Lucas Woodhouse returns home to join the Seawolves
Long Island’s prodigal son has returned. Former Harborfields point guard Lucas Woodhouse formally announced on Wednesday that he is transferring from Longwood to Stony Brook.
Due to NCAA transfer rules, he will sit out the 2014–15 season and have two years of eligibility remaining starting in 2015–16.
“Stony Brook called and it seemed like a great place right off the bat,” Woodhouse said. “It’s close to home, so I knew I’d be comfortable there. I wanted to make sure I was gonna be comfortable with the location and [the basketball program]; I knew it had both and I knew it would be a good fit for me.”
A Huntington native who grew up in Greenlawn, Woodhouse was a two-year starter for Longwood and leaves the program as its Division I leader in career assists (393), single-season assists (213) and single-game assists (13). A pass-first point guard, he went over the 10-assist mark seven times last season and ranked fifth in the nation with 6.66 assists per game. Woodhouse averaged 11.5 points per game as a sophomore on 41.3 percent shooting from the field and 37.4 percent from three-point range.
“We are excited and thrilled that Lucas has chosen to come home and play for our program at Stony Brook,” Stony Brook coach Steve Pikiell said in a press release. “He is smart, has great character, is a good student and will fit in well with our team. Anytime you can add the nation’s fifth-leading assist man, you know you’ve improved your team.”
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Woodhouse’s transfer completes the recruiting class that includes incoming freshmen swingman Bryan Sekunda, power forward Tyrell Sturdivant and point guard Deshaun Thrower, who was named Michigan’s Mr. Basketball. The 6–1, 165-pound Woodhouse said he’s going to use the year off to get stronger and improve his quickness on defense. He said he looks forward to practicing with Thrower and returning point guard Carson Puriefoy III.
“It’s gonna be good competition in practice and in workouts,” Woodhouse said. “I have to sit this year out, so it’s gonna be about me getting them better and them getting me better.”
When eligible in 2015–16, Woodhouse would give the Seawolves a three-headed monster at the point guard position with Puriefoy, who will be a senior, and Thrower, who would be a sophomore. He expects that the three of them will be able to fit together in the Seawolves’ backcourt.
“The more the merrier,” Woodhouse said with a laugh.
Woodhouse led Harborfields, which is also fan-favorite Ben Resner’s alma mater, to the 2012 New York State Class A title and earned state tournament MVP honors. He was named first-team All-State and the Newsday Player of the Year as a senior after averaging 16 points and 13 assists per game. Woodhouse said the best part about transferring is the opportunity to play in front of his family and friends.
“It’s awesome, my family and friends get to see me play, I’m thirty or forty minutes from campus so I can come home to a home-cooked meal whenever I want, so I’m really excited,” he said.
The announcement also confirms One-Bid Wonders’ report that Anthony Mayo, a redshirt junior, will forego his final year of eligibility and will join the Seawolves’ graduating class that also includes Anthony Jackson, Dave Coley, Eric McAlister and Resner.
