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Picture Above: Senior guard Marcus Burton (photo by TJ Root)

Burlington, VT – The Wagner men's basketball team delivered  a solid defensive effort and received a team-high 22 points from senior guard Marcus Burton (Charlotte, NC / David W. Butler), but the Seahawks could not overcome 27.3 percent shooting in dropping a 61-47 decision at Vermont at Patrick Gymnasium on Sunday.
 
With the loss, Wagner falls to 2-6 on the season while the Catamounts improve to 5-4.
 
After three consecutive road games, the Seahawks return to the friendly confines of the Spiro Sports Center on Saturday, December 20 when the Wagner plays host to former Northeast Conference (NEC) rival Monmouth in a 4:00 pm tip-off. The matchup between the Hawks and Seahawks will mark Wagner's first home game in three weeks, since November 29, when the Green & White posted a 64-61 come-from-behind win over the Penn Quakers.
 
Playing its best defense of the young season, Wagner forced Vermont into a 0-for-12 start from the floor over the game's first nine-plus minutes as Catamounts did not hit their first field goal until the 10:23 mark of the opening half.  The Seahawks, however, were only able to open a 6-1 lead during this stretch and when Brandon Hatton drained a three-pointer for Vermont's first basket, it made it a 6-4 game.
 
After Burton nailed a three of his own at the 7:22 mark, Wagner had itself a 13-11 lead. This would prove, however, to be the Seahawks' last lead of the game as Dre Wills countered with a triefecta for Vermont that put the Catamounts in front 14-13. The rest of the half remained largely a defensive-minded, half-court affair as Vermont outscored Wagner 13-9 over the final 5:04 in building a 27-22 lead at the intermission.
 
Vermont opened the second half on a 10-0 run, capped by a Willis dunk at the 16:15 mark, in opening its biggest lead of the game of 15, at 37-22. Willis, however, was whistled for a technical foul following the dunk, which resulted in two Burton free throws at 16:14 that made it 37-24. This sequence spurred an 18-6 Seahawk surge over the next 6:30, as Wagner drew to within three at 43-40 with 6:45 to play.
 
Trailing 41-26 at the 13:45 mark following a Hatton layup, Burton nailed a three-pointer at 13:27 to ignite a 14-2 Seahawk run. After four straight points from freshman guard JoJo Cooper (Wilmington, DE / Concord) made it 41-33 with 12:33 left, Vermont made one free throw which was followed by a jumper by freshman guard Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD/DeMatha Catholic), that made it a 42-35 game with 9:11 to go. After Zach McRoberts went 1-of-2 from the line at the 8:59 mark for Vermont, Burton sank five consecutive free throws in drawing the Seahawks to within that three-point margin at 43-40 with 6:45 left.
 
A 4-1 Vermont spurt made it 47-41. Trailing by this six-point deficit with just over four minutes to play, a game-turning possession then ensued. Thanks to hustling defensive pressure by the Seahawks, the Catamounts were forced to settle for an off-balance three-point attempt by freshman guard Cam  Ward, which he the left-hander managed to bank in off the glass with one-second left on the shot-clock and 4:01 left in the game.
 
Instead of the Seahawks having the ball down six in a two-possession game at 47-41, Vermont went up by a 50-41 margin on the Ward three-pointer, and the Catamounts were able to outscore Wagner 11-6 the rest of the way in posting the 61-47 win.
 
Burton was the lone Seahawk to finish in double figures with his 22. Henson was the Seahawks' next-leading scorer with eight while Cooper and freshman guard Aaren Edmead (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park) chipped in with four points apiece.
 
Vermont wasn't much better than Wagner on the offensive end, as the Seahawk defense limited the Catamounts to 34 percent shooting for the game. Freshman guard Trae Bell-Haynes led Vermont in scoring with 16 points. The versatile 6-2 playmaker also paced the Catamounts with six rebounds and four assists. Willis wound up with 11 on the afternoon while Hatton was the third Vermont player to hit for double figures, finishing with 10.
 
The teams were deadlocked at 26-26 in the rebounding department.
 
NOTES – For Burton, who was back in the lineup after sitting out the Lafayette game (12/6) last time out with an ankle injury, his 22-point outing marked the fifth time in his career, and third time this season, that he has annexed the 20-point plateau. Today's game was the second vs. a team from the America East Conference that Wagner has faced this season, as the Seahawks began this three-game road swing with an 82-81 overtime loss at Maine (12/2). This was the sixth all-time contest between the schools and Vermont now leads the all-time series, 4-2.

Follow Wagner Athletics on Twitter (@wagnerathletics) for all the latest news and updates on the athletic department and on the men's basketball program and head coach Bashir Mason (@BashirMason) for news on the third-year head coach.