If you really want to dig into college basketball statistics a subscription to KenPom has become a must have. Another site is quickly becoming a go-to for me. Hoop-math.com is run by Jeff Haley and it has some really interesting information. You can subscribe for just $15. (I already have.) Continue reading “NYC Stat Nuggets From Hoop-Math”
Category: Stony Brook
2013 Year In Review
A lot happened during 2013. As we get ready to ring in the new year let’s take a look back. The Big Apple Buckets editorial team picked some of the most memorable moments from the teams, conferences and events we cover. We used Timeline JS to show it all to you. Have a safe and happy New Year! Continue reading “2013 Year In Review”
Stony Brook 76, Loyola (MD) 69
For a majority of the Loyola/Stony Brook contest, it was truly a tale of two halves. After trailing by as many as 16 points deep in the first half, a more energetic Greyhound squad came out reinvigorated for the second stanza. Loyola began to wisely utilize their superior athleticism to their advantage, both in transition and half-court. A switch to a packed-in 2-3 zone made it more difficult for Jameel Warney to touch the ball in the low post. And Dylon Cormier, who came in averaging 23 points per game, was using his elite quickness to attack off the dribble and drive the lane.
A Greyhound 20-7 run to open the second half improbably tied the game at 51 apiece with 9:41 remaining, yet Stony Brook responded swiftly with a Warney turnaround and a Carson Puriefoy driving layup. Loyola would again tie the game late on a R.J. Williams coast to coast layup in transition, yet the Seawolves appeared to be firmly in control when the game was on the line. In Stony Brook’s final 12 possessions, they scored 18 points to close it out.
“We just did a poor job in the first half, and when you dig a hole, it’s so hard to come back,” said G.G. Smith after the game on the Patriot League Network broadcast. “We did a great job tying it up, but when you have guys expending energy trying to come back, we just didn’t have enough energy to finish the game. [Stony Brook] made plays at the end and we didn’t.”
The Seawolves arguably played their best 20 minutes of the season in the first half on Thursday evening. The offense posted 1.19 points per possession, in large part due to Warney’s playmaking with his back to the basket. The Seawolves offense efficiently went through the power forward, as he was touching the ball on nearly every possession. The 6’8” space carver had 10 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocks in the first half. Furthermore, Stony Brook’s other big men, Anthony Mayo and RayShaun McGrew, combined for 12 points. Loyola’s lack of the size struggled to push Steve Pikiell’s big bodies off the low block. Stony Brook held a 16 to 12 rebounding edge heading into halftime, while also shooting a sizzling 61.5% from the floor.
The lousy first half certainly drew the ire of Smith afterwards. “Once again, our big guys are getting beat,” explained Smith. “Jordan (Latham), Franz (Rassman) and (Eric) Laster had 13 points and 6 rebounds. Their big guy (Warney) had 20 points and 11 rebounds. We’re just getting dominated inside again and we have to find a way to get a post presence.”
To Smith and his coaching staff’s credit, a switch to a 2-3 zone after halftime stymied the Stony Brook attack on the offensive end. With the zone purposely sagging in to prevent Warney and the bigs from touching the ball in the low post, the guards began to settle for long-range, low percentage shots. Predictably Stony Brook was unable to maintain their scorching shooting touch in the second half – they made four of eight from three in the first 20 minutes – fueling a Greyhound run.
Rather than settling for difficult mid-range jumpers like they did in the first half, the Greyhounds began to attack the rim. Cormier, who scored a game high 25 points, blew by his defenders and accumulated an impressive 12 free throw attempts – 11 made – in the second half alone. In the end, however, it wasn’t enough as a battled tested Stony Brook team persevered late with the road victory, their third win away from their friendly confines in four tries. Anthony Jackson played well for the Seawolves, scoring 19 points on only nine shot attempts. Puriefoy came off the bench to chip in with nine points and four assists.
Despite Loyola’s spirited comeback in the second half, Smith dwelled on the hole his team dug early on. “It’s effort. It’s just poor effort and that’s my fault, but that’s going to change. We just haven’t had effort to start the game, and we can’t continue to do this. If we continue to do this, it’s going to be a long season.”
In addition to the lack of effort, the interior play of Loyola continues to be a major issue. Coming into tonight’s contest, Loyola was the worst team in the country in defensive rebounding percentage and the 22nd worst in two-point field goal percentage. Also troubling: tonight’s defeat was the fourth time versus four Division I opponents this month that Loyola has failed to break the 1.00 point per possession barrier. Their 9-13 assist to turnover ratio certainly didn’t help.
Luckily for the Greyhounds, they won’t matchup with any Patriot League teams that boast a post presence of Warney’s caliber, with the lone exception of Holy Cross’ Dave Dudzinski. Warney, a virtual lock for America East first team honors at season’s end, is now averaging 16.1 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game. The sophomore’s 126.4 offensive rating and 64.0% effective field goal percentage place him among the nation’s top 150 individuals in both categories.
Both clubs have a game scheduled this upcoming weekend before Christmas. Stony Brook will return home to take on a winless Cornell club, while Loyola gets to host St. Joseph’s.
You can follow Ryan on Twitter @pioneer_pride
Sunday Roundup – Dec. 15
All-in-all Sunday wasn’t a bad day to be a team from the New York City area. Metro area teams were a decisive 3-1 on the day – with the lone loss of course being in the highest profile game of the day – and even Marist earned its first win of the season by winning at College of Charleston. Here’s a quick look at each game. Continue reading “Sunday Roundup – Dec. 15”
Photo Gallery: La Salle 65, Stony Brook 57
We have a photo gallery from Saturday’s Holiday Festival game between La Salle and Stony Brook. The Explorers won 65-57 at Madison Square Garden in the first ever meeting between the two programs.
John Templon breaks down the Seawolves struggles late in the second half, when they went cold from the field for just under four minutes. After the game La Salle head coach Dr. John Giannini gave comments about one-bid leagues and their conference tournaments. Coaches and players talked about playing at the Garden for the first time, most of whom said they had never been to the Garden until Saturday.
Ryan Restivo covers the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and America East conference for Big Apple Buckets. You can follow Ryan on Twitter @ryanarestivo or contact Ryan at rrestivo[at]nycbuckets.com.
Stony Brook, La Salle on Playing at Madison Square Garden
On Saturday La Salle met Stony Brook for the first time in the two programs histories at Madison Square Garden at the Holiday Festival.
The Explorers got the better of the Seawolves, pulling out a 65-57 victory after outscoring Stony Brook in the second half 43-26 to pull away in the first game of a doubleheader event.
La Salle head coach Dr. John Giannini said coming to Madison Square Garden for the first time with his team was a unique experience.
“It’s redone. I’m a child of the 70’s so I would have loved to come in and see what the place like was then, but the exterior is iconic,” Giannini said. “Just driving up to it you know you’re going to someplace special. I’ve seen Led Zepplin go through those tunnels over here and I thought that was really cool.”
“Once you get on the court though they’ve made it nice, it’s not old, it doesn’t feel like the 70’s. Once you’re actually on the floor it seems like the Staples Center or [Chesapeake Energy Arena]. We’ve been in nice arenas before and once you’re on the court it’s a real nice arena, but coming and going through the bowels and just knowing the history of it is really really cool.”
Junior Steve Zack, who recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds said that he was happy with his first ever experience at the Garden.
“I’ve never been here and when I walked in I was in amazement of how nice this place was,” Zack said. “To go out there and play against a good big guy like [Jameel] Warney, and he had his way first half, but to go out there second half and shut him down and do my part on the rebounds. I’m not really worried about points, I’d rather get my team 15 rebounds than 10 points, but they just come too. It was a really fun experience playing here, I definitely want to come back.”
When asked, Zack said “not in the NIT” when adding that he would like to be back soon. Madison Square Garden will, along with hosting the National Invitational Tournament semifinals and finals, host the NCAA tournament East regionals this March. It will be the first time the Garden has hosted the NCAA tournament in 53 years when they host regional semifinals and a final on the tournament’s second weekend.
Stony Brook sophomore Jameel Warney, who scored 15 points and pulled in 8 rebounds said it was a great experience to be at the Garden for the Holiday Festival.
“It was a great experience for me and my teammates,” Warney said. “Hopefuly before me and Ahmad [Walker]’s years are out at Stony Brook, we can play here one more time.”
“Just to be here is awesome, I’m thankful that we were invited,” Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell said. “I’m thankful to Holiday Festival, ECAC, MSG people for inviting us. It’s great for recutiting, I think our kids enjoy playing here. I just wish we played better, I thought we were ready to play a good game today. I thought we had a good week of preparation for this, but I’m disappointed that we didn’t play up to what I expect.”
Ryan Restivo covers the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and America East conference for Big Apple Buckets. You can follow Ryan on Twitter @ryanarestivo or contact Ryan at rrestivo[at]nycbuckets.com.
Dr. John Giannini on America East Tournament, Stony Brook
When asked about Stony Brook’s program after a 65-57 win at Madison Square Garden Saturday, La Salle head coach Dr. John Giannini said he would like to see the format change in one bid league’s like the America East.
“I think they’re really good they’re winning 20 plus games a year consistently,” Giannini said. “My opinion doesn’t count for anything, but I’m allowed to give it I guess, I don’t like conference tournaments.”
Continue reading “Dr. John Giannini on America East Tournament, Stony Brook”
Five Thoughts From Stony Brook’s Loss To La Salle
Stony Brook’s difficult second half doomed the Seawolves against La Salle on Saturday morning at Madison Square Garden. The Explorers, coming off a Sweet 16 appearance last season, made the plays they had to in order to erase a 9-point halftime deficit and pull out a win in the Holiday Festival.
Continue reading “Five Thoughts From Stony Brook’s Loss To La Salle”
La Salle 65, Stony Brook 57
Stony Brook, leading by as many as 12 in the first half, found the worst time to go cold from the field Saturday at Madison Square Garden against La Salle.
The Seawolves scored just 26 points in the second half and did not make a field goal for a four minute span when they needed it most. During that time, the Explorers extended a close two-point game into a 10-point lead and beat the Seawolves 65-57.
“Our guards too are very important to our team and they did a good job of bottling up our guards,” Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell said. “It still goes down to a few possessions too if we could have jut broken through, I thought we could have made this a little more interesting.” Continue reading “La Salle 65, Stony Brook 57”
Stony Brook’s Pikiell, Coley, Puriefoy on Playing La Salle at MSG
Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell knew he built a challenging schedule in July and it will continue to toughen his 6-3 team as they head to Madison Square Garden to face La Salle as part of the Holiday Festival on Saturday. Continue reading “Stony Brook’s Pikiell, Coley, Puriefoy on Playing La Salle at MSG”
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