Junior guard Elijah Olaniyi shooting the ball in the season opener against Yale. Olaniyi led the Seawolves with 28 points to beat Vermont on Jan 8th. CREDIT: JIM HARRISON STONY BROOK ATHLETICS
by Kenneth Fermin
Fans have associated the phrase “Strong Island” with Stony Brook Athletics after a particularly dominant and victorious performance. The Stony Brook Basketball programs showcased that “Strong Island” mentality on Wednesday, January 8th, picking up impressive victories. Men’s Basketball stunned the heavy America East-favorite Vermont, 81-77, in Burlington, VT, snapping a seven game skid. Women’s Basketball improved its overall record to 15-1 by topping the Catamounts, 67-49 at Island Federal Arena.
Stony Brook 81, Vermont 77
With less than 40 seconds left on the clock, Stony Brook needed one final push to put away defending-champion Vermont, after Catamounts junior guard Stef Smith tied the contest at 76. The Seawolves came out of a quick timeout and found junior guard Elijah Olaniyi, their leading scorer, who drew a foul and sank his shots at the charity-stripe. The Catamounts found senior forward Anthony Lamb, their star performer, who earned a trip to the free throw line on the ensuing possession.
Lamb, a 78 percent free throw shooter this season, converted his first attempt but struck out on the second. Olaniyi swooped over Vermont’s defense and hustled for the board, earning another trip to the free throw line off a foul call. The grab saved the game for Stony Brook, as Vermont failed to tie once again and fell to the Seawolves for the first time in three seasons.
“It feels good because I feel like we earned a little bit of respect,” Olaniyi said in a postgame press release. “Before, nobody really thought we could do it. We came in here and showed we could win on their court. Hopefully we can take care of business when we see them later in the season.”
Rebounding played a big factor in the high-scoring affair. While Vermont had several players record multiple rebounds, Stony Brook relied heavily on Olaniyi and redshirt-junior Andrew Garcia for cleaning up the boards and starting fastbreaks. Olaniyi led the game with 11 rebounds while Garcia trailed behind him with 10.
The game was a true battle of one-upmanship, statistically speaking, as the teams were nearly on the same level throughout. Stony Brook sank 18 of its free throws, while Vermont converted 19– the Catamounts knocked down 12 shots from behind the arc, while the Seawolves hit 13. This helped result in 11 ties and 17 led changes down to the final minute of the game between the two best overall teams in the America East.
The contest looked like it was going to get out of hand early after Vermont sunk its first four shot attempts and put Stony Brook in an early, 10-2 hole. But, the Seawolves fired back and even went ahead 21-19 off a redshirt-junior Makale Foreman 3-pointer for their first lead of the night, with 10:14 remaining in the first half. That shot set the course for an entertaining back and forth battle that saw six lead changes in the first, as both teams shot above 45 percent from the floor.
Olaniyi finished the contest with 28 points and earned his third career double-double. Foreman scored 23 points including 5 shots from behind the arc and Garcia finished with 14 points and 10 boards. Smith led Vermont with 28 points and 10 free throw conversions while Lamb ended the game with 23 points.
Stony Brook returns home to battle the New Hampshire Wildcats on Saturday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m. It will be broadcast on ESPN+ and WUSB 90.1 FM.
Stony Brook 67, Vermont 49
Stony Brook knew Vermont would be playing with a chip on its shoulder, after eliminating the Catamounts in the 2019 America East Quarterfinals. Another sluggish second quarter performance by the Seawolves wiped away their 22-14 first quarter lead. Now, Vermont was in the driver’s seat entering halftime, up 32-30.
The Seawolves needed a catalyst in the second half– and found the America East Player of the Week– junior forward India Pagan. The foward’s second half-opening layup helped kickstart a 37-point half for Stony Brook en route to the 67-49 win.
Pagan led the contest with 20 points and converted nine of her 12 field goal attempts on the floor. The junior has shot above 60 percent and earned at least 20 points inside in three of the last four games. The forward credited her coaching crew, especially associate head coach Jeff Williams, for her success in the paint.
“Everybody on the coaching staff has helped me some way in the paint and in my game,” Pagan said in an interview prior to the game. “Whether it’s defense , footwork , mental aspect , my offense, or just giving me words of encouragement , I remember every single coach having an impact on me. Coach Jeff is the post coach and if I had to chose one coach it would be him. He’s been very tough on me but I know he does it because he sees the potential in me and believes in me.”
Strong defense also contributed to Stony Brook’s victory over Vermont. While the Catamounts shot 60 percent in the first quarter and senior forward Hanna Crymble led the half with 12 points, the Seawolves converted 17 points off of turnovers. Sophomore guard Anastasia Warren’s third quarter steal and midrange make stopped Stony Brook from ever trailing in the contest again.
Stony Brook improved its winning streak to 12 straight. The streak is all-the-more impressive considering the elite company the team joins with it. Only six NCAA Women’s Basketball teams have an active winning streak consisting of 12 or more straight victories. The other five are No.1- ranked UConn, No.3-ranked Oregon State, No.8-ranked UCLA, No.9-ranked NC State and No.16-ranked Gonzaga– all ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 poll as of the time of publication. The Seawolves are the only team from the group that earned the winning streak while not receiving a vote.
Stony Brook will travel to Durham, NH to face the New Hampshire Wildcats on Saturday, Jan. 11 at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3.
