From JUCO to the SEC to Stony Brook, Erik Pratt is finally flourishing

Stony Brook graduate senior guard Erik Pratt is off to a career-best start in 2025-26 under the leadership of head coach Geno Ford. Since arriving on Long Island, he’s worked his way into the starting lineup, is averaging a career-high 19.4 PPG and has led the Seawolves to a 7-3 record with some marquee performances.

Performances like dropping 27 points and dishing four assists in a double-digit win over Brown or managing 28 points and grabbing seven boards to lead an upset of Loyola Marymount on the road.

According to Ford, Pratt’s addition has been a revelation for a program that lost its leading scorer to the portal and multiple veterans to graduation.

“Erik is one of the most competitive guys you’ll be around,” Ford said. “He just wants to win, man. You should come to practice, he goes at every drill and gets upset when [his] team loses in a drill. That’s why he’s such a special player. We’ve got a lot of guys that we need to play well and he’s certainly on that list.”

But Pratt’s journey to Stony Brook Arena was a lengthy one and it took more than just a few seasons for the Lake Worth, Fla. native to find his fit.

It’s a journey that begins with Pratt receiving minimal Division-I interest out of high school and instead, committing to Seward County, a JUCO program in Liberal, Kan. The JUCO level is a grind, but starting outside DI afforded him a chance to showcase his ability early and Pratt emerged as one of the nation’s top two-year talents.

He made 23 starts in 33 appearances and averaged 18.1 PPG as a sophomore, which earned Pratt a spot on the 247Sports top-100 JUCO rankings in 2022. As the 7th ranked JUCO recruit in the country, he picked up offers from some of the nation’s premier programs, including DePaul, New Mexico, Kent State, Florida International, Tulsa, Florida Gulf Coast and more.

However, it was Texas A&M and former head coach Buzz Williams who earned Pratt’s commitment after leading the Aggies to a 27-win season in 2021-22. But he struggled to find consistent playing time during year-one at the SEC level and made just nine appearances in College Station, Texas before departing for the transfer portal.

Pratt would join Milwaukee ahead of the 2023-24 campaign thanks to a connection with head coach Bart Lundy, who previously worked as director of basketball operations at Marquette under Williams. He averaged 12.5 PPG, started 24 out of 34 appearances and even helped the program to a fifth-place finish in the Horizon League with a 20-15 record in his first season with the Panthers.

It seemed like Pratt was finally starting to find his footing within the DI ranks. But the arrival of stars like Jamichael Stillwell, Themus Fulks and AJ McKee forced him into more of a reserve role as he made just three starts over 24 games in 2024-25. 

Even with reduced minutes, Pratt’s talent managed to shine through and he finished the year averaging 10.6 PPG while shooting 33% from three-point range.

That uncertainty on his role left Pratt to enter the transfer portal once again though, and just three weeks later, Ford had convinced him to visit Stony Brook. Not even four days after his trip up to Long Island, Pratt had announced his official commitment to the excitement of the Seawolves’ staff.

On Tuesday night, Pratt’s growth and development was on full display as Stony Brook hosted Columbia, KenPom’s 120th ranked program heading into the evening. Considered one of the toughest tests on the Seawolves’ non-conference schedule by the metrics, it was Stony Brook emerging in a 77-73 overtime thriller.

The opening was an offensive slog though as Stony Brook led by double-digits, 30-17 at the half despite just five points from the program’s leading scorer in Pratt. But when the Seawolves went cold and needed him most, he came alive late and managed 11 points in the second half as Columbia forced overtime.

Pratt’s eight points in the extra period, all of which were scored at the free throw line where he went 9-for-11 on the night, helped Stony Brook see out its seventh win of the season. Despite a poor shooting night at just 7-for-20 from the field, Pratt finished with 24 points, four rebounds and three assists which tied him for the game-high in scoring.

Between Frankie Policelli, Tyler Stephenson-Moore, Aaron Clarke, CJ Luster and more, Stony Brook has had some incredible scorers in recent memory under Ford, but none quite like Pratt. His ability to take over a game with his shooting and get to the line with ease or even create for teammates is unmatched and its only strengthened the Seawolves as a group.

“Erik can impact with his scoring but also with assists,” Ford said. “Teams are loading up on him. He was fouled nine times [against Columbia]. There aren’t a lot of guys getting fouled nine times and it’s because he puts a ton of pressure on the defense. Teams are concerned about [our big men] shooting three’s, which gives Erik more space and when it’s blown up he’s got to make the right pass.”

A recent injury to sophomore guard and lead ball handler Colin O’Connor, as first reported by George Caratzas of the Statesman, underscores the need for consistency in Stony Brook’s backcourt even more. But with Pratt at the helm alongside a talented transfer contingent and a pair of fascinating European freshmen, the Seawolves are already bouncing back from a down year with a hot start in 2025-26.

Picture of Riley Frain

Riley Frain

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