Preview of the Marquette men's non-conference basketball game: vs. Stony Brook Seawolves

Name: Officially it's called “State University of New York at Stony Brook,” but if you just say “Stony Brook University,” everyone knows what you mean.

Location: Stony Brook, New York

Okay, but where is that? New York is big. On the north shore of Long Island.

Why is the town called Stony Brook? Probably due to the nature of the waterways along the Long Island coast.

Is there literally a stream with rocks called Stony Brook? Looking at maps it doesn't seem like it, but I'd appreciate someone local telling me I'm wrong.

Founded: State University College on Long Island first opened its doors in 1957, following the fine tradition of state departments of education to establish colleges to train teachers. That was in Oyster Bay, and the school moved to Stony Brook in 1962 and was renamed. Since 2005 they have called themselves the better known and simpler Stony Brook University.

Enrollment: 25,865 students in fall 2023, including 17,549 students. To be honest, I'm a little surprised that SBU is so big.

Going nowhere fast: Stony Brook used to have a bridge that ran from the second floor of their student union building to…nowhere. It just stopped. Apparently the idea was to allow students in the 1960s to travel back and forth between the union and the library without relying on vehicle traffic… and they just never finished it? It ended up being hooked up somewhere else because the library was being renovated… and then eventually just destroyed in the early 2000s.

Welcome to Stony Brook Park: There is a replica of a dinosaur skeleton in the lobby of the SBU administration building. Majungasaurus crenatissimus lived in Madagascar in the Cretaceous period. SBU Professor David W. Krause was part of an expedition to discover fossils in the Mahajanga Basin in Madagascar, and so a replica of the animal's fossils is located on campus.

Nickname: Sea wolves

Why “Sea Wolves”? They have accomplished a lot in a very short period of time: Soundmen, Baymen, Warriors and Patriots. In 1994, when they were in the process of being promoted to Division 1, they decided to move to Seawolves. Why exactly that? Well, here is the SBU's own statement:

The sea wolf is a subspecies of the gray wolf found in the Pacific Northwest and is known for its courage and intelligence.

On the field, the Seawolves reflect the five pillars of the SBU Athletics program: Commitment, Passion, Pride, Respect and Swagger. On campus, students know that being a Seawolf means supporting each other, making connections for life, being part of an inclusive community, developing your own identity and finding your true passion.

Why did a university on Long Island go with an animal from the other side of the country? No idea. Apparently the school president just made an announcement to make this happen.

Notable Alumni: Jeff Raskin; creator of the Macintosh computer; Joy Behar, co-host of The View; Buck Dharma, lead guitarist and only permanent member of Blue Oyster Cult; Oscar-winning actor Adrien Brody; Jon Oringer, founder of Shutterstock; former MLB pitcher Joe Nathan; and finally Dr. Laura Schlessinger.

Last season: 20-15, 10-8 in the Coastal Athletic Association

Finals 2023-24 KenPom.com Rank: #168 of 362 teams

Finals 2023-24 BartTorvik.com Rank: #158 of 362 teams

Preseason 2024-25 KenPom.com Rank: #270

Preseason 2024-25 BartTorvik.com Rank: #285

Preseason poll: The Seawolves were picked to finish ninth in the 14-team CAA this season. They missed eighth-place Monmouth by seven points, but are 13 points ahead of North Carolina A&T.

Returning Stat Leaders

Points: Jared Frey, 5.8 pages
Rebounds: Andre Snoddy, 7.2 RPG
Supports: Jared Frey, 1:8 Acts

Size? Leon Nahar is the tallest guy on the roster at 6-foot-1, but is listed as weighing just 218 pounds. He appeared in just seven games as a rookie last season and doesn't make Torvik's list of top 10 prospects.

Jeremiah Nyarko and Ben Wight are each listed at 6'3″ but weigh 200 and 220 pounds respectively, so that's more of a wing body type than a big body type to internally worry about. Torvik projects both to be in the 10-man rotation, with Nyarko grabbing 4.5 rebounds per game. Andre Snoddy could have led the team in rebounding a year ago with 7.2 caroms per contest, but he's only 6 feet tall and weighs 220 pounds.

Protect? Among the returnees, Jared Frey is the only sniper who is worried. Last season, he converted nearly 37% of his 3.6 attempts per game while mostly playing off the bench. Joe Octave is here after two years in the Air Force and two more years at Holy Cross. His middle two shooting seasons were good at 36% and 35%, respectively, but he hit on less than 29% of his long-range attempts last season. Jeremiah Nyarko had a 37% success rate on three-pointers a year ago for Western Texas College in the junior college ranks.

CJ Luster must be covered at all times. He hit nearly 48% of his three-pointers last season for Salt Lake Community College.

Head Coach: Geno Ford enters his sixth season as head coach at Stony Brook and his 13th as a Division 1 head coach. He has an overall record of 240-232 as a head coach, including his time in NAIA and Division 3. Ford is 78-78 at Stony Brook .

All time series: This is the first ever meeting between Marquette and Stony Brook.