SBU Sports: Men’s basketball falters late in loss to Drexel

Stony Brook men’s basketball fell to Drexel, 67-51, on Thursday evening at Stony Brook Arena. CJ Luster II tallied a team-high 21 points, but the Seawolves offense was outscored 13-2 over the final eight-plus minutes of action and suffered a loss at the hands of the Dragons.

Stony Brook and Drexel went back and forth early on before the Dragons took control out of the under-12 media timeout.

Drexel used a 20-7 run that spanned nearly eight minutes to turn a one-point game into a 30-16 advantage with less than five minutes to play in the half.

The Seawolves’ offense ripped off 10 unanswered points, holding Drexel scoreless for more than four minutes to trim their deficit to four points. The Dragons broke the scoreless streak with a basket in the final minute of the half, but Luster’s buzzer-beating jumper made it a four-point game again as the contest entered the intermission.

Stony Brook kept it close, staying within one or two possessions of Drexel for the first 11-plus minutes of the second half, but could not find a way to go in front. A Joe Octave basket with 8:11 to play made it a five-point game, 54-49, but the Seawolves’ offense went cold.

Drexel scored 10 straight points, holding Stony Brook scoreless for more than seven minutes to ice the game.

Stony Brook did not make a field goal over the final eight-plus minutes of play, missing its final seven field goal attempts and eventually falling, 67-51, to Drexel.

The team wraps up its three-game homestand, welcoming Northeastern on Jan. 11. The Seawolves and Huskies tip-off at 7 pm from Stony Brook Arena, with the contest airing live on SNY and streaming on FloCollege.