Jaron Cornish helps Stony Brook clinch No. 2 seed in America East Tournament
Stony Brook guard Jaron Cornish shoots a free throw against Maine at Island Federal Credit Union Arena on Feb. 23. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
With the second seed on the line, Jaron Cornish delivered for Stony Brook.
Cornish finished with 16 points, five rebounds and two assists in a 68-63 road victory over Hartford in the regular-season finale on Tuesday night, clinching the men’s basketball team the No. 2 seed in the upcoming America East Tournament.
The Seawolves will host No. 7 Binghamton in the quarterfinals Saturday at 7 p.m. Should they advance, Stony Brook is also guaranteed homecourt advantage in the semifinals against the winner of No. 3 UMBC and No. 6 Albany.
A loss Tuesday would have slid Stony Brook down to the No. 4 seed and set up a matchup against No. 5 UMass Lowell on Saturday.
Cornish splashed a three from the left wing with 3:58 remaining to cap off an 11-1 Stony Brook run and give the Seawolves their largest lead at 65-55. Travis Weatherington responded with back-to-back threes to bring Hartford within four with 2:22 left.
With Stony Brook ahead 66-63, Weatherington missed a potential game-tying three-pointer with nine seconds remaining. Andrew Garcia grabbed the rebound for Stony Brook and made a free throw with seven seconds to go to seal the victory.
George Blagojevic’s layup with 4:21 left in the first half gave the Hawks their biggest lead of the night at 29-22. Stony Brook leading scorer Akwasi Yeboah, who entered the night averaging 16.9 points per game, scored four before halftime as the Seawolves trailed 33-29 at the break. He finished with 12 points and eight rebounds.
Elijah Olaniyi was also key for Stony Brook, recording 11 points and seven rebounds.
