Tyler Stephenson-Moore, Aaron Clarke help Stony Brook get jump on UNC Wilmington in OT

There was no need for extensive thought to determine the hows and whys and wherefores.

This came down to tenacity.

Going to overtime Saturday against North Carolina Wilmington, this was neither a Stony Brook win nor a loss. But the outcome soon had no doubt as the Seawolves went on an 8-0 burst in the first 2 1⁄2 minutes of OT on the way to an 86-78 victory at Island Federal Credit Union Arena.

“Super-proud of the guys; they really battled,” coach Geno Ford said.

The Seawolves improved to 11-10 overall and 4-4 in the Coastal Athletic Association, and Ford believes the victory could have positive ramifications for the remainder of the season.

“We want to be a great team,” he said. “We’ve been a good team. We’ve played all the top teams in the league right to the end and we just haven’t been able to finish. Today we were able to do that.”

Tyler Stephenson-Moore led Stony Brook with 22 points and Aaron Clarke scored 21. Keenan Fitzmorris chipped in with 15 off the bench and Dean Noll had 10.

“It gives us a lot of confidence,” Clarke said of the depth scoring.

Despite being the better team for 15 of the opening 20 minutes, the Seawolves had a 39-37 lead at halftime.

Wilmington outscored Stony Brook 12-2 in the first four minutes of the second half and led 49-41 at the first media timeout. All 12 points came on three-pointers by KJ Jenkins.

After the fourth of Jenkins’ four three-pointers, Stony Brook used a 12-5 spurt capped by Stephenson-Moore three-pointer to cut UNCW’s lead to 54-53 with 8:43 left.

Trazarien White’s three-point play with 1:41 left stretched Wilmington’s lead to 62-58, but Stephenson-Moore drilled a three-pointer 15 seconds later. The deficit grew to 64-61 on White’s layup with 59 seconds remaining but Noll’s three-pointer tied the score with 41 seconds left.

On the ensuing possession, White’s putback gave UNCW a 66-64 lead, but Stephenson-Moore forced overtime by making two free throws with 1.8 seconds left after being fouled by Shykeim Phillips.

Stephenson-Moore opened the overtime by drilling a three and Chris Maidoh made two free throws. Clarke’s straightaway three rolled around the rim before falling to extend the lead to 74-66.

Nolan Hodge’s three with 2:29 left in the extra period sliced Stony Brook’s lead to five, but

Noll (jumper) and Clarke (three-pointer) sandwiched buckets around two free throws by White (26 points) to extend the lead to 79-71.

In the final half-minute, Stephenson-Moore converted a fast-break layup despite being fouled by Shemar Rathan-Mayes. After the ball nestled through the net, Stephenson-Moore sent the crowd of 2,871 into delirium by striking a double-biceps pose. Stephenson-Moore made the free throw and Maidoh’s two-handed dunk with 20 seconds left put a bow on a most satisfying win.

Said Stephenson-Moore: “It was good to have a game like this.”