The Seahawks will visit Stony Brook for the first time

WILMINGTON, North Carolina UNCW will make its first appearance at Island Federal Arena early Saturday when the Seahawks wrap up a two-game Colonial Athletic Association men’s basketball road trip against league newcomer Stony Brook.

The Seahawks, 15-6 overall and 5-3 in the CAA, hit Stony Brook Thursday night in Hempstead after a 70-46 loss to Hofstra. Stony Brook is located 56 kilometers northeast of Hempstead on Long Island.

The Seawolves carry a 7-12 overall record and a 3-3 CAA mark into the matinee. Stony Brook lost at home to Northeastern on Thursday, 79-66.

The UNCW-SBU game can be heard on 95.9 FM The Breeze with Mike Vaccaro on the call starting at 12:45 p.m. The video will be broadcast on FloHoops.com.

Nationally ranked Charleston is atop the CAA with an unblemished 8-0 league record. UNCW fell to fifth in the 13-team league behind Charleston (8-0), Hofstra (6-2), Towson (5-2) and Drexel (5-2).

The Seahawks struggled through a tough second half as Hofstra ran away Takayo Siddlen club in a battle for second place late Thursday at the Mack Sports Complex. Redshirt senior guards Tyler Thomas and Aaron Estrada combined for 45 points in the conference win. Thomas poured in 28 points on 19 second-half shots — and Estrada added 17 points for the Pride, who shot 52.7 percent on the night, including 59.3 percent in the second half. Hofstra outscored UNCW 40-16 in the final period.

Senior Warden Maleeck Harden-Hayes was the only Seahawk in double figures with 13 points. UNCW shot 40 percent overall and just 31.6 percent over the final 20 minutes.

UNCW’s 46 points at Hofstra represented the fewest points Takayo Siddlethree seasons in Wilmington. The 24-point deficit also matched the largest loss in a CAA game in a 79-55 loss to Towson on February 17, 2022.

Stony Brook, meanwhile, jumped out to a 32-31 halftime edge before Northeastern rallied in the second half at Island Federal Arena. Graduate forward Frankie Policelli paced the Seawolves with 22 points on 9-12 shooting, including 15 in the first half. The New Hartford, NY, native anchored three Seawolves in double figures in front of 1,651 fans.

The Seawolves joined the CAA this year after 21 years of association with the America East Conference. SBU joined Hampton, Monmouth and NC A&T as newcomers in the loop in 2022-23.

Although UNCW has never faced Stony Brook, the Seahawks have played against fourth-year SBU head coach Gene Ford. UNCW dropped an 83-64 decision to Ford’s old team, Kent State, in the opening round game of the South Padre Island Invitational on November 23, 2008 in Kent, Ohio.

Ford was a star at Ohio University from 1993-97 and led the Bobcats in scoring as a junior (18.9 ppg) and as a senior (18.7 ppg). He still holds the OU school record with 19 free throws in a game.

Ford is his fifth stop on the coaching carousel. He has held head coaching positions at Shawnee State, Kent State, Muskingum, Bradley and Stony Brook. Ford has five postseason appearances on his resume.

Stony Brook’s two seven-footers are the second and third seven-footers the Seahawks have tackled this season. UNCW also faced UConn’s Donovan Clingan (7-2, 265) in the fourth game of the campaign on November 18, 2022.

The Seahawks are playing their eighth afternoon game of the season. UNCW is 6-1 in day starts with only loss to William & Mary (5 p.m.) on Jan. 14 at Trask Coliseum.

The Seahawks have 10 games left in the regular season – five at home and five on the road. UNCW still has home games remaining against Monmouth, NC A&T, Northeastern, Stony Brook and Towson.

After Saturday’s early tip-off, the Seahawks return to coastal North Carolina to open a two-game series that begins Thursday, Jan. 26 against Monmouth.

OPENING TIPS: Seahawks tip off at 1 p.m. for first time this season UNCW has had 11 different kickoff times in 2022-23. The Seahawks have dropped three of their last four rounds after going on a school-record 13-game winning streak. The Seahawks have won 53.8 percent of their games. games (35-31) against 11 Empire State teams Seawolves are 5-3 at home Seahawks are 5-4 in true road games Tyler Thomas’ 28 points Thursday were the most by an opposing player this season UNCW’s 16 points in the second game. the half was the fewest by a team goal since this year’s break. Island Federal Arena has a capacity of 4,160.