Mixed bag for local hoops teams

Stony Brook got exactly what it wanted over the weekend: two wins. The Seawolves won a tough game at Marist and followed that with a 93-57 win over Mount Ida at Pritchard Gymnasium. No need to talk about the win over Mt. Ida. The Seawolves bolted to a 41-3 lead in that one.

The win at Marist is what needs to be discussed. Stony Brook showed some real moxie down the stretch as Marist tied the score at 52 with 3:25 left. But junior guard Dave Coley went 4-for-4 from the free throw line and hit a three-pointer in the last 3:25.

Considering the style of basketball Stony Brook plays, finding someone to be the offensive star at crunch time is important. Having Coley with senior forward Tommy Brenton is almost like having two coaches on the floor. Both players are experienced and have played in a ton of tight games.

Hofstra drops two, but the outlook is still positive
The first two games certainly didn’t go as planned for Hofstra, which dropped both games by a total of 58 points. The most recent setback, an 83-54, loss at Purdue probably scared the daylights out of many Pride fans. But it’s worth noting that Hofstra played both games without Penn State transfer Taran Buie and UConn transfer Jamal Coombs-McDaniel.

There’s no guarantee Hofstra would’ve won either game with the two, but we know for sure the margin of defeat wouldn’t have been so high. Sufficed to say Hofstra fans shouldn’t worry because help is on the way. Buie and Coombs-McDaniel were suspended for the first two games of the season for violating team rules.

One positive note to take away from the losses was the play of freshman forward Jimmy Hall, who scored 17 in the loss to Purdue and had 11 points and 12 rebounds in Friday’s 91-62 loss to Monmouth. We knew before the season Hofstra was going to have to find some scoring punch from one of its newcomers in the frontcourt.

Adding Coombs-McDaniel to the frontcourt mix can’t be a bad thing.

More local news
Iona started the season on a high note, knocking off Denver at home, 65-58. Manhattan had no answers in a 79-51 loss at Louisville. But it’s worth noting that leading scorer and former Roslyn high school standout George Beamon (ankle) didn’t play. But Rhamel Brown had a great day with 18 points and 15 rebounds. LIU-Brooklyn struggled from three-point range (2-16) in a 77-74 loss to Morehead State at the Barclays Center.