EASTON, Mass. (January 6, 2024) – Stonehill men's basketball dropped its fourth straight game, falling to Long Island University at Merkert Gym Saturday afternoon, 73-68 in a Northeast Conference matchup.

LEADERS

• Graduate student Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) knocked down four three-pointers en route to a team-high 18 points for Stonehill.
• Sophomore Chas Stinson (Charlotte, N.C.) and freshman Louie Semona (Cincinnati, Ohio) led the Skyhawks on the glass with five rebounds while Stinson also notched two steals.
• LIU freshman Eric Acker scored 21 points in the first half, finishing with 23 on the day to lead all scorers.
• Sophomore R.J. Green corralled 14 rebounds for the Sharks while scoring 10 points to record a double-double.
• Grad student Tai Strickland, son of LIU head coach Rod Strickland, scored 20 points, 14 of which came in the second half, to go along with five rebounds and three steals.

FIRST HALF

• Ahmed Essahaty and Nikola Djapa both converted on second-chance layups to start the game, putting LIU in front 4-0.
• Freshman Todd Brogna (Southborough, Mass.) and Zegarowski responded with back-to-back threes to give Stonehill the lead.
• A 12-3 run from the Sharks gave them a 16-9 lead but the run was halted when Stinson hit a long-range shot and a layup to make it a two-point game.
• LIU bounced back as Eric Acker scored nine straight points for the Sharks, including two three-pointers, to keep the Sharks in the lead, 25-20.
• Four different Skyhawks scored during an 8-2 run to give Stonehill its first lead since the score was 6-4 early in the first half.
• Eric Acker responded for LIU again, sinking a triple and converting on a fast break layup to put the Sharks back up by four points, 32-28.
• LIU took a 36-31 lead into the break, shooting 41.7% (15-36) from the field with Acker scoring 21 of the Sharks' 36 points.
• The Skyhawks shot the ball at a 35.5% (11-31) shooting clip in the first half.

SECOND HALF

• Stinson scored the first five points of the second half for Stonehill with Brogna and Semona making layups on consecutive possessions as the Skyhawks trailed by two points, 42-40, early in the second.
• Following a Zegarowski three-pointer, sophomore Tony Felder (Brockton, Mass.) stole the ball and went the length of the court for a fastbreak layup, giving Stonehill the lead 45-44.
• The Sharks scored four straight points to regain the lead, but the Skyhawks didn't let it stop their momentum as they went on an 8-0 run to take their largest lead of the game, 53-48 with 13:18 left to play in the game.
• LIU continued to respond whenever it fell behind on the scoreboard, putting together seven consecutive points to once again, retake the lead, 55-53.
• The Sharks ignited to take a seven-point lead, 63-56, with just over four minutes remaining in the game.
• Coming out of a 30-second timeout, the Skyhawks got a layup from Felder and Merkert Gym erupted after back-to-back layups from junior Thatcher Stone (Winchester, Mass.), one of which resulted in a three-point play, tied the score at 65-65 with 2:30 left on the clock.
• Tai Strickland finished a pair of acrobatic layups on the next two LIU possessions to give them a 69-65 lead before Felder knocked down a corner three to make it a one-point game with just over a minute to play.
• Stonehill wasn't able to get a final shot attempt to potentially take the lead as the Sharks scored the final four points of the game from the free throw line, winning 73-68.

NOTEWORTHY

• Stonehill is now 2-1 in the all-time series against Long Island, winning the first two meetings a year ago in the Skyhawks' first season in the NEC. Stonehill is 1-1 at Merkert Gym when hosting the Sharks.
• The Skyhawks used their 10th different starting lineup today through 17 games this season, this being the fourth straight game that Stonehill has rolled out a new five.
• Assistant coach Jimmy Langhurst manned the sidelines for the Skyhawks in place of head coach Chris Kraus who was dealing with an illness this afternoon.
• Stinson led Stonehill on the glass for the sixth straight game, averaging 7.7 rebounds per contest over that stretch.
• Stinson, coming off a NEC Player of the Week honor for his 23-point, 12-rebound performance at Rutgers last week, is averaging 11.8 points per game and 7.7rpg over his last six games.
• Zegarowski scored 15+ points for the eighth time this season as the Skyhawks hold a 1-4 record when he leads the team in scoring.
• Stone scored a season-high eight points for the Skyhawks, shooting 3-4 from the field while also tallying a season-high two steals in 17 minutes.
• In four starts this season, Brogna is averaging 9.8ppg, 6.3rpg, and 1.5 assists per game in 31.3 minutes per contest.

UP NEXT

• Stonehill continues Northeast Conference play when the Skyhawks travel to Hackensack, N.J. to take on FDU at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 13, broadcasted digitally on NEC Front Row as well as being televised on the YES Network.

Tickets for the 2023-24 men's and women's basketball season are on sale now and can be purchased at stonehillskyhawks.com/tickets. Season ticket options are available including a men's and women's combination pass, valid for all 27 home games this year.

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