Nov. 14, 2006
Box Score
Riverdale, NY - The Seahawks men's basketball team was nipped at Manhattan by a final of 63-60 in non-league action at Draddy Gymnasium earlier tonight. Wagner College falls to 0-2 on the season while the Jaspers improved their record to 1-1
Sophomore Jamal Smith (Baltimore, MD / Towson Catholic) had 14 of his team high 19 points in the second half as the Seahawks rallied from a five point (35-30) deficit, but it was a game high 21 points from Manhattan's 6-8 center Arturo Dubois that proved to be the difference in the win. It a tight contest throughout with nine ties and nine lead changes, it was a 14-2 run by the Jaspers midway through the second half that put them up seven with five minutes left and control of the game.
Wagner started the second stanza on a 10-2 stretch, including eight points from Smith, for a 40-37 lead at the 15:38 mark. Manhattan game back to tie the game at 40 and again at 44 before a three from sophomore Joey Mundweiler (Olathe, KS / Olathe East) and a lay-in from junior James Ulrich (Mt. Laurel, NJ / Camden Catholic) left the Seahawks up 49-44.
Following a bucket inside by Dubois, Wagner missed the next five shots from the field and committed three turnovers over the next three minutes as another Jasper three evened the score at 49-49 with just under nine minutes on the clock. The teams then traded baskets on their next possessions before a 7-0 Manhattan run sealed the 14-2 stretch and left Wagner trailing 58-51.
Wagner had one more run in them closing the gap to 62-60 following a Mundweiler three with 1:28 remaining. After a defensive stop, senior Matt Vitale (Brooklyn, NY / St. Edmunds Prep) had an open look at a three but it rimmed in and out with 41 second left forcing the Seahawks to foul.
Patrick Bouli made the second of two free throws with 23 seconds left giving Wagner one last chance, but a pair of off balanced three-pointers were off the mark ending a three game winning streak on the road dating back to last season.
After Smith's 19, junior Mark Porter (Atlantic City, NJ / St. Augustine's Prep) and Mundweiler were in double figures with 10 each. Wagner shot .415 for the game, including 5-15 from three.
For Manhattan, the Jaspers had a 35-32 edge in rebounding despite a game high nine rebounds from Ulrich. Devon Austin was also in double figures with 10 points, as Manhattan shot .431 overall and was 4-11 from three.
After Wagner started the game up 11-6 five minutes into the event, Manhattan answered with the game's next six points over the next four minutes for a slight one-point 12-11 advantage. The remainder of the half stayed tight and featured five ties and - lead changes before the Jaspers closed on an 8-3 run. Guy Ngarndi's jumper with two seconds left in the half capped off the run and left Wagner down 35-30 at halftime. Back to nearly full strength after being slowed with the flu in Friday's loss to Lafayette, Vitale hit his first three shots from beyond the arc to lead all scorers in the first 20 minutes and keep the Seahawks in the game.
The Seahawks continue their three game road swing on Saturday as they head south to Maryland-Eastern Shore for a 4:00 pm tilt. The team then faces William & Mary on Monday before returning home to Staten Island.
~ wagnerathletics.com ~
