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Lewisburg, PA - After suffering a tough 67-63 loss at Hofstra, the Wagner Seahawks (2-2) will look to get back on track when the Green & White take on Bucknell (2-5) Monday night at 7:00 pm at Sodka Pavilion. The game will be the third this season for Wagner against the Patriot League as the Seahawks began the year with an exhilarating 63-58 victory over Lafayette on Friday, November 12 before dropping a 73-57 decision to Lehigh. Bucknell, which was picked to finish second by the Patriot League coaches, has a 2-5 record in the early going, highlighted by wins over Binghamton and Presbyterian. The Bison have also played Villanova and Marquette tight, losing by 16 and 11 points, respectively.

RIVERS STEALS THE SHOW
Going into the Hofstra game much of the talk was about reigning CAA Player of the Year and two-time Haggerty Award winner Charles Jenkins. Well after 40 hard-fought minutes the talk was about freshman Latif Rivers. The Garden State native went off for a career-high 28 points, on 6-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc and a perfect 10-of-10 from the charity stripe. The one-time NEC Rookie of the Week scored 13 points in the first half and 15 in the second while notching the most points by a Wagner freshman since Courtney Pritchard scored 30 in a 91-75 loss at St. Francis (NY).

RIVERS BREAKING OUT
Four games into his collegiate career and there is no question freshman Latif Rivers is one of the top newcomers in the Northeast Conference. He has led the team in scoring twice while ranking second on the team and sixth in the NEC with 15.8 points per game and pacing the league with 3.3 three pointers per game. Rivers is shooting 40.9 percernt from the floor, a blistering 48.1 percent (13-27) from beyond the arc (6th NEC) and leads the league with a perfect 100.0 percent (14-14) converesion rate from the free throw line.

MURRAY STARTS SEASON STRONG
You know you are having a good season when you score 14 points over a game-high 38 minutes and it is a secondary headline. Such is the case for junior Tyler Murray, who leads Wagner in scoring at 17.8 points per game. The Canadian native paces the team in shooting at 46.2 percent (24-52) and is first in three-point shooting at 52.4 percent (11-21), ranking 14th and fifth in the NEC, respectively. He is also tied for third in the league with 2.8 threes per game and tied for sixth in free throw shooting, converting 85.7 percent (12-14).

MURRAY LEADS THE WAY
Through the first four games, junior Tyler Murray has shown the consistency that head coach Dan Hurley and his staff were expecting out the Canadian native. Murray has paced the team in scoring three times, highlighted by a career-high 21 points in the win over Stony Brook. In the season-opening victory over Lafayette, he matched freshman Latif Rivers with a team-high 18 points while twice quelling big Leopard runs, hitting all six free throws - including two with under a minute remaining - and adding a game-high six assists with five rebounds. Murray followed that up with an impressive 18 point effort at Lehigh. Then in the win over Stony Brook, he notched a career-high 21 points, highlighted by the go-ahead three pointer late in the second half. Despite notching a season-low 14 points at Hofstra, Murray almost tied the game up with just 18 seconds to play with a long jumper that was ruled a two pointer as his foot was on the line.

GOING THE DISTANCE
Junior Tyler Murray has played in 152 of a possible 160 minutes on the year, averaging a NEC-leading 38.0 minutes per contest thus far. He has turned the ball over just nine times during that time and has played more minutes than every player on both teams in all four games.

MURRAY/RIVERS COMBO LEADS THE NEC
Junior Tyler Murray and freshman Latif Rivers are averaging 33.5 points per game, ranking the pair as the top scoring duo in the NEC.

FOLAHAN BREAKTHROUGH
After notching zero points and six rebounds over the first three games of the year, freshman Naofall Folahan scored 10 points and nine rebounds over a career-best 22 minutes at Hofstra while narrowly missing his first double-double. The Benin Republic native was 4-of-5 from the floor, highlighted by a rim-rattling dunk late in the first half. On the year, he is averaging 2.5 ppg and 3.8 rpg.

YOU GOTTA PLAY 40!
Wagner played a very solid game against a perennial tough squad in Hofstra for almost 31 minutes. After taking the biggest lead of the game at 40-30 with 17:54 to play in the game against the Pride, the Seahawks' offense went into a funk misfiring on two of their next 16 shots, including going just 1-of-7 from beyond the arc, while allowing Hofsta to rip off a game-changing 18-5 run and take a 48-45 lead with 8:51 to play. Not counting the nine-plus minute drought, the Green & White hit on 45.7 percent (16-35) from the field, including 58.3 percent (7-12) from beyond the arc.

DEFENSE LOCKS IT UP
The Wagner defense has been outstanding thus far and again proved it against Hofstra. Despite allowing the Pride to shoot 42.9 percent the number might have been lower had it been for better rebounding. The defense forced Hofstra into a 1-for-10 conversion rate after gaining possession to start the game over the first 6:56 and 1-for-8 in the opening 6:03 of the second half. This stat analyzes whether the offense scored, turned it over or missed its first shot after gaining possession.

LUCKY NUMBER SEVEN
In the Stony Brook game, the Wagner defense forced the Seawolves into at least seven missed shots on three different occasions as the reigning America East Champions shot just 23.8 percent (15-63), including 19.0 percent (4-19) from beyond the arc. After halftime, those numbers dropped to 21.9 percent (7-32), including 16.2 percent (2-12) from outside the arc.

OTHER DEFENSIVE NOTES
While the Wagner defense wasn't as dominating against Hofstra as it was against Stony Brook it still turned in an impressive performance. The Seahawks forced three Hofstra field goal droughts of at least three minutes and 50 seconds in the first half, highlighted by holding reigning CAA Player of the Year Charles Jenkins to 0-of-6 shooting and just two points in the opening half. For comparison's sake, Jenkins hit for 20 points, on 9-of-11 shooting, in the first half earlier this year against North Carolina.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
A year after ranking 320th in the nation in free throw percentage at an abysmal 61.9 percent, Wagner leads the Northeast Conference at 81.3 percent and put its prowess from the charity stripe on display in the win over Stony Brook, connecting on a stout 94.7 percent (18-19). The Seahawks followed that up by making good on 82.6 percent (19-23) from the free throw line at Hofstra.

CLOSE GAMES
One of the staples of head coach Dan Hurley's practices is the emphasis of free throw shooting, notably at the end of the practice. That mentality has carried over to the actual games as the Green & White is converting an astounding 89.1 percent (49-55) in the second half of games decided by five points or less, including a perfect 14-for-14 over the final five minutes.

SECOND HALF LETDOWN NO MORE
After allowing Lafayette to rip off a 16-2 run and Lehigh a 6-0 spurt after halftime, Wagner reversed the trend in the win over Stony Brook, notching an 11-1 run at the beginning of the second half in taking a 38-29 lead with just under 16 minutes remaining against the Seawolves. The Seahawks continued the success at Hofstra, coming out of halftime on a 5-2 spurt.

WITH A WIN
Wagner would best its non-conference win total (2) while matching its road win total (2) from a year ago.

T.J. RETURNS
Fifth-year senior point guard #T.J. Czeski# played two minutes late in the first half at Hofstra after rejoining the basketball last Monday after concluding his football season with the Green & White. He notched a team-high 11 tackles in the season-finale at Sacred Heart on Saturday and finished up the season with 74 stops, second-most on the team.

CHANGING THE CULTURE
Wagner limited Lafayette and Stony Brook to 58 and 54 points, respectively, in wins over the two teams. Last season, the Seahawks allowed the Leopards to hit for 81 points and the Seawolves 72 points as the teams won a combined 41 games. The Green & White would like to see similar results tonight against Bucknell as the Bison notched 85 points.

CLOSE GAMES
Wagner is 2-1 in games decided by five points or less this season after going 3-8 a year ago.

GOOD NEWS: GUARD PLAY ON DISPLAY
While most Seahawk fans know that the team will be a guard-oriented offense, following in the footsteps of head coach Dan Hurley, himself a standout guard at Seton Hall, no one could have foreseen the guard play in the team's first two games. Guards junior Chris Martin, sophomore Danny Mundweiler, junior Tyler Murray and freshman Latif Rivers have shot 41.3 percent (57-138) from the floor, including 45.3 percent (34-75) from beyond the arc.

SETTING THE BELL CURVE
Wagner paces the NEC in the early going from beyond the arc with a 43.6 percent (34-78) success rate while holding the opposition to 23.3 percent (10-43) shooting from long range.

RPI UPDATE
Wagner is currently ranked 144th in the latest update from CollegeRPI.Com.

HITTING THE ROAD
Today's game will be the fourth of seven-straight games away from home. The road swing is the longest for the school since the 1992-1993 version of the Seahawks opened the year with a seven-game road trip ... The Green & White would love to replicate that team's success as Wagner went 18-12 en route to the NEC Championship Game.

NON-CONFERENCE NOTES
Included in the Seahawks 11-game non-conference schedule are four games against teams that won 20 games (@ Lehigh, @ Stony Brook, Princeton and @ Texas A&M) in 2009-2010, two games (@ Lehigh, @ Texas A&M) against teams that played in the NCAA Tournament and four games (@ Stony Brook (NIT), @ Hofstra (CBI), @ St. John's (NIT) and Princeton (CBI)) vs. teams that participated in other post-season tournaments. Additionally eight of the 11 teams posted winning records a year ago and the first four (Lafayette, @ Lehigh, @ Stony Brook and @ Hofstra) went a combined 82-49 with each winning at least 19 games a year ago.

TALE OF TWO HALVES
In the first half of their four games the Seahawks have outscored the opposition by an average of 3.8 ppg while shooting 40.6 percent from the floor, including a blistering 51.5 percent (17-33) from long range. In the second half, however, the Green & White have shot just 33.7 percent (32-95), compared to a 41.5 percent (44-106) for the opposition while being outscored by 6.5 ppg. In the three of the four games, Wagner has been outscored in the second half with the exception being the Stony Brook game in which the Seahawks shot 42.9 percent (9-21) from the floor, including 50.0 percent (5-10) from long range. Additionally, in the second stanza the Seawolves were held to 21.9 percent (7-32) shooting, including 16.7 percent (2-12) from beyond the arc.

FOUL TROUBLE
Wagner is averaging an astounding 8.0 more fouls than the opposition this season. In all eight halves, the Seahawks have allowed the opposition to enter the double bonus. On the year, the Green & White have committed 107 fouls while drawing just 75. Additionally, Wagner has committed more fouls then their opponents in seven of the eight halves and allowed the opposition to get into the double bonus in every half.

TONIGHT'S COACHING MATCH-UP
Dan Hurley vs. Dave Paulsen. Hurley is 2-2 in this his first year at Wagner following an outstanding nine-year run at St. Benedict's Prep (see page 11 of the notes for his complete bio). Paulsen is in his third season at Bucknell after spending time as the head coach at St. Lawrence University, LeMoyne and Williams College, the later of which he led to the Division III National Championship. Paulsen is 23-43 in two-plus years in Lewisburg. Paulsen also coached Hofstra coach Mo Cassara at St. Lawrence.

SCOUTING BUCKNELL
Bucknell is 2-5 and features a team that shoots at a high clip, as evident by a 45.5 percent shooting mark. The Bison also shoot at a high proficiency from beyond the arc, connecting on 37.5 percent. Bucknell has managed to hang tough with Villanova and Marquette and have wins over Binghamton and Presbyterian to its credit and are led by sophmore and reigning Patriot League Second Team pick sophomore forward Mike Muscala, who leads the team in scoring (13.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.0 rpg). Senior guard G.W. Boon is the only other player in double-figures (11.9 ppg) as the Bison employ an eight-man rotation.

THE SERIES
The Seahawks lead the all-time series by a 6-4 count, including take two of three since resuming a series that had been dormant for 23 years in 2007-2008.

LAST MEETING
Bucknell outscored Wagner 46-26 in the decisive second half a year ago en route to an 85-61 victory in the Spiro Sports Center. Sophomore guard Bryson Johnson led all scorers with 19 points in 27 minutes off the bench

LAST MEETING AT BUCKNELL
Joey Mundweiler scored 19 points, fueled by six three pointers, leading a stout Seahawk offense that shot 55.0 percent (11-20) from beyond the arc as Wagner bested Bucknell 83-79 at Sojka Pavilion on November 29, 2008.

WAGNER VS. THE PATRIOT
Wagner is 1-1 against the Patriot League this season and 27-24 all-time.

SPILLER NOTE
Senior Cliff Spiller has notched a career-high eight points on three occasions with the first coming two years ago to the day on November 29, 2008 at Bucknell in the Seahawks' 83-79 win at Sojka Pavilion. The senior center is averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

MUNDWEILER=BUCKNELL KRYPTONITE
Sophomore Danny Mundweiler would like to join his brother Joey on the list of players that have had big games against the Bison. Joey notched a game-high 25 points in a 64-55 win in Staten Island on November 24, 2007 and a team-high 19 in an 83-79 win at Sojka Pavilion on November 29, 2008.

BIG EAST IN THE HOUSE
For the third straight game head coach Dan Hurley will be joined by at least one former Big East guard in the gymnasium. Former Boston College guard Michael Cotton is an assistant coach for Bucknell. Cotton played for the Eagles from 1998-2000.

TODAY'S GAME ...
Is the second of six games against teams that have played or will play in an in-season tournament. Bucknell recently played in the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic as the Bison defeated Presbyterian while losing to Princeton and James Madison.

KEY MATCH-UP
Wagner must continue shoot well from beyond the arc and from the free throw line while continue to improve on the frontcourt. Bucknell is an experience team that expects to be competing for the Patriot League Championship and always brings an outstanding homecourt advantage. The Seahawks will have to be patience and avoid extended offensive droughts that have plagued them in losses at Lehigh and Hofstra.

NBA CONNECTION
Bucknell freshman guard Cameron Ayers' father Randy is currently an assistant coach with the New Orleans Hornets and previously worked with assistant coach Bobby Hurley when the pair were with the Philadelphia 76ers. The younger Ayers is averaging 6.3 points per game in seven games off the bench for the Bison.

HURLEY SIGNS TWO FOR NEXT SEASON
Wagner head coach Dan Hurley announced the signing of Marcus Burton (Matthews, NC / David W. Butler) and forward Mario Moody (Orange, NJ / East Orange Campus) for the 2011-2012 academic year. Both student-athletes will be freshmen and have four years of eligibility.

A 6'0” point guard from North Carolina, Burton averaged 13.7 points and 4.5 assists per game at David W. Butler High School last season under the direction of Kurt Wessler while earning inclusion on the Southwestern 4A All-Conference team. A powerful point guard, Burton has outstanding ball handling skills and can shoot with consistency from beyond the arc.

Burton, who hit a game-winning 40-foot shot against Providence Day High School in a playoff game, led Butler to the school's fourth-straight Southwestern 4A Conference title a year ago. He also played AAU ball for the Charlotte Royals under the tutelage of Rod Seaford.

A 6'7” forward from New Jersey, Moody averaged 11.5 points, 12.0 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game for East Orange Campus under the guidance of Daron Hoges. Last year as a junior, he helped the Jaguars to a 15-10 record and showcased his outstanding athleticism in a playoff game against Paterson East Side, blocking 12 shots.

Moody, who is an outstanding athlete who can play either the small or power forward position, played AAU ball last summer with Success University Team Izod under the direction of Brian Coleman and Ed Bright.

UP NEXT
Wagner returns to action on Wednesday, December 1 at local-rival St. John's. Opening tip at Carnesecca Arena is set for 7:00 pm.