Jan. 12, 2008
Final Stats
Staten Island, NY - Senior guard Mark Porter (Atlantic City, NJ/ St. Augustine Prep) scored 15 points and his former high school teammate, senior center Durell Vinson (Vineland, NJ/ St. Augustine Prep), added 13 points and eight rebounds as Wagner improved to 5-0 in Northeast Conference play with a 60-59 victory over Saint Francis (PA).
With the win, the Seahawks improve to 12-4, matching Wagner's best 16-game start since the 1968-69 season. First place Wagner, the only undefeated team in the NEC, is also 5-0 for the first time since becoming a charter member of the conference (then known as the ECAC Metro) in 1981-82.
In staving off a scrappy and tenacious Red Flash ballclub, the Seahawks survived a potential game-winning three-point jumper at the buzzer by Saint Francis junior guard Cale Nelson. With Wagner leading 60-59, a wild and woolly final sequence began when junior swingman Jamal Smith (Baltimore, MD/ Towson Catholic) rimmed out on a foul line jumper with 12 seconds to play.
Following a Saint Francis timeout, Wagner's full-court pressure defense led to a Red Flash turnover as Porter stripped Nelson in the backcourt. Vinson came out of the scramble with the loose ball and was promptly fouled, leading to another Saint Francis timeout. The leading field goal shooter in the NEC at 58.2%, Vinson averages just 39.1% from the free throw line. When the front end of his one-and-one attempt came up short, Saint Francis had a chance to escape with the win.
The rebound on the missed Vinson free throw was tapped towards midcourt and the ball was scooped up by Red Flash guard Grant Surprenant, who passed to a wide open Nelson on the right wing. Nelson, who led all scores with 17 points, including four three-pointers, let the shot go just before the buzzer, but the game-winning try was just a bit long as Wagner held on for the win.
Leading 34-31 after an evenly-played first half, Wagner started out slowly in the second half, missing its first 10 field goal attempts. A three-point jumper by junior guard Joey Mundweiler (Olathe HS/ Olathe East) broke the drought with 11:21 left in the game, giving the Seahawks a 41-40 lead. During this 8:39 dry spell, the only three points Wagner managed was from the free throw line.
A three-pointer from the deep left corner by Porter with 8:00 to play capped a 10-1 run that lifted the Seahawks to a 48-41 lead. But the gritty, gutty Red Flash would not go away.
Following a free throw by senior forward James Ulrich (Mt. Laurel, NJ/ Camden Catholic) with 3:54 left, Wagner led 54-47 and was seemingly in control. Saint Francis then went on a 10-3 spurt to knot the game at 57-57. Wagner' lone points during the Red Flash run came on a three-point field goal by Porter with 2:12 left that put the Seahawks up 57-52. Red Flash swingman Devin Sweetney then reeled off five straight points, answering Porter's trey with one of his own at the 1:56 mark. Following a Wagner turnover, Sweetney then hit his game-tying lay-up with 1:37 remaining.
With 1:06 left in the game, Vinson dished the ball out of the post to junior guard Justin Drummond (Baltimore. MD/ McDonogh), who nailed a three-point jumper from the top of the key to give Wagner a 60-57 lead. Saint Francis countered with a pair of Nelson free throws with 41 seconds left, which drew the Red Flash to within 60-59, setting up the frantic finish.
Porter paced Wagner in an evenly-played first half with a team-high nine points, including a runner in the lane with five seconds left that lifted the Seahawks to the 34-31 halftime edge. Nelson kept the Red Flash close early by hitting for 11 first half points, with nine of those points coming on 3-5 shooting from three-point range.
The Seahawks' biggest lead of the first half was eight, at 24-16, which came on a pair of free throws by Ulrich at the 8:52 mark. Saint Francis out-scored Wagner 15-10 the rest of the way in narrowing the half-time deficit to three.
Ulrich wound up with 11 points on the afternoon while Mundweiler added eight. Saint Francis' 6-9 post player Bassirou Dieng had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds while Sweetney finished with 11. Saint Francis, which has now lost seven straight games, out-shot Wagner 47.5%-42.0% and won the battle of the boards, 31-26, marking just the fourth time this season that the Seahawks have been out-rebounded.
The Seahawks are next in action on Thursday, Jan. 17 when they travel to LIU to meet the Blackbirds. Tip-off is set for 7:00 pm.
NOTES: Wagner's previous best five-game NEC start was 4-1, which was accomplished three times, in 2002-03, 2001-02 and 1992-93. Ulrich celebrated his 22nd birthday with a fine 11-point, six-rebound, five-assist game. Ulrich has now turned in two productive floor games in a row as he went for 14 points, eight rebounds and four assists in Thursday's 77-52 win at Monmouth. It was Alumni Day at The Spiro Sports Center as former Seahawk letterwinners were feted in a pre-game reception, followed by a post-game reception at Valeeno Grill. The 1967-68 team, which went 21-8, was specially honored on the 40th anniversary of its crowning achievement, The day also was highlighted by a celebration in honor of Wagner athletic trainer and Seahawk Hall of Fame member/Hall of Fame Chairperson John Knudson, recognizing his 50th year of service to Wagner College.
