STONY BROOK, N.Y. — In a rivalry series that dates back to 1973, the Stony Brook men's basketball team welcomes Hofstra for the 30th Battle of Long Island at Island Federal Arena on Wednesday night. Hofstra has won the last five editions of the series, with the Seawolves' last win coming at home in 2015 over its Nassau County foes.

THE GRITTY
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Island Federal Arena - Stony Brook, N.Y.
Television: SNY (login with appropriate cable package required)
Streaming: ESPN3
Live Stats: Sidearm Stats

SCOUTING THE PRIDE

• Hofstra enters the Battle of Long Island on Wednesday night on a four-game win streak after its 88-69 victory over Bucknell over the weekend.
• Aaron Estrada recorded 24 points to lead the squad, adding six assists and four rebounds. Zach Cooks (19) and Omar Silverio (16) joined him with double-figure scoring.
• The Pride lost four of their first five, but two of those were single-digit margins to nationally-ranked opponents No. 15 Houston and No. 20 Maryland.
• The Pride enter Tuesday's action 17th in turnover rate and 20th in 2-point percentage but struggle defensively, ranking in the 300's in both 2-point and 3-point percentage.

SERIES HISTORY

• Wednesday night will be the 30th all-time meeting between the Long Island rivals, with Hofstra holding a 24-5 series lead.
• Holding a second-half lead as large as 23 last season, Stony Brook roared back to cut the deficit to three but were not able to complete the comeback in a 72-67 defeat.
• The last four games have been decided by single digits.

OFFENSIVE OPPORTUNITY

An offense that was on fire before Saturday night's matchup with Wagner will have an opportunity against a struggling Hofstra defense to get back on track. The Pride enter Tuesday's action ranked 331st in Effective FG% Defense, per KenPom.

They also sit 311th in 2-point FG% defense and 320th in 3-point FG% defense. The Pride boast a threatening offense to go against the Seawolves D, ranking 20th nationally in 2-point FG% and 38th in 3-point FG%.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL

Wednesday night's matchup will feature a pair of squads who do a good job making the most of their possessions, with both teams inside the Top 26 in KenPom turnover rate entering Tuesday's action. The Pride turn it over on 14.5 percent of possessions, while the Seawolves are a half percent up at 15.0.

Stony Brook is among the national leaders in turnovers, sitting 14th in the nation in fewest turnovers and 28th in the country in turnovers per game.

SHIFTING GEARS

With new talent comes a finding of the rotation and head coach Geno Ford has used the non-conference schedule to do just that. The Seawolves have used six different starting lineups in seven games this year, with the Wagner five being the first repeat lineup of 2021-22.

As of Tuesday, Stony Brook joins a club of Eastern Illinois (seven) and UTEP (six) that have used that number.

QUALITY, NOT QUANTITY

With the release of the first NET rankings came a quick snapshot of what the NCAA Tournament could look like come March and the Seawolves have positioned themselves well from a strength of schedule perspective.

They are one of three teams that have secured a Quadrant 3 win with its road victory over Yale. It will have another opportunity on Wednesday night, as Hofstra currently falls in that designation.

Stony Brook will have one more Q1 contest, a matchup at Florida on Dec. 22, and a pair of Q2 matchups at Vermont (Jan. 12) and at New Hampshire (Jan. 29).

RECORD-BREAKING HOME COOKIN'

After the Seawolves played just 10 of its 23 games at home last season, Stony Brook will break a program record in that department this season, hosting 17 games at Island Federal Arena.

This will include hosting the Battle of Long Island on Decmeber 8 against Hofstra, part of a six-game homestand and seven home games in the last month of the calendar year. Fans will also see a new team on a regular basis, with NJIT making its rounds to each arena for the first time as member of the America East.

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