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Hamden, CT - Sophomore Kenneth Ortiz's (Newark, NJ / Science Park / Southern Mississippi) free throw with just 4.6 seconds remaining lifted Wagner to a hard-fought 51-50 victory against Quinnipiac at the TD Bank Sports Center. Ortiz sank his first shot from the charity stripe before missing the second while giving the Bobcats one last chance.

On the final play, Ike Azotam corralled the carom but had difficulty moving the ball, thanks to the relentless backcourt pressure of senior Tyler Murray (Toronto, Ontario / Eastern Commerce), Ortiz and sophomore Latif Rivers before finally finding Dave Johnson, whose midcourt heave bounced off the rim, giving the Green & White their school-record matching (D-I era) and NCAA-leading 10th road victory of the year.

The final play personified the defensive play of guard trio of Murray, Ortiz and Rivers, as the threesome limited Quinnipiac's starting backcourt of Zaid Hearst, Dave Johnson and James Johnson to just 5-of-31 shooting (1-6 3pt). With the win, Wagner improves to 17-4 and 8-2 in the Northeast Conference (NEC) with its eighth-straight road victory while the Bobcats fall to 11-10 and 4-6 in the league.

On the final Seahawk possession, Ortiz grabbed an offensive rebound off a Murray miss from the left corner to keep the possession alive, in a play that was eerily similar to the Garden State native's previous game-winning play at Santa Clara (12/30).

Rivers was the lone double-digit scorer for the Green & White with 10 points, converting all three of his field goal attempts, including going 2-for-2 from long range, while notching double-figures for the 17th time this season. Murray was next up with nine points while Williams added eight markers, rounding out the top scorers. Despite recording just six points, Ortiz notched team-highs in rebounds (6) and assists (3) to go along with his second game-winner of the year. Click HERE to see his first.

Down three at the half, Quinnipiac used a 16-7 run in grabbing its largest lead of the game at 41-35 with 12:04 to play. The damage could have been worsem but James Johnson split a pair at the line after seeing his shot attempt before the foul roll around the rim and out. On the other end, freshman Mario Moody (East Orange, NJ / East Orange Campus) corralled the long offensive rebound on the ensuing shot attempt before finding Rivers, who canned his second three pointer of the game. That three swung the momentum while sparking an 11-0 run over the next 3:34.

Williams tied the game up at 41-41 with a three-point play before giving the Green & White a 44-41 lead with a three pointer off a pass from freshman Marcus Burton (Charlotte, NC / David W. Butler). Sophomore Orlando Parker (Orlando, FL / Orlando Christian Prep) capped the spurt with a layup off a pass from Ortiz, extending the Wagner lead out to 46-41 with 8:04 to play.

With the Seahawks still up five with 5:18 to play, Quinnipiac used a 7-2 spurt to tie the game up at 50-50 remaining. Both teams squandered multiple opportunities to take the lead the rest of the way, before Ortiz split a pair from the line, providing the Green & White its aforementioned one-point win.

In victory, Wagner improves to an outstanding 17-1 when leading with five minutes to play and is now 8-3 in game decided by 10 points or less.

Ike Azotam led the way for the Bobcats, finishing with game-highs in scoring (15) and rebounding (13) while Hearst added nine points.

Quinnipiac, which entered the game second in the nation in rebounding margin, won the battle of the glass by a 40-31 count, including 21-6 on the offensive end, leading to an 18-9 advantage in second-chance points.

Wagner shot 44.2 percent (19-43) from the floor, including 80.0 percent (4-5) from beyond the arc, while making good on 81.8 percent (9-11) from the line. The Seahawks defense turned in its top performance of the year, limiting the Bobcats to just 28.8 percent (17-59) shooting from the floor, including 16.7 percent (1-6) from long range.

In the opening half, with Quinnipiac holding a slim 4-2 lead, the Seahawks broke free with a 10-0 run over the next 3:10, highlighted by a pair of baskets from senior Murray, with the later capping the spurt and providing the Green & White a 12-4 advantage with 11:44 to play in the opening half.

The Bobcats would trim the lead to one on two different occasions only to have the Green & White respond with six-straight points en route to opening to up a 28-25 lead at the half.

Wagner returns to action against Robert Morris on Thursday, February 2 at 7:00 pm at the Spiro Sports Center in a game that will be televised on MSG.

NOTES:

* Wagner shot 57.7 percent (15-26) from beyond the arc on the week while forcing the opposition into just 15.4 percent (4-26) shooting from long range.

* Additionally, Quinnipiac was held without a three-point field after halftime (0-3). The Seahawks have now held their 10 NEC opponents into just 19.7 percent (12-61) shooting from long range in the second half, compared to converting 38.0 percent (35-92) on offense.

* In just one of the Green & White's 10 NEC games has the opposition shot better than 40.0 percent on three-point attempts.

* Wagner won three-straight games against the Bobcats and are 4-1, all-time, in the TD Bank Sports Center.

* The Seahawks 51 points are a season-low as were the eight Quinnipiac turnovers the Seahawk defense forced.

* All nine Wagner players that saw action scored..

* The Seahawks finished the month of January with seven wins, marking just the fourth time in the Division I era that has happenend.

* Wagner's 10 true road victories and 11 victories away from Staten Island match the respective school-records held by the 1978-1979 Seahawk team that went 21-7.