Stony Brook has overcome a lot of barriers in their 11 years since joining the America East but there's still one thing they've consistently failed to do: beat Boston University in the big game. Outside of one upset in the conference tournament, the Terriers have consistently thwarted the Seawolves and did it again Saturday afternoon.
Boston University (7-11, 3-1 America East) came away with their 18th victory in 24 matchups and handed Stony Brook (9-7, 4-1) their first America East loss of the season with a 61-55 win at Case Gym.
Darryl Partin was a big factor in the win, as he finished with a team-high 18 points, including 16 in the second half. For the second straight game Partin had a monster second half, as the senior hit 7-of-11 shots from the field, including a banked floater in the lane to give the Terriers a 3-point cushion late in the game.
Point guards D.J. Irving (11 points) and Matt Griffin (10 points) were the only other Terriers in double-figures. Irving led the Terriers with five assists and both players added two steals. Dom Morris added nine points and five rebounds and senior forward Patrick Hazel kept the Terriers competitive inside with eight points, a team-high nine rebounds and three blocks.
Sophomore guard Dave Coley had a game-high 21 points for the Seawolves on 8-of-16 shooting, as the Terriers failed to keep him out of the lane. Leading scorer Bryan Dougher recorded 14 points, all in the second half, but hit just 5-of-17 attempts for the game. Just five players scored on the day for the Seawolves, who received just five points off the bench, all coming from Anthony Jackson in the first half. Boston University received 15 points off the bench, with the large majority coming from Griffin.
The Terriers jumped off to a very fast start scoring 14 of the game's first 16 points. While Boston University received baskets from four different players, Stony Brook didn't record their second made basket until the 11:48 mark to cut the deficit to 14-5. Griffin wouldn't relent and scored seven straight points for the Terriers, as Boston University grabbed their largest lead of the game at 21-7 on a Hazel layup with 8:33 to go in the first half.
Stony Brook responded with a 13-5 run to end the half as they hit 7-of-9 shots to close the half, after starting the first stanza hitting just 3-of-13. Even with the late spurt, the Terriers held a 26-20 advantage at the break.
The second half went back-and-forth for the first 10 minutes with the Terriers holding a lead between two and seven points. At the 10:36 mark, Coley hit a layup to tie the game at 38, giving Stony Brook their first tie of the game but Boston University would quickly go on a 7-2 run.
With Boston University nursing a slim 51-49 lead with just over two minutes to go-Partin took over. The second leading scorer in America East made two contested shots with Stony Brook's best defender (Tommy Brenton) all over him. The second shot gave Boston University a 55-52 lead, with the rest of the Terriers' points coming on free throws in the final minute.
Boston University will look to take down their third America East contender in less than a week Monday, when they host Albany University at 7 p.m. EDT at Agganis Arena.