STONY BROOK, N.Y. – The Seawolves started 2022 with a bang as they knocked off Hartford, 77-39, on Sunday afternoon in their first game of the New Year. Stony Brook improved to 10-2, 1-1 America East and graduate forward
Leighah-Amori Wool netted her 1,000
th career point in the win.
The 38-point margin of victory was the Seawolves' second-largest margin of victory this season (defeated Delaware State by 41 points on Nov. 9). The 38-point margin of victory was also Stony Brook's largest over a fellow America East opponent since it earned a 42-point win over UMass Lowell on February 6, 2017.
The Seawolves locked in defensively and limited Hartford to 39 points on 29.2 percent shooting from the field. The 39 points surrendered were the fewest that Stony Brook has allowed in a game this season and the fewest since it held Hofstra to 38 points on November 13, 2019. It was also the fewest points that it surrendered against an America East opponent since New Hampshire scored 37 points on February 16, 2019.
Stony Brook led wire-to-wire and controlled a 17-9 lead after the first quarter of play. Junior guard
Gigi Gonzalez paced the Seawolves with seven points in the opening frame, while Wool and sophomore forward
Kelis Corley each tallied five points in the first. Stony Brook forced eight turnovers and held Hartford to 25.0 percent shooting from the field in the first quarter.
The defensive intensity was on full display in the second quarter as the Seawolves limited the Hawks to just four points in the frame. With 6:10 to play in the second quarter, Wool absorbed contact to convert a driving layup and knocked down the free-throw to finish the three-point play. The made layup gave Wool her 1,000
th career point as she entered the game just seven points away from the milestone. The graduate finished the contest with 17 points.
Stony Brook took a 35-13 lead into the halftime break. The Seawolves' lead was amplified by a 23-4 run that lasted 11:50. The Hawks scored only four points in the second quarter as the Seawolves held them to just 17.4 percent shooting from the field and forced 14 turnovers.
The Seawolves carried the momentum in the second half as they went on to outscore Hartford, 42-26, over the final two quarters of play. Stony Brook had three student-athletes finish the game in double figures and was fueled by outrebounding the Hawks, 53-33.
Graduate forward
India Pagan led the team with 18 points, while Wool had an aforementioned 17 points, and Gonzalez finished the game with 13 points. The 53 rebounds were the most in a game this season by the Seawolves and their most since they pulled down 56 boards against NJIT on January 24, 2021.
STATS AND NOTES
- Wool hit a major career milestone as she recorded her 1,000th career point in the victory. She finished the game with a season-high 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field and pulled down four rebounds. The 17 points were also the most points that she scored in a game as a member of the Seawolves.
- Pagan scored 18 points on 7-of-19 shooting and pulled down eight rebounds. The forward moved into 12th-place on the Seawolves' all-time scoring list with 1,220 career points as she surpassed Sabre Proctor (1,205 points).
- Gonzalez totaled 13 points, a career-high eight assists, and four rebounds. It was the ninth time this season that she scored in double figures and fourth time that she dished out five or more assists in a game.
- Senior guard Anastasia Warren filled the stat sheet with seven points, eight assists, eight rebounds, and three steals. Her eight assists and eight rebounds were both one shy of her career-high in each respective category.
- Junior guard Veronica Charles came off the bench to score four points and pull down a career-high 11 rebounds (eight offensive rebounds, three defensive rebounds).
- Corley scored eight points and grabbed a career-high tying eight rebounds in her third start of the season.
- Freshman forward Elizabeth Field scored a season-high seven points and pulled down three rebounds, while senior guard Courtney Furr scored three points and recorded three rebounds of her own.
- All eight Seawolves who played in the game scored as the team put up 77 points. It was the seventh time this season that Stony Brook scored at least 70 points in a game and are 7-0 in those contests.
- The Seawolves earned their 10th win of the season and clinched their 10th consecutive season with 10 wins or more dating back to 2012-13.
- Stony Brook improved to 6-0 at home this season and is 43-6 at Island Federal Arena since the start of the 2018-19 season.
- The Seawolves dished out 21 assists, which are tied for their second-most in a game this season. It marked the third time this season that they recorded 20 or more assists in a game.
- Stony Brook shot a perfect 12-of-12 from the free-throw line. It outscored Hartford, 44-8, in the paint and forced a season-high 24 turnovers, which led to 18 points.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
"I'm really proud of the way we responded today, it was tough the last time we were out here playing. I'm proud that we bounced back and we're getting back to what we do and doing what we do is really important. I told them today, that we have to respect Hartford, but a lot of this is about us. We have to feel more confident in what we're doing and we have to win the glass, and we did win the glass, emphatically, and I'm really happy about that. I'm proud of our whole team, we had 14 points off the bench. We're getting back to team basketball even though we're missing some pieces. I think it's good for V (
Veronica Charles), Courtney (Furr), and Liza (
Elizabeth Field) to get this experience and contribute today, they needed that. It was an all-around team effort and I'm proud of them," said head coach
Ashley Langford.
"Just pushing the tempo like coach says, we want to get out and we want to have fun and push it as much as we can so we can get easy buckets and get back on the defensive end to get more," said Gonzalez.
"I thrive when my teammates thrive, I'm definitely a team player. Seeing Gigi push and running and we're definitely down so I know she's really pushing right now so it makes me want to run. I really do believe team chemistry plays a big part because we are so close off the court and it shows on the court and I think that's why we thrive," said Wool.
NEXT UP
The Seawolves are back on the court on Wednesday, January 5, at 7 p.m., when they begin a two-game road trip against UMBC. Following the meeting with the Retrievers, Stony Brook heads to Maine to face the Black Bears on Sunday, January 9, at 1 p.m.
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