PRINCETON, N.J. - The Seawolves nearly pulled off the late comeback on the road on Wednesday after a second-half surge, but ultimately fell just short in a 69-59 loss at Princeton.
How It Happened
- Both teams traded layups through the opening minutes of the game, before the Tigers picked up the first three-pointer of the night at 15:14 to go up 12-6. The Seawolves immediately responded with a triple of their own and Morris Ugusuk knocked down a wide-open three.
- Layups from Ethan Simmon, Quin Gorman, and Bryan Ndjonga would keep the deficit to single digits as the Seawolves entered the final 10 minutes of the half trailing 19-15. Stony Brook would soon go on a three-and-a-half minute scoreless streak as Princeton extended its advantage to 27-15 with under seven to play.
- The Seawolves would be held to just six more points in the rest of the half, four of them coming at the line, as they entered halftime down 39-21.
- Ugusuk came right out of the gates and knocked down his second triple of the night to begin the second half. Özgür Cengiz followed up with a three of his own, before Jaden Daughtry and Ugusuk made a pair of layups to give the Seawolves a 10-0 run to begin the second. Ndjonga would keep it going with an and-one, followed by another triple from Cengiz to cap off an 18-0 run that began with 16 seconds left in the first first and ran all the way to 16:42 in the second.
- Now trailing just 39-37, Stony Brook soon found itself down by 10 three minutes later after a 12-4 run by the Tigers. Cengiz's third bucket from behind the arc would cut it back down to 51-44 heading into the final 10 minutes.
- Cengiz would come through again with six and a half to play after making the and-one to keep it a seven-point game. Then, with under five on the clock, Collin O'Connor picked up a steal at half court and fed it to Ugusuk who cashed in on the and-one to further cut the lead down to 58-54.
- With two minutes left, Daughtry added two more short-range baskets to keep the deficit below 10. The Seawolves did not have a last-second push to out them over the top, however, as the Tigers were able to hold them off over the final 60 seconds.
Stats and Notes
- Cengiz made it three straight games with 10+ points and multiple three-pointers to begin his collegiate career as he paced the Seawolves with 16 points and three baskets from behind the arc.
- Ugusuk also extended his streak of games in double figures to three as well after finishing with 12.
- Daughtry picked up his first game in double figures as a Seawolf after making seven from the field to end the night with 14 points. He also led the team in rebounds for the second game in a row with seven boards.
- Stony Brook outscored Princeton 38-30 in the second half.
Up Next
The Seawolves return home next week to take on SUNY Potsdam on Tuesday, November 17 at 6:31 p.m. The game will be streamed live on FloCollege and broadcast on SNY.
For an inside look at the Seawolves men's basketball program, be sure to follow them on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
