BOX SCORE

NEC RELEASE / TOURNAMENT BRACKET / NEC TOURNAMENT CENTER

Moon Township, PA - Wagner will be the No. 6 seed for the upcoming Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament despite a 66-49 loss to Robert Morris in the regular season finale for both teams at the Sewall Center. The Seahawks, which finished 11th in the league a year ago, will square off with the sixth seeded Colonials in a NEC Quarterfinal game on Thursday, March 3 at 7:00 pm. 

Despite the setback, Wagner, which was picked to finish 11th in the annual preseason coaches poll,  improved on last year's overall (5) and NEC (3) win totals while finishing the regular season in a tie for sixth place in the NEC (9-9) en route to posting a 13-16 overall record. Robert Morris, meanwhile, won its sixth-straight game en route to finishing at 16-13 and 12-6 in the league.

The last time the Seahawks were the No. 6 seed in the conference tournament back in 2004-2005, they upset the Colonials before besting No. 1 seed Monmouth en route to a NEC Title Game appearance.

Sophomore Danny Mundweiler (Overland Park, KS / Olathe East) hit a three pointer and junior Tyler Murray (Toronto, Ontario / Eastern Commerce) hit a jumper, staking Wagner to the early 5-0 lead just over two minutes into the first period. Robert Morris answered with five-straight points before junior Clayfell Harris (London, England / Brighton Academy (ME)) converted a three-point play, staking the Seahawks to an 8-5 advantage with 15:31 to play.

The Colonials responded with a game-changing 25-8 run over the next 13:27 while opening up a 29-14 lead at the 2:04 mark of the first. During the run, Robert Morris converted 9-of-18 from the floor while forcing the Seahawks into just 2-of-15 shooting and nine turnovers. Murray quelled the spurt with a pair from the line before draining a three just before intermission, cutting the Colonial lead to 34-23 at intermission.

The Seahawks drew to within eight in the second half but could get no closer before falling 66-49.

Murray led the way for the Green & White, notching team-bests in scoring (19 points), rebounds (7) and assists (4) while Mundweiler rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points. Freshman Orlando Parker (Orlando, FL / Orlando Christian Prep) also had a solid performance, recording six rebounds off the bench.

Wagner shot just 36.2 percent (17-47) from the floor, including 21.4 percent (3-14) from beyond the arc and 66.7 percent (12-18) from the charity stripe. Robert Morris, meanwhile, shot 47.7 percent (21-44) from the floor, including a blistering 64.7 percent (7-11) from beyond the arc, and 68.0 percent (17-28) from the line while winning the battle of the glass (35-26).

The Seahawks have been the No. 6 seed on seven previous occasions, going 5-7 during that time, and are 2-1, all-time, against Robert Morris during NEC Tournament play.