CHARLESTON, S.C. — Despite a 27-point effort from
CJ Luster II, Stony Brook fell to Charleston, 81-74, on Thursday evening at TD Arena. The Seawolves raced out to a 15-point advantage but the Cougars' hot-second half pushed them past Stony Brook in the nationally televised affair in South Carolina.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Stony Brook raced out to a 15-0 advantage, holding Charleston without a point over the opening 5:32.
- The Seawolves connected on 7-of-11 from the floor to start the evening, while the Cougars missed on nine straight to begin the night.
- Stony Brook led 21-6 with 9:30 remaining in the opening stanza before Charleston ripped off eight straight points and held the Seawolves without a made field goal for more than four minutes.
- Luster stretched Stony Brook's lead to double-digits again, 28-18, after connecting on his third trifecta of the first half with less than six minutes on the clock.
- Charleston finished the final five minutes of the first half strong, whittling its deficit down to four points, 36-32, at the break.
- The Cougars scored the first nine points of the second half, turning the four-point deficit into a five-point advantage, their first lead of the evening.
- Luster ended a Seawolves' drought to start the second half by scoring 10 points over a span of three-plus minutes to even the contest at 48-48 with 13 minutes to play.
- The game of runs continued, seeing Charleston score 17 of the next 24 points to construct a 10-point lead, 65-55, as the clock ticked under eight minutes to play.
- Stony Brook battled back, trimming its deficit to two points, 68-66, with five minutes remaining.
- The Cougars used a late 11-0 run to open up a 79-66 advantage and ultimately close out the come-from-behind victory over the Seawolves.
STATS AND NOTES
- Luster paced the Seawolves offensively, finishing with a game-high 27 points. He shot 10-of-18 from the field and buried a career-high seven three pointers.
- The seven three-pointers made by Luster are the most individually by a Seawolf since Tyler Stephenson-Moore connected on seven in last year's CAA Championship against Charleston.
- Luster has connected on five or more shots from beyond the arc five times this season.
- Luster registered double-digit points for the 15th time this season and has reached 20 points in six of his last eight games.
- Four other Seawolves scored in double-figures: Andre Snoddy (13), Leon Nahar (12), Collin O'Connor (10) and Ben Wight (10).
- Nahar's 12 points were a new career high. He entered play with eight makes from three-point range this season, hitting a new career-high four shots from beyond the arc tonight.
- Snoddy finished two points shy of a second straight double-double. He scored in double-figures for the eighth time this season and for the third straight game.
- O'Connor handed out seven assists, setting a new personal best. He has 13 assists in his last two games.
- Stony Brook converted on 50 percent of its threes in the first half, while Charleston connected on just 2-of-11 from downtown. The Cougars turned it around in the second half, shooting 55 percent (6-11) from deep.
- The Seawolves knocked down 12 threes, one shy of a season-best mark. It marked the third time this season that Stony Brook hit double-digit threes.
- Stony Brook fell to 0-8 all-time against Charleston.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
"Our guys did a great job putting us in position to win the game on the free throw line down two with five minutes to go. Charleston was able to get an offensive rebound and score and they spurted away from us late," head coach Geno Ford noted. "I was happy with the aggressiveness and tenacity we showed for much of the night. We are playing better as of late and have a tough one on Saturday at UNC Wilmington."
UP NEXT
Stony Brook continues its swing through the south, facing UNC Wilmington on Saturday, February 1. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 pm from Trask Coliseum, with the contest streaming on FloCollege.
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