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Dover, DE - Delaware State scored the final seven points of overtime to outlast Wagner 73-69, while spoiling Bashir Mason's collegiate coaching debut for the Seahawks at Memorial Gymnasium. The Hornets improve to 3-0 on the year, while the Green & White fall to 0-1.

Wagner forced overtime when senior Jonathon Williams (Richmond, CA / Kennedy / City College of San Francisco) converted THIS LAYUP off an inbounds play with just sixth-tenths of a second remaining. Williams led all scorers with 19 points, on 8-of-13 shooting, and a team-best matching eight rebounds over a personal-best 37 minutes of action.

Up 10 at the half, Amere May matched Delaware State's largest lead of the game with a dunk, before the Seahawks ripped off an impressive 22-2 run over the next 6:32, including 19-straight to turn a 12-point deficit into an eight-point Green & White lead at 48-40 with 12:40 to play in the second half.

Junior Latif Rivers (Elizabeth, NJ / Avon Old Farms (CT)) got the rally going with his first three pointer of the 2012-2013 campaign. After a quick jumper from Tahj Tate, Rivers converted a fast-break layup off a steal from junior Kenneth Ortiz (Newark, NJ / Science Park / Southern Mississippi), before freshman Dwaun Anderson (Suttons Bay, MI / Suttons Bay / Michigan State) added a pair of layups and junior Naofall Folahan (Cotonou, Republic of Benin / Wilbraham and Monson Academy (MA)) a pair of buckets to trim the deficit to 40-39 and force a timeout with 15:41 remaining in the period.

Folowing the brief stoppage, Ortiz grabbed the defensive rebound and sank a pair from the line to give Wagner its first lead at 41-40 since it was 8-6 at the 15:14 mark of the first half. Williams added to the lead with a layup, before Ortiz sank two more free throws and sophomore Marcus Burton (Charlotte, NC / David W. Butler) capped the run with a three pointer to make it 48-40 with 12:40 to play in half. All told, the Seahawks went 8-for-10 from the floor during its big push, while forcing the Hornets into just 2-of-12 shooting from the floor. Six different members of the Green & White scored during Wagner's biggest spurt of the game.

Later in the half with Seahawk lead at 54-47, Delaware State used an 11-0 run to reclaim the lead at 58-54 with 4:33 to play in the half. Down but not out, the Green & White fought back to tie the game up at 60-60 with 3:05 remaining on Rivers' second triple off a well-executed play following a Wagner timeout.

The Hornets reclaimed the lead at 62-60 with a pair from the line, before Ortiz converted an old-fashioned three-point play to make it 63-62 with 1:30 to play. After the teams traded free throws, a May layup wrestled the lead back for Delaware State at 65-64 with 27 seconds play. The Hornets added to the lead when May split a pair from the line, before Williams forced overtime with his aforementioned layup.

In the extra session, Folahan gave the Seahawks an early 68-66 lead with a tip-in off a missed shot, before junior Orlando Parker (Orlando, FL / Orlando Christian Prep) split a pair from the line to make it a 69-66 game with 2:32 remaining. The Hornets responded with the final seven points en route to a 73-69 win as the Green & White misfired on its final five shots.

Ortiz, like Williams, had an outstanding game, recording 12 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals over a team-high 38 minutes. Matching Ortiz with 12 points was Rivers, who also added four rebounds in 35 minutes. Rounding out the double-digit performers was Folahan, who registered 11 points, on 5-of-6 shooting, eight rebounds and four blocks.

Despite the loss, Wagner topped Delaware State on the glass (47-44), in the paint (42-34), in points off turnovers (19-14) and fastbreak points (12-2). Unfortunately, the Hornets had the edge in second chance points (20-18) while forcing the Seahawks into 18 turnovers. The teams struggled from the floor as both Wagner and Delaware State shot under 40 percent from the floor and 30 percent from long range.

Kendall Gray led the Hornets with 17 points, while May (14) and Tate (13) also added double-figures.

The Seahawks return to action on Sunday, November 18 with a 1:00 pm match-up with No. 8 Syracuse.

NOTES:
* This was the first Wagner season opener in the Division I era (1976-1977) to be decided in overtime.

* The last time the Seahawks played in an overtime game was on February 17, 2010 when they dropped an 83-79 decision to LIU Brooklyn at the Spiro Sports Center.

* Wagner falls to 53-39, all-time, in season openers, including going 21-16 since moving to D-1.

* The Seahawk loss snaps a four-game winning streak against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) foes.

* Williams, meanwhile, is averaging 22.0 points and 7.7 rebounds per game over three games against teams from the MEAC, while shooting a blistering 66.7 percent (26-for-39) from the floor during that time.

* Rivers now has 880 career points, leaving him just 120 from becoming the Green & White's 40th member of the 1,000-point club.

* Folahan also topped the 100-block mark for his career and has 101 rejections, while narrowly missing his first career double-double.

* Anderson (4 points, 5 rebounds) and Eric Fanning (Trenton, NJ / Perkiomen Prep (PA)) (2 points) had solid debuts for Wagner.