Stony Brook dominates Central Connecticut for Geno Ford's 200th win
Stony Brook guard Jahlil Jenkins drives the lane for two points against Central Connecticut State, Wednesday, December 14, 2021 at Island Federal Credit Union Arena in Stony Brook. Credit: George A Faella
The road to 200 career wins is long and arduous, but it doesn’t mean the last, crowning victory has to be.
Stony Brook men’s basketball didn’t keep coach Geno Ford in suspense for long, leading from the very beginning and putting together a dominant 87-67 win over Central Connecticut Wednesday night at Island Federal Arena – giving him 200 wins over 11 seasons. It was the Seawolves’ (7-5) third win in a row and fifth in the last six games. The Blue Devils fall to 2-9.
"Honestly, it means you’ve coached a lot of games and you’re old," Ford joked. "We’ve got a lot of good players and I’ve been lucky…It’s a very rewarding job."
Jahlil Jenkins had a game-high 21 points with two steals and five assists and became the fourth active D-I player with 1800 career points and 500 assists. Anthony Roberts scored 19. Stony Brook went 14-for-27 from three-point range and shot 54.8% from the field, and had five players score in double figures.
Tyler Stephenson-Moore and Jenkins’ back-to-back threes about five minutes into the first half kicked off an 18-0 Stony Brook run that gave the Seawolves the 22-7 advantage. It was their biggest run of the year, soundly beating a previous high of 13-0. Stony Brook hit four from downtown during that stretch – an indicator of how much they’ve improved from the perimeter. They came into the game third in the America East on three-pointers made, compared to last in the conference the previous season.
They only piled on from there, at one point leading by 22 points in the first half. Jenkins reached his milestone when he recorded his second assist of the night in the first half – a kick out to Juan Felix Rodriguez for a baseline three with 2:57 left.
"It’s a blessing," Jenkins said. "There’s the work I’ve put in over the years and just continue to get better each year. I’ve been around some great coaches that have helped me get better and great teammates."
Stony Brook Seawolves Geno Ford gestures in the second half of an NCAA men's basketball game against the American University Eagles at Island Federal Arena on Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The Seawolves went into the break up 47-30, their highest first-half output of the season. They shot 8-for-15 from three in the frame, and 52.9% from the field. They also dominated the paint, putting up 16 first-half points there to the Blue Devils’ 4.
Stony Brook didn’t relent after that, at one point leading by as many as 28 in the second.
Stephenson-Moore credited the victory to Stony Brook’s burgeoning team chemistry.
"It was kind of a struggle in the beginning," with the slew of transfers, he said. "But now we’re starting to figure each other out and everyone knows their role, so I definitely say chemistry (has improved)…There’s just a lot of trust, knowing we have a lot of good scorers on the team, a lot of good rebounders on the team, and just seeing everyone is a team player, it makes everyone else comfortable."
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
