WEST HARTFORD, Conn.  – The University of Hartford men's basketball team fell to Stony Brook, 74-59, in its final regular season contest at Chase Family Arena on Saturday night. Finishing the regular season with a 14-15 record, including 7-9 mark in the America East, the fifth-seeded Hawks will begin their postseason journey on Wednesday night at No. 4 New Hampshire.

Senior Corban Wroe paced the Hawks' offense with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field and a 4-of-5 effort from the charity stripe. Classmate Yolonzo Moore II and sophomore Justin Graham each added 11 points while freshman John Carroll pulled down a career-high 10 boards.

The third seed of the tournament with a 12-4 America East record, Stony Brook, which has posted its fourth-straight season with 20-plus wins, will host Binghamton on Wednesday. Jameel Warney had 31 points and 18 rebounds for the Seawolves while Carson Puriefoy added 22 points.

Prior to Saturday's tip, the six members of the Hawks' senior class (Wes Cole, Yolonzo Moore II, Mark Nwakamma, Jamie Schneck, Nate Sikma, and Corban Wroe) were honored in a pregame ceremony for their four-years in a Hartford uniform. The group has amassed 57career victories and is currently the second winningest class in the program's Division I history.

The team's leading scorer and rebounder who saw just three minutes in the Hawks' recent win at Maine, Nwakamma earned the start, but was pulled two seconds into the game. Battling a knee injury, fifth-year head coach John Gallagher and Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell agreed to let Nwakamma take the court for the opening tip as a Senior Night gesture.

The Hawks and Seawolves were tied at five two and a half minutes in before things went sour for the home team. Hartford missed its next 16 shots from the floor as Stony Brook rattled off a 19-4 run over that 9:29 stretch to take a 24-9 lead. Trailing, 40-25, at the half and facing a 25-point deficit midway through the second, the Hawks clawed back to come within 10 points with 76 seconds left to play. But the home team would misfire from long range on back-to-back possessions and were unable to cover any more ground.

THE TURNING POINT:
Hartford misfired on 17 of its first 19 shots of the game, allowing Stony Brook to build a double-digit lead within the first eight minutes. With the score tied at 5-5 with 17:37 to go, the Seawolves reeled off a 13-0 run to go up, 18-5, at the 11:13 mark. Continuing to struggle from the floor, the Hawks went two and a half more minutes without a field goal as Stony Brook extended its lead to 15 (24-9) with 8:07 left in the half.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

·         Hartford misfired on 17 of its first 19 shots, allowing the Seawolves to jump out to an early 24-9 advantage with 8:07 left in the first half

·         The Hawks shot just 24.1-percent (7-of-29) from the floor in the opening half, compared to a 50.0-percent (15-of-30) first-half effort from the Seawolves

·         Finishing with a 46-36 edge on the boards, Stony Brook pulled down 14 offensive rebounds and had 20 of its points come on second chance opportunities

·         The Hawks went 14-of-20 from the free throw line (70.0%)

·         Hartford's bench outscored Stony Brook's, 23-10 

NEWS AND NOTES: 

·         Hartford's six seniors (Wes Cole, Yolonzo Moore II, Mark Nwakamma, Jamie Schneck, Nate Sikma and Corban Wroe) played their final regular season home game of their careers on Saturday night

·         The six seniors led Hartford to its first-ever postseason appearance in 2012-13 (CIT) and is currently the second winningest class in program history with 57 wins

·         Sophomore Justin Graham registered his eight-straight double figure scoring game with 11 points

·         Also finishing with 11 points, senior guard Yolonzo Moore II is one double-digit scoring game away from 50 on his career

·         Freshman John Carroll's 10 rebounds were a career-high 

UP NEXT:.
The fifth seed in the league standings, Hartford begins the America East Playoffs on the road at No. 4 New Hampshire on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. The Hawks and Wildcats split two games during the regular season, with each team scoring wins on their opponents' home court. Fans can catch all of the action by tuning into WDRC 1360 AM (www.talkofconnecticut.com) with Jeff Dooley and Randy LaVigne on the call.