Wagner: Roster / Game Notes / Tweet #WAGCCSU
CCSU: Roster / Game Notes
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Staten Island, NY - Wagner (13-3; 4-1 NEC) will look to win seven-straight games for the first time since the start of the 1979-1980 season tonight when the Seahawks welcome Central Connecticut State (8-7; 5-0 NEC) to the Spiro Sports Center. Fans can follow today's action through for a nominal fee through the athletic deparment's video stream. The twitter hash tag for tonight's game will be WAGCCSU or can by accessed by clicking on the above link.

QUICK HITS
* Wagner (13-3; 4-1 NEC) will look to hand Central Connecticut State (8-7; 5-0 NEC) its first conference loss tonight at 7:00 pm at the Spiro Sports Center.

* This is the first of a brutal three-game stretch that will see the Seahawks battle both unbeaten league leaders (CCSU, LIU) and St. Francis (NY), who is tied with Wagner in third place.

* The Seahawks bested Bryant 78-61 on Thursday, January 12 in their first game at the Spiro Sports Center in over a month.

* The victory over the Bulldogs was the Green & White's sixth-straight, marking the longest Wagner winning streak since the Seahawks' 2002-2003 NEC Championship Season.

* The Green & White are off to its best start since the 1955-1956 season - when Wagner began 12-3 en route to a 20-2 start - and its finest of the Division 1 era (1976-1977).

* Head coach Dan Hurley has led the Seahawks to back-to-back 4-1 Northeast Conference (NEC) starts for the first time in school history.

* A win tonight would give Wagner its first seven-game winning streak since the Seahawks started the 1979-1980 season with seven-straight victories.

* A victory would also give the Green & White its first win over CCSU since January 3, 2008 while snapping a five-game losing streak to the Blue Devils. Additionally, the Nutmeg State institution has won eight of its last nine meetings with Wagner dating back to the 2005-2006 season.

* At home this season, Wagner is outscoring its opposition by 16.3 points per game while posting four of its five victories by 15 points or more in accruing a 5-1 record in the Spiro Sports Center.

* Wagner has also been outstanding away from home, posting an 8-2 record in road/neutral court games. The Seahawks' seven true road wins tie them with #15 Murray State and Iona for the second-most in the nation behind Cleveland State, which won its eighth game away from home on Friday night in the Butler's famed Hinkle Fieldhouse.

* The Green & White moved up to #22 in the most recent Mid-Major Top-25 rankings and received a vote in the Associated Press (AP) Top-25 poll for the third-straight week.

* Wagner 69th in the latest NCAA RPI rankings, which were released on Monday, tumbling 20 spots from last week's rankings, despite posting road wins against Fairleigh Dickinson (1/5) and Monmouth (1/7).

* The last time out in the win over Bryant (1/12), freshman Mario Moody busted off career-highs in points (16) and rebounds (11) while notching his first collegiate double-double, despite playing just 20 minutes.

* Moody was 7-for-10 with six offensive rebounds that led to 11 second-chance points - highlighted by a pair putback dunks.

* Entering the night the Garden State native had just a combined nine points and nine rebounds over his first seven games.

* Also recording his first career double-figure game with 10 points was Moody's classmate Marcus Burton. The North Carolina native was 3-of-5 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the line while handing out four assists over 16 minutes.

* Leading the way in scoring for the fifth time in six games and a team-leading eighth time on the year was sophomore Latif Rivers, who scored a game-high 20 points. The 20-point outing was Rivers' third of the year and the ninth of his career. The Seahawks are now 8-1 when Rivers notches at least 20 points and 7-1 when he paces the squad in scoring.

* Rounding out the double-figures scorers for the Green & White vs. Bryant (1/12) was senior Tyler Murray, who notched 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. He now has 1,040 career points and moved past Charlie Harreus for 35th on the school's all-time scoring list.

* Junior Jonathon Williams failed to pace Wagner in scoring for the first time in his five home games but did score the first Seahawk basket again, having done so in all five times on Grymes Hill. Despite being plagued by foul trouble, Williams managed six points in just 13 minutes.

* The game also featured a matchup of last year's top NEC rookies in Rivers and Bryant's Alex Francis. Francis, like Rivers, did not disappoint going for 16 points and 13 rebounds.

* The victory was the first-ever for Wagner over Bryant at home as the Bulldogs had won the only previous meeting in the Spiro back in 2009-2010. The Seahawks lead the all-time series by a 3-1 margin.

* The Green & White's +14 rebounding margin was its fourth positive double-digit margin on the glass this year, which has led to four double-figure victories.

* During Wagner's current six-game winning streak, Rivers is averaging a team-best 20.5 points per game while shooting 52.6 percent (41-78) from the floor, 44.2 percent (19-43) and 95.7 percent (22-23) from the line.

* On the year, Rivers leads the team and ranks ninth in the NEC in scoring at 15.8 points per game while ranking second in the NEC 12th nationally in free throw percentage (.908) (59-65). In today's game the Garden State native will oppose the league's top free throw shooter in CCSU's Robby Ptacek, who ranks second nationally with a 92.6 percent (63-68) conversion rate.

* Lost amid the shuffle of Rivers' outstanding performance during the Seahawks' current hot streak has been the play of sophomore Kenneth Ortiz. The 6-0 point guard has paced the Green & White in rebounding three times while averaging 9.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists per game and has posted an impressive + 2.8 assist-to-turnover ratio.

* As a unit during the streak, Wagner has outscored the opposition by 11.5 points per game while shooting 43.8 percent from long range and 78.5 percent from the line during its current six-game winning streak. Additionally, the Seahawks have recorded a +3.5 turnover margin and a +4.0 advantage on the glass. Joining Rivers in double-figures during the streak has been Williams (12.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and Murray (10.3 ppg).

* In the win over Monmouth (1/7), the Seahawks sank 80.8 percent (21-26) from the line in the second half to help seal its 10-point win. Over the five minutes of 10-point games, the Green & White is converting 78.5 percent (51-65) from the line - including 88.6 percent (31-35) in the final minute as Wagner is 6-2 in 10-point games.

* On the year, the Seahawks are shooting a NEC-best 75.0 percent from the line while ranking 22nd in the NCAA rankings. Davidson leads all team with a 80.9 percent conversion rate.

* Despite losing the turnover battle in the win at Monmouth (1/7) for the first time in 11 games, the Green & White still leads the NEC and rank 16th in the nation with a +4.3 turnover margin. #1 Syracuse paces the nation with a + 7.0 turnover margin. All told, Wagner has won the turnover battle in 14-of-16 this year.

* In the victory at FDU (1/5), the Seahawks pressured the Knights into 21 turnovers, marking the fifth time this season that the Green & White has forced at least 20 turnovers in a game. Additionally, Wagner did not allow a three point field goal for the second time after yielding one in every game from 1993-1994 until the 2010-2011 season.

* Besides leading the NEC in free throw percentage and turnover margin, the Seahawks also pace the league in scoring margin (+10.1) (53rd NCAA), fewest turnovers (12.4) (54th NCAA), field goal percentage defense (.406) (86th), blocked shots (4.3) (80th NCAA) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.07) (83rd NCAA). 

* Wagner is also second in the league in scoring offense (74.7 ppg) (69th NCAA) and scoring defense (64.8 ppg), (129th NCAA) while ranking in the upper half of all 15 team rankings.

* The Seahawks have won five-straight games outside of the Spiro Sports Center (4 road, 1 neutral) for the first time since their NEC Championship season of 2002-2003.

* The Seahawks' 13 wins are the most by a NEC team this season and have matched last year's total.

* Wagner is also 7-2 on the road after going a combined 7-26 over the last two seasons.

* The Seahawks have led the entire second half in 10 of their 13 victories and are 13-1 when leading with five minutes to play.

* Additionally, the Green & White is 10-0 when limiting the opposition to under 70 points and 10-1 when scoring at least 70.

* Classmate Chris Martin will most likely be the next member of the elusive club as he has 940 career points.

* Tonight is the final regular season home game that will not appear on television. Wagner is 8-1 when appearing on television.

SETTING THE SCENE
Wagner (13-3; 4-1 NEC) will look for its seventh-straight victory for the first time since the start of the 1979-1980 season when the Seahawks host Northeast Conference (NEC) co-leader Central Connecticut State (8-7; 5-0 NEC) tonight at 7:00 pm.

TODAY'S ...
Game will be the first of three games against teams that currently sit in the top three spots in the league rankings

THE REST OF THE WAY
The final seven Wagner home games and 11 of the last 13 overall will begin at 7:00 pm. On the year, the Seahawks are 7-1 in 7:00 pm tips.

BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG PERFORMANCES
Wagner is an impressive 8-1 in television games this year - including having won seven-straight - and following today's game will play on TV in each of its final six home games - highlighted by games on ESPNU (LIU - 1/21) and MSG (Robert Morris - 2/2).

LUCKY NUMBER 70
The Seahawks are a perfect 10-0 when holding the opposition to under 70 points and is 10-1 when scoring at least 70 points.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Wagner has posted a sparkling 7-2 record on the road following its win at Monmouth (1/7), one season after going just 5-12 away from the friendly confines of the Spiro Sports Center.

13-3
The 13-3 start is the best by a Seahawk team since beginning the 1955-1956 season with a 13-2 record.

A WIN TONIGHT
Would give the Green & White its first win over CCSU since January 3, 2008. Wagner has lost five-straight and eight-of-nine to the Blue Devils since the beginning of the 2005-2006 season.

DID YOU KNOW?
No one on the Seahawk roster has ever been a part of a win over CCSU. The only Blue Devils to lose to the Green & White are fifth-year seniors Ken Horton and David Simmons, who played on the 07-08 team was bested by Wagner, 68-60.

LONG TIME COMING
The Seahawks posted five victories in December, which is the most in the month since the 1986-1987 season when the Green & White won six.

CLOSING IT OUT
The Seahawks are 13-1 when leading with five minutes to play thanks to shooting an impressive 86.0 percent (37-43) from the line in the final minute this season.

HOLD THE LINE
Wagner has outshot the opposition from the line in each of the last 12 games and 14 times out of 16 on the season.

BOOST FROM THE BENCH
Rookies Burton and Moody combined for 26 points, on 10-of-15 shooting, with 12 rebounds, three assists and three blocks over 36 minutes of action off the bench in Wagner's 78-61 win over Bryant (1/12). Each freshman recorded career-highs in scoring while helping lift the Seahawk bench to a 32-24 advantage against the Bulldog reserves.

TODAY'S OPPONENT: CCSU
CCSU (8-7; 5-0 NEC) enters today's game looking for its sixth-straight NEC win to start the season and are led by the high-powered trio of senior Ken Horton (21.1 ppg), freshman Kyle Vinales (19.1 ppg) and senior Robby Ptacek (18.6 ppg). The threesome has accounted for 77.8 percent of the Blue Devils' offense and rank first, third and fourth in the NEC rankings, respectively. Horton, who is the league's reigning Player of the Year, also leads the team in scoring and ranks second in the league with 9.6 rebounds per game. Additionally, he needs just four points to become the school's all-time leading scorer is listed on the website NBADraft.Net as a projected Second Round pick.

STAT COMPARISON
Wagner: Scoring Offense (74.9 ppg) / Scoring Defense (64.8 ppg) / FG% (.441) / FG%D (.406)
CCSU: Scoring Offense (73.9 ppg) / Scoring Defense (72.8 ppg) / FG% (.436) / FG%D (.458)

LAST MEETING
In the team's only meeting last season, CCSU jumped out to a 24-point lead early in the second half only to see Wagner come back and lose by a scant 75-71 margin. Ptacek led the Blue Devils with 25 points while Horton was held to just 13 points and six rebounds. Sophomore Orlando Parker notched a then career-high 15 points with a game-high 10 rebounds for his third career double-double. Murray added 20 points while Rivers (12) and Folahan (10) also added double-figures.

PARKER, BURBAGE MEET UP
Parker and his former Orlando Christian Prep teammate freshman Adonis Burbage will square off as collegiate opponents tonight for the first time. Burbage is averaging 3.4 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.

GOOD PEDIGREE
Wagner head coach Dan Hurley (Seton Hall) and 16th year CCSU head coach Howie Dickenman opposed each other in the BIG EAST throughout Hurley's playing career with the Pirates. Dickenman assisted UConn's Jim Calhoun from 1982-1996 and helped bring Ray Allen to Storrs.

DON'T FORGET TO STRETCH
The Green & White will stream tonight's game through Sidearm Sports for a nominal fee. Check the live events tab on the Wagner Athletics website beginning at 6:50 pm (EST).

COACH DAN HURLEY
Head coach Dan Hurley is 26-20 in this his second year. Last year, Hurley initiated an eight-win improvement marking the best regular season turnaround in America for a first-year coach while also matching Steve Lavin of St. John's for the best conference-win improvement (+6) by a rookie coach.

SECOND-HALF SUCCESS
Since early December, the Seahawks have opened the second half with some impressive scoring runs:
St. Francis (NY) (12/3) - 22-4 ~ Hofstra (12/6) - 6-0 ~ Lehigh (12/10) - 8-2 ~
#15 Pitt (12/23) - 15 -8 ~ Air Force (12/29) - 13-4 ~ Santa Clara (12/30) - 9-0 ~
Monmouth (1/7) - 9-0.

HOME SWEET HOME
At home this season, Wagner has been outscoring its opposition by an average of 16.3 points per game at home. No one player has contributed to that number more than Williams. The Junior College transfer has led the Seahawks in scoring in four of their home games while posting a team-best 17.8 points per game while shooting a blistering 61.4 percent (35-57) from the floor.

RIVERS REBOUNDS
After averaging just 9.0 points per game on a chilly 33.3 percent (8-24) from the floor in the previous three games before facing #15 Pitt (12/23), Rivers missed his three first-half shots against the Panthers. He then scored all of his game-high 18 points after in the second half while going 5-for-9 from the floor. Since that scoreless half, Rivers has scored a combined 123 points spanning the second half against the Panthers and in wins over Air Force (12/29), Santa Clara (12/30) and FDU (1/5) while shooting 54.7 percent (41-for-75) from the floor and 45.2 percent (19-42) from long range during that time.

IN THE FINAL MINUTE OF ...
10-point games, Rivers is converting 88.9 percent (16-18) from the line in the last minute as the Seahawks have converted 88.6 percent (31-35) as a team.

MILESTONE WATCH
Murray is just 20 points off of Nigel Wyatte (1,060 points) for 34th on the all-time Green & White list. Martin is four triples behind Bobby Hopson (192) for fourth on the all-time three-point list. 

DOUBLE-DOWN
Murray has recorded double-figures 14 times this year and in 49-of-53 games since the end of his sophomore year.  Rivers, meanwhile, has also notched double-figures a team-best 14 times this year and 35 times in his 46 career games. Additionally, Rivers and Murray have notched at least 20 points in a game a combined 19 times.

ORTIZ MAKING WAVES ON THE ISLAND
In his first season on Staten Island, Ortiz has filled up the stat sheets, averaging 8.4 points, 4.9 rebounds (19th NEC), 4.1 assists (4th NEC) and 1.9 steals (2nd NEC) per game while pacing a defense that has posted a NEC-leading +4.3 turnover margin. In the 59-54 win over Pitt (12/23), he put his talent on display with 12 points and a game and career-high seven assists over 35 minutes while converting 6-of-9 from the floor, including draining all five first-half attempts. At the Cable Car Classic Ortiz averaged 9.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game in winning the event's Most Inspirational Award, before capping the event with his game-winning shot at Santa Clara (12/30), which has been watched by more than 1.3 million people on YouTube while also appearing on ESPN's Sportscenter.

BIG THREE
Rivers (15.8 ppg), Williams (13.3 ppg) and Murray (12.3 ppg) have accounted for 54.0 percent (647-1198) of Wagner's offense while giving the Seahawks an array of offensive options.

BLOCK PARTY
Folahan leads the NEC and ranks 42nd nationally with 2.1 blocks per game. The 6-11 center swatted a season-best six at Long Island (12/1) and is also averaging 4.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. The Republic of Benin native has helped to challenge opposing players in the lane, blocking at least two shots on nine occasions. For his  career, he is tied with Largest Agbejemisin for ninth place on the all-time Wagner blocks list (79).

ALL OVER THE PLACE
The Green & White recorded non-league wins over teams from seven different conferences (BIG EAST, CAA, Ivy, MEAC, MWC, Patriot, WCC) and against teams from seven different states (CA, CO, DE, NC, NJ, NY, PA).

UP NEXT
Wagner heads to St. Francis (NY) on Thursday, January 19 at 7:00 pm before returning home to host Long Island on Saturday, January 21 at 7:00 pm in a game that will be televised on ESPNU.