The Stony Brook Seawolves (Long Island, NY., American East) went on a 17-2 run down the stretch and recorded a shocking 62-57 upset of the 13th-ranked Washington Huskies Sunday night at Alaska Airlines Arena, ending UW’s 11-game winning streak. The Huskies had a 16-point lead at 13:43 of the second half but couldn’t hold it as Stony Brook defeated a ranked team for the first time in program history.
The loss will probably knock Washington, rated among The Associated Press top 15 for the first time since 2010, out of the national rankings.
“Success is sometimes hard to handle,” said UW coach Lorenzo Romar. “It (a 12-0 start) would have been special. But I didn’t have us as dialed in as we should have been. Defensively, we were lethargic. Offensively, we were impatient. We sleep-walked on both ends of the floor. You don’t want to drop one like this. We’d like to have this one back. Our most important practice of the year will be the next one (Monday).”
Stony Brook accomplished the comeback largely with 3-point shooting. Kameron Mitchell drained four 3-pointers late as the Seawolves methodically whittled away at Washington’s lead, finally tying the score at 57-57 on a Carson Puriefoy 3-pointer with 1:08 to play. Puriefoy went 1-for-11 before he hit that shot.
The Huskies never recovered and, in fact, didn’t score again, Mike Anderson and Nigel-Williams Goss missing last-ditch shots.
The Huskies were looking for a 12-0 non-conference record in advance of their Pac-12 opener Jan. 2 at California. That would have been their best start since 1946-47 and the best start under Romar. But the Huskies couldn’t defend the 3-ball in the second half and also couldn’t protect a five-point lead of 57-52 after two Andrew Andrews free throws with 3:41 remaining.
“This looked like last year’s team at times,” Romar added. “We have to come out and be prepared to go to war in the Bay Area.”
The Huskies raced to a 17-7 lead midway through the first half, led 21-9 with nine minutes left and had a 35-26 lead at halftime. Washington still led 50-40 with 8:58 left, when Stony Brook mounted its comeback.
UW led 57-54 with 1:04 to play, but Williams-Goss missed a floater in the lane and Purifoy converted his 3-pointer on the other end.
The Seawolves, led by Jameel Warney’s 15 points and Mitchell’s 12, closed out with free throws.
Williams-Goss had 10 points, three rebounds and three assists, and center Robert Upshaw 10 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and four blocks off the bench. But Upshaw took an ill-advised shot with a minute to play that caromed off the side of the backboard.
The Huskies had a horrendous shooting night, making only 34.3 percent, including 3-for-10 from 3-point range. Stony Brook went 9-for-18 beyond the arc.
Shawn Kemp Jr. (six points, three rebounds) and Jernard Jerreau (three points) added virtually nothing to Washington’s offense, although Jerreau did contribute 10 rebounds. Andrews scored eight points, but missed nine of his 12 shots.
5 Comments
It was treated like a practice game by both the team and the fans. AA Arena was half full, the players were completely undisciplined and largely left to their own young devices down the stretch. Mo timeouts or at least perceived attempts by Romario to change the tempo when things started slip. ….Its the kind of game that come back to haunt you when the NCAA tourney approaches. Shame on all.
Yawn – what else is new in Romar’s world? Stony Brook was 0-6 this year on the road and had NEVER beaten a ranked team. A first Romar didn’t need on his record and proof this 10-0 start was a mirage. Oh well, back to the 3,000 attendance figures and grim season. Fun while it lasted, but it had felt like Fool’s Gold.
I only question how long Woodward is going to lose money on the second highest grossing revenue sport to support Romar’s very spotty tenure. The losses total well into the millions each season due to poor attendance and lack of leverage for media contracts. It’s especially odd in that Woodward has an excellent record of hiring/retaining high achievers in the UW coaching ranks that accomplish solid results.
Golf, crew, softball, volleyball, baseball and football each come to mind, then there is the aberration that is basketball.
but, but, but, but, but, were gonna be good next year! Romarn’t got us a top 10 recruiting class for 2015! Keep hope alive!
This game was coming as that the recent wins have been something of a struggle. Just wish it didn’t happen at Hec Ed. At least it wasn’t during league play.
“Stony Brook accomplished the comeback largely with 3-point shooting.”
I might add that outscoring the Huskies 17-2 over the final 6:39 of the game (and holding the UW scoreless after the 3:41 mark) might’ve had something to do with it, too. Whatever Stony Brook was doing defensively will be noted by every PAC 12 coach over the next two months.
A loss is just that: One loss. However, you can’t always win at home just by showing up, even against a marginal-at-best America East opponent (albeit one that went 80-27 over the last three seasons). There are no more South Carolina States nor Pacifics remaining on the dance card.