After a lackluster defensive showing in the first half Sunday afternoon, the Maine Black Bears made some adjustments in the second half outscoring the visitors 30-18 and rallying back to defeat the Stony Brook Seawolves 71-61 at the Augusta Civic Center in America East women’s basketball action.
Shania Johnson, the Stony Brook point guard, went off in the first 20 minutes scoring 21 points. Tanesha Sutton though kept Maine in it with 19 points and the Black Bears trailed 43-41 at the half. The first half was a game of runs, as the Seawolves broke out to an early 14-7 lead. A Blanca Millan basket, a three pointer by Dor Saar, and a layup by Fanny Wadling though tied it 14-14. Stony Brook then ran off another seven straight and led 24-21 after one quarter.
Maine ran off eight straight to start the second for a five point lead, but Stony Brook responded once again answered with 11 straight for a six point lead and led by two at the break. The Bears took back the lead on a Blanca Millan free throw with 5:53 left in the third and led by as many as eight points, before holding a three point advantage 55-52 headed to the final 10 minutes.
In the fourth, Maine was clinging to a 63-58 lead with 5:38 left before a key 7-0 run over a span of 2:30 put the game away. A Sutton layup, a jumper by Rossignol, and then a three pointer by Sutton with 3:08 left put the Black Bears up 12 and led them to their ninth straight win.
Sutton led the way for Maine with a career high 28 points and 11 rebounds. The senior guard also went over 1,000 points for her career. Millan had 18 points and four steals, while Saar had 15 points and four assists. Wadling didn’t have a big offensive game with only two points, but was key on the defensive side grabbing 16 rebounds (13 defensive). She also dished out four assists and had four steals. The Bears held Johnson to seven second half points and she finished with 28 for Stony Brook, adding five assists and two steals. Jerrell Matthews was the only other Seawolves player in double figures with 10 points. The visitors from New York drop to 20-7, 9-5 America East.
Maine improves their overall record to 20-7, 13-1 in the conference. The Bears are on the road Wednesday night to battle the UMass-Lowell Riverhawks at 7 pm. With a win, Maine will win the regular season conference title and clinch the #1 seed to host the America East Tournament.
