Syracuse women’s basketball beats Stony Brook, 81-70 in overtime

Syracuse Orange women’s basketball survived a scare on Sunday as they beat Stony Brook, 81-70 in overtime. The Orange went on a 15-0 run to start the game and a 7-0 run to end the game. They were led once again by Miranda Drummond and Tiana Mangakahia, the latter recording her seventh double-double in eight tries this season.

“Very gutsy game,” Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman said following the win. “They were amazing today. We knew they were a good team, and we didn’t come in here unprepared. We prepared hard for this game, and they did what we thought they were going to do. We just had a hard time stopping them.”

Syracuse was held scoreless for the end of the first and for the majority of the second quarter. Stony Brook outscored the Orange 23-8 in the second quarter, and they went on a 16-0 run in a span of 8:05 extending from the end of the first quarter. Syracuse broke the drought with an Amaya Finklea free throw with 4:02 to play until half, the Orange’s first point of the quarter.

“We just had to stick to what we do best,” Mangakahia said regarding Syracuse’s second quarter drought. “We were playing a lot of defense. They were getting offensive rebounds. We just had to come out and push the ball. When we push the ball, we work so well as a team.”

Syracuse found some life around midway through the third quarter. They turned what was a six-point deficit into a one-point lead midway through. Isis Young woke up in the third as she made 3-3 three-pointers in the quarter to account for her 9 of her 12 points. The Orange and Seawolves were knotted up at 55-55 after three quarters.

The two teams exchanged leads and ties and this game came down to the wire. Stony Brook held a five-point lead with 1:26 to play in regulation, but the Orange stormed back. After Stony Brook’s Gio Perez missed a pair of free throws to ice the game away, Mangakahia made a layup with 48 seconds to play. Mangakahia then made another layup following a Stony Brook and Shania Johnson free throw to cut the deficit to two with 30 seconds left.

Mangakahia then made a left-handed scoop layup with 5.5 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 69-69. Isis Young then stole Stony Brook’s inbounds pass and the Orange were able to call a timeout with 2.6 seconds to play. Gabby Cooper’s three-point attempt for the win at the buzzer was off the mark, and this game went to overtime.

Syracuse began the overtime period on a 5-0 run. Mangakahia made a jumper off the left wing and Drummond made a three off the right wing. The Orange closed the overtime period on a 7-0 run, and they outscored Stony Brook 12-1 in the overtime period en route to their eighth win of the season.

Stony Brook was led by its star point guard Shania Johnson. She finished with 21 points and 7 assists in a team-high 41 minutes.

Mangakahia completed her seventh double-double in eight tries and scored a career-high 29 points. The nation’s leader in assists and reigning ACC Player of the Week also added 11 assists to her total.

“I think we’ve said it all (about Mangakahia),” Coach Q said. “She’s a fantastic player. Big time player who makes plays. When you have a player like that, you have a chance. We just graduated one of those. She’s picking up right where (former Syracuse guard Alexis Peterson) left off.”

Drummond finished with 23 points on 8-21 shooting and Young was the third and final Orange player to score in double figures.

BOX SCORE

What’s Next

The Orange (8-0) will welcome Colgate to the Carrier Dome on Wednesday. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.

Follow the Author

Corey Crisan is the Orange Women’s Basketball reporter for TNIAAM. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @cdcrisan for coverage all season long.