STONY BROOK, N.Y. – Yale turned to its veterans to lead the way in Tuesday's season-opener at Stony Brook. And, boy did they respond.
Paul Atkinson scored a career-high 26 points,
Azar Swain added 17 and
Jordan Bruner had 11 points, 13 rebounds and six assists.
What made the night special was that others made important contributions as well.
Eric Monroe and
Jalen Gabbidon hit big three-pointers with the game on the line. The result was a very impressive 74-69 overtime victory over the Seawolves before a near full house at Island Federal Arena.
"We dug in and hung tough," said
James Jones, The Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of the Bulldogs. "I thought our defense was really good. We held them to 35 percent. That's a really good statistic for us.
The score was tied at 62 at the end of regulation, but Monroe and Gabbidon hit back-to-back three-pointers as Yale raced out to a five-point lead in overtime and never relinquished it. Stony Brook closed to within three in the final seconds, but
Matthue Cotton sealed the win with a breakaway dunk as time expired.
Yale won its season opener for the fourth time in the last five years. This one certainly didn't come easily. The Bulldogs had a 30-23 lead at halftime, but the Seawolves opened the second half with an 8-1 run to tie score. It remained close for the rest of the way.
Yale went up six on a Bruner put-back dunk with 1:49 left, but the Seawolves' rallied, and Miles Latimer's three-pointer with 19 seconds left gave them a 62-61 lead. Atkinson, though, hit one of two free throws with five seconds remaining to force the extra period.
Gabbidon, who made his second career start, finished with seven points. Monroe and Cotton both added four points, and
Austin Williams scored two.
Elijah Olaniyi had 19 points to lead Stony Brook, which won 24 games a year ago and reached the postseason.
Atkinson and Bruner were a force in the paint, combining to shoot 14-of-25 from the field while grabbing 18 rebounds. Bruner also blocked four shots, and Atkinson showed off his jump shot, connecting on the first two three-pointers of his career.
"I definitely know I will have a much bigger role this year," Atkinson said. "We've put a lot of work in getting the ball in the post."
Atkinson, who led the Ivy League in field goal percentage in each of his first two seasons, was 9-of-15 from the field.
The Bulldogs play their home opener on Friday vs. Oberlin. Tipoff at the John J. Lee Amphitheater is slated for 7 p.m.
