This is Stony Brook's first 6-1 start in the Division I era.
• Cornish's only other 22-point game came against Long Island rivals Hofstra on December 12, 2017. 
• He now has two games in double figures this season, with 14 on his career.
• Otchere's 12 points surpassed his previous Seawolves high of nine that he had earlier this season against Molloy. His Division I high was eight against Holy Cross. 
• The Seawolves have now won five in a row away from home for the third time in the last four seasons.
• Stony Brook became the only team in the country with four true road wins this season, entering Wednesday.
• This is the fourth time in seven games this season that the Seawolves have outrebounded an opponent by 15 or more.
• The Seawolves recorded season highs shooting the basketball, finishing 55.3 percent from the field and 47.4 percent from three-point range.

UP NEXT
The Seawolves return home for the first of four December games at Island Federal Arena, hosting the Bobcats of Quinnipiac on Saturday night at 7 p.m.
 
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