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Wagner	Roster	Schedule	Notes
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Hackensack, NJ - Wagner (16-11; 10-6 NEC) will look to make it two in a row when the Seahawks take to the road for a Thursday night tilt with Fairleigh Dickinson (7-22; 2-14 NEC). To listen to Joey Wahler's call of the game at Stratis Arena while still watching the game on NEC Front Row, click on the listen live link to access the Green & White audio broadcast. Then to access the video, click on the NEC Front Row link.

QUICK HITS
* Wagner qualified for the playoffs for the third-straight year and the 26th time in 32 years.

* The Seahawks are currently in a three-way tie for third place with Quinnipiac and LIU Brooklyn and would be the fourth seed if the playoffs were to start today. The Green & White could finish as high as first or as low as seventh in the ultra-competitive NEC.

* Wagner has won each of the last four meetings with FDU, including the last three by an average of 19.0 points per game.

* The Seahawks have won 10 straight games against schools from New Jersey, with six of those victories coming by 10 points or less.

* Despite winning eight of the last 10 meetings, the Green & White trail the all-time series by a 49-44 count, including 40-32 since Wagner moved to Division I for the 1976-1977 season.

* In the teams' first meeting, the Seahawks recorded a 68-55 victory thanks to 22 points and five assists from junior Kenneth Ortiz.

* The last time out, Wagner posted a thrilling 94-92 victory over LIU Brooklyn on Sunday night. In the process, the Seahawks became the first team to sweep the season-series from the Blackbirds since the 2008-2009 season. For the complete highlights click HERE.

* Ortiz's game-winning shot with 0.8 seconds remaining was the difference.

* For the Garden State native it was his second game-winner of the year and the fourth of his career.

* Bashir Mason, who is the nation's Division I coach in the nation at 29 years and 17 days, improved to a perfect 5-0 this year against first-year NEC coaches with his victory over Jack Perri of LIU Brooklyn.

* Mason also set a school-record for the most conference victories (10) by a rookie coach in school history. Additionally, he holds the school mark for most victories (16) by a first-year coach in the all-time Wagner annals.

* Wagner won its 21st game in a row when scoring at least 80 points and is 6-0 this season. The Seahawks were also victorious for the first time when allowing 90 points since a 100-92 win over Sacred Heart on February 14, 2008.

* Sophomore Mario Moody matched his career-high set earlier this season against the Blackbirds with 19 points, on 7-of-10 shooting. Moody also drained his first career three pointer while converting a personal-best five dunks.

* Over three career meetings with LIU Brooklyn, Moody is averaging 16.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game while shooting 59.4 percent (19-of-32) from the field.

* Josh Thompson and Jonathon Williams were honored prior to the game in the program's annual Senior Day festivities. Thompson finished up with six points and a season-high three blocks. Williams, meanwhile, notched his eighth career 20-point game and the fourth of this season, finishing up with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting.

* Williams has now paced the team in scoring 13 times and on the glass on 12 occasions this year while leading the team with 14.7 points (8th NEC) and 6.5 rebounds (10th NEC) per game. Over his two seasons, he has paced the Green & White in both categories 24 times in 53 career games on Grymes Hill.

* Williams also ranks among the league leaders in free throw (.794) (6th NEC) and field goal (.517) (9th NEC) percentage.

* Wagner is now 2-1 when playing on ESPNU over the last two seasons.

* The Seahawks finished up the home portion of their schedule with a 10-2 record, including going 7-2 during league play, and are 121-67 (.644) at the Spiro Sports Center since its opening in February of 1999.

* With its two-point victory, the Green & White improved to 21-11 over the last two seasons in games decided by 10 points or less.

* Over two games this year against LIU Brooklyn, Ortiz is averaging 13.5 points, 10.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 3.5 steals per game.

* On the year, the reigning NEC Defensive Player of the Year is averaging 11.9 points (18th NEC), 5.2 assists (3rd NEC) (46th NCAA) and 2.0 steals (3rd NEC) (57th NCAA) per game.

* Wagner improved to 8-3 this season following a loss and 12-3 over the last two years following a loss.

* Led by Moody's 19 points and sophomore Marcus Burton's nine markers, the Seahawk reserves finished up with 40 points, on 68.2 percent (15-of-22) shooting. Over the last four games, the bench is averaging 36.5 points per game while shooting 56.5 percent (52-of-92) from the field, including 41.9 percent (13-of-31) from long range. During that time, Burton is averaging 14.5 points per game while shooting 55.6 percent (20-of-36) from the floor while handing out 14 assists, against just two turnovers.

* Junior Naofall Folahan and Moody have combined to give the Green & White one of the top frontcourts in the NEC as Folahan is second in the league with 1.5 blocks (121st NCAA) per game and Moody fourth at 1.4 rejections (153rd NCAA) per game.  With one more block, Folahan will move past Miladin Mutavdzic into sole possession of second place on the all-time Wagner rankings.

* On the year, the Seahawks have a school-record 142 blocks and counting, bettering the previous mark of 132 set by the 1998-1999 team.

* Wagner won for the 32nd time in a row when leading with five minutes to play and is 14-0 this season when leading with five minutes to play and is 39-1 over the last two years,

* Williams has converted on 27-of-30 (.900) over the last five minutes/overtime in games decided by less than 10 points or in OT.

* The 2003 NEC Men's Championship team was honored during the LIU Brooklyn game while former head coach Dereck Whittenburg, who worked the game for ESPNU, addressed the men's basketball alumni in attendance in a pre-game ceremony.

* Junior Latif Rivers notched double-figures for the ninth-straight game against the Blackbirds, finishing with 12 points, highlighted by four-straight free throws in the game's final minute, and is averaging a team-best 16.6 points per game during that time. Additionally, he is shooting 49.5 percent (49-for-99) from the field and 50.0 percent (24-for-48) from long range. Over his first nine games of the year, Rivers notched just 9.8 points per game on 34.1 percent shooting from the field (29-for-85) and long range (14-for-41).

* Rivers has also hit for 20 points this year four times and 14 times in his stellar two-plus year career on Grymes Hill and is 30th on the all-time Seahawk scoring list with 1,105 career points.

* During NEC play, Wagner is averaging 74.3 points per game on 47.3 percent shooting from the field and 36.7 percent from long range. During non-conference play, the Seahawks notched just 58.4 points per game on 38.2 percent shooting, including 27.6 percent from deep.

* Wagner is second among NEC in the most recent RPI rankings at No. 129 while Fairleigh Dickinson is 11th at No. 301. Robert Morris the top conference team, checking in at 128.

* The Seahawks continue to lead the NEC and rank among the national leaders in blocks (5.3) (21st NCAA) and field goal percentage defense (.409) (85th NCAA), while also placing among the top-100 in steals (8.2) (50th NCAA) and rebounding margin (+3.6) (79th NCAA).

* Today's game marks the fourth anniversary of Joey Mundweiler's school-record 11 three pointers in Wagner's playoff-clinching 91-60 victory over Monmouth on February 28, 2009. All-time, Wagner is 3-3 when playing on February 28th since moving up to the D-1 ranks (1976-1977), including going 1-1 against the Knights.

SETTING THE SCENE
The Green & White returns to action against a snake-bitten Fairleigh Dickinson team that has lost 13 straight games, with seven coming by 10 points or less.

WILLIAMS TOUGH VS. FDU
Over two career games against the Knights, Williams is averaging 21.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting 56.5 percent (13-of-23) from the field and 78.9 percent (15-of-19) from the line. The Golden State native recorded two of eight career 20-point games against Fairleigh Dickinson a year ago, but missed the teams' first meeting on January 5 due to injury.

CAN'T HOLD 'EM DOWN
Wagner erased a season-high 13-point deficit in its win over LIU Brooklyn. It was the Seahawks' largest comeback since overcoming a 19-point Mount lead in an 83-75 victory back on February 7, 2008.

BLOCK PARTY
Against Bryant, eight of the nine Wagner players that saw action recorded at least one rejection in the game as the Seahawks notched a NEC-best matching 11 rejections. The 11 blocks were the most by a Wagner team since posting 11 in a 72-62 victory over Saint Francis U on February 13, 1999.

RESERVES STEP UP
This season, the Seahawks' second unit is outscoring their counterparts by 4.5 points per game and outrebounding them by 4.1 rebounds each time out, highlighted by a season-high 44 points, on 65.2 percent shooting (15-for-23), with 20 rebounds in a win over Central Connecticut.

OFFENSE COMES ALIVE
Wagner is 7-3 over its last 10 games thanks to a red-hot offense that is averaging 79.8 points per game while shooting 49.8 percent from the floor and 39.8 percent from long range.

OVER HIS LAST FIVE GAMES ...
Ortiz is averaging 13.4 points, 6.6 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game.

DURING HIS TWO YEARS ON GRYMES HILL ...
Ortiz, a Southern Mississippi transfer, has over 500 points, 200 assists, 200 rebounds and 100 steals.

WE'RE HALFWAY THERE
The Seahawks are a perfect 9-0 when leading at halftime this season and 30-2 over the last two years.

CLOSING IT OUT
The trio of Williams, Ortiz and Rivers have accounted for 67.7 percent of the Green & White's scoring (247/365) in the final five minutes of games this season.

ANDERSON HEATING UP
Freshman Dwaun Anderson has notched a career-high nine points each of his last two times out and is averaging 7.5 points per game on 50.0 percent (18-of-36) shooting, including 42.9 percent (6-of-14) from long range, over his last six games Against LIU Brooklyn, Anderson had nine points on a career-best three triples after recording nine with a career-high seven rebounds at St. Francis Brooklyn.

DID YOU KNOW?
Wagner's 41 wins since the start of last season marks the best-ever two-year span in school history, bettering the previous mark of 40 set between 1966-1968 and 2001-2003 seasons.

DID YOU KNOW PART II?
The Seahawks have converted on at least 50.0 percent of its shots from the field in four of its last five games after doing so just three times in the first 22 games.

DURING LEAGUE PLAY ...
The trio of Williams (13.9 ppg), Rivers (13.8 ppg) and Ortiz (12.8 ppg) have combined for 49.8 percent (592/1189) of Wagner's scoring.

TALE OF TWO HALVES
Wagner is averaging 36.6 points per game in the second half on 46.6 percent shooting from the floor, compared to just 29.1 points per game in the first half on 41.4 percent shooting.

BROOKLYN STATE OF MIND
Former Seahawk head coach P.J. Carlesimo is currently 20-10 since being named as the interim coach of the Brooklyn Nets. Carlesimo ushered the Green & White program to the Division I level in 1976-1977 and was the head coach for six seasons.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY
Wagner celebrated the 30th anniversary of its 84-77 victory over Duke with a 68-53 win over Fairleigh Dickinson in the teams' first meeting.

MOODY DOMINATES FDU
In Seahawks aforementioned win over the Knights, Moody notched his third career double-double and his first of the year with 13 points and 12 rebounds.

GARDEN STATE NOTES
The Green & White has collected four-straight victories against FDU and Monmouth while taking a pair against Princeton en route to posting a 10-game winning streak against teams from New Jersey.

UP NEXT
Wagner concludes the regular season at Monmouth on Saturday, March 2 at 7:00 pm.

Follow Wagner Athletics on Twitter (@wagnerathletics) for all the latest news and updates on the athletic department, @WagnerHoops for news and updates on the men's basketball program and @bashirmason to follow the Seahawks' first-year head coach.

Photography by Dave Saffran