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Hackensack, NJ- Wagner (15-11; 9-4 NEC) will take to the road for the final time in the regular season against FDU (10-17; 6-7 NEC) in a makeup game on Monday, February 24 at 7:00 pm. As always, fans can watch the game for free through
NEC Front Row.
Top Storylines
#1 - A win tonight would clinch a home game for the NEC quarterfinal round.
#2 - Winners of a season-high five straight games, Wagner currently has the inside track in the race for the No. 2 seed.
#3 - In the aforementioned five-game skeen, the Seahawks have held the opposition to less than 70 points each time out.
Quick Hits
* Wagner (15-11; 9-4 NEC) will take to the road for the final time in the regular season against FDU (10-17; 6-7 NEC) in a makeup game on Monday, February 24 at 7:00 pm.
* The teams' previously scheduled match-up slated for Thursday, February 13 was cancelled due a nasty snow storm that ravaged the east coast
* The Seahawks are a solid 7-7 on the road this year and will be playing their final regular season game outside of Staten Island.
* Wagner has won six-straight games against Fairleigh Dickinson and 10-of-12 dating back to the 2006-2007 season.
* In the all-time series, the Knights hold a 49-46 advantage, including going 40-33 since the Seahawks ascended to D-1 for the 1976-77 season.
* Additionally, FDU is 24-14 against the Green & White in games played in Hackensack.
* Robert Morris clinched the NEC Regular Season Championship on Saturday as Wagner is currently tied with Bryant for second place at 9-4 while holding the tiebreaker by virtue of its head-to-head victory. The Bulldogs are also in action at Mount St. Mary's on Monday in a make-up game with the Mountaineers.
* A victory today would give the senior class of
Naofall Folahan,
Kenneth Ortiz,
Orlando Parker and
Latif Rivers its 73rd win, breaking the school record of 72 set by the Class of 1969. Additionally, a win would give the Seahawks their 60th victory in the last three years.
* The Seahawks picked up their fifth straight victory against Mount St. Mary's by a 71-66 count on Saturday and were led by Ortiz, who finished with a game-high 21 points while notching his sixth career 20-point game, and Rivers, who scored all 14 of his points after halftime highlighted by his first collegiate dunk.
* Ortiz has scored 957 points on Grymes Hill after recording 30 as a freshman at Southern Mississippi and is just 13 points shy of 1,000.
* The Newark native began last week with 13 points, six rebounds and six assists while not committing one turnover against Sacred Heart. It also marked the second time in his career that he didn't commit a miscue with the first coming on November 26, 2011 against Delaware State.
* Ortiz collected his Second NEC Player of the Week accolade with 18 points, seven steals and six rebounds in Wagner's 73-61 victory over Bryant two Sundays ago
* His seven steals are the most by a NEC player this year and the most by a Seahawk player since Dedrick Dye's school-record eight against Robert Morris on February 3, 2001.
* The two-time NEC Defensive Player of the Year ranks among the league leaders in scoring (13.0-14th), assists (4.5-6th), steals (2.0-2nd) and free throw percentage (.720-15th) while posting a 1.53 assist/turnover ratio (11th NEC). Over his four collegiate seasons, he has 987 points, 437 assists, 412 rebounds and 177 steals.
* The win over the Mount was Wagner's first this season by five points or less after recording five last year and 14 over the past two seasons.
* Sophomore
Dwaun Anderson also matched his personal-best with 12 points, equaling the standard set on four previous occasions.
* Parker paced the squad in rebounding for the fourth time in five games with a team-best eight caroms as the Seahawks are 8-1 when Parker leads the way on the glass. He is also fifth in the NEC with a team-best 6.4 rebounds per game and has notched double-figures three times this year, including a career-high 14 at Sacred Heart.
* The Sunshine State native also recorded his third career double-double and the first since his rookie season with a career-high matching 16 points and 10 rebounds in the rematch with SHU and is averaging 9.6 points and 7.9 rebounds each time out since rejoining the starting line-up nine games ago
* In the five-game winning streak, Wagner is limiting the opposition to 62.4 points per game on 38.0 percent shooting, including just 22.7 percent from deep, while posting a +7.0 advantage on the glass. Leading the way has been Ortiz, who is averaging 15.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 3.2 steals per game.
* Thanks to the streak, which is the longest since ripping off nine in a row in 2011-2012, the Seahawks are a perfect 13-0 this season when limiting teams to less than 70 points and have won 28-straight when hitting the standard.
* The Green & White enter Monday's s game having won 14 of its last 15 games against teams from New Jersey and is a perfect 3-0 when playing on the first work day of the week this season.
* FDU, which is averaging 8.3 triples/game on a league-best 40.8 percent shooting from deep during league play this year, was held to just four three pointers on 28.6 percent shooting in Wagner's 75-68 victory in the teams' first meeting.
* The Knights' Sidney Sanders Jr. and Malachi Nix combined for 35 points, on 63.6 percent (14-of-22) shooting in the first match-up, compared to just 33 points, on 29.3 percent (12-of-41) shooting for the rest of the team.
* Sanders Jr. continues to lead Fairleigh Dickinson and has hit for at least 20 points in seven of his last 10 games continues to lead the NEC in scoring (20.2 ppg) and steals (2.1 spg) while ranking third in assists (5.9 apg).
* Ortiz scored 11 points - highlighted by a monster slam dunk over Xavier Harris - with eight assists, against just three turnovers in his last game against the Knights.
* Junior
Marcus Burton paced Wagner in scoring for the sixth time this season against Sacred Heart with 19 points off the bench and is averaging 10.6 points per game (24th NEC) while shooting a league-best 90.3 percent (56-of-62) from the line.
* Burton is the lone NEC player to average double-figures in scoring despite not starting a game and is notching 13.0 points each time out over his last three games.
* The North Carolina native has also converted 22 straight free throws en route to making good on 92.1 percent (35-of-38) during NEC play.
* Folahan continues to pace the NEC and 26th nationally with 2.8 blocks per game. The 6-11 pivot broke Frantz Pierre-Louis' 14-year school-record for blocks at CCSU, and is fifth in NEC history with 213 blocks.
* Thanks to averaging an impressive 3.6 rejections over his last eight games, Folahan is third in the Seahawk single-season annals with 72 blocks and need just seven to equal Miladin Mutavdzic's single-season school record of 79. He also ranks among the NEC leaders with 5.1 rebounds (11th) and 1.9 offensive (10th) caroms each time out.
* Rivers, who hit for double-figures for the team-best 21st time this season and the 82nd time in his career against the Mount, currently ranks 14th in school history with 1,466 points and continues to rank among the league leaders scoring (14.1 ppg-9th), assists/game (1.8-16th), field goal percentage (.455-12th), free throw percentage (.830-5th) and three-point percentage (.393-6th).
* Thanks to the trio of Ortiz, Rivers and Burton, the Seahawk guards have accounted for 70.0 percent (1304/1862) of the team's scoring.
* Led by Burton, the Green & White bench has outscored its counterparts in 11 of the team's 13 NEC games by an average of 11.6 points each time out. The reserves are notching 28.1 points per game on 44.0 percent (124-of-282) shooting from the field, including 38.4 percent (38-of-99) from deep.
* Since head coach
Bashir Mason, who earned his Master's of Science in education in December, took over at the start of last season, his teams have limited the opposition to less than 40 percent shooting in 30 of the Wagner's 56 games. Additionally, the Seahawks are a perfect 13-0 when limiting teams to less than 35 percent during that time.
* Mason, who was a finalist for the
CollegeInsider.com Joe B. Hall First-Year and Ben Jobe Minority Coach of the Year awards last season, is 34-23 in this his second year.
* For the second season in a row, Mason, who is 30 years and 13 days old, is the youngest Division I head coach. In 2012-2013, Mason led the Green & White to a 19-12 record (12-6 NEC) in 2012-2013. Both his overall and NEC win totals represent school-records for a rookie coach.
* Since the start of the 2011-2012 season, Wagner, which was picked to win the 2014 NEC Championship by the league's coaches, is 59-29, including 36-13 during conference play Additionally, the Seahawks are 31-16 in games decided by less than 10 points or in OT, 54-2 when leading with five minutes remaining, 46-2 when limiting opponents to less than 70 points, 40-9 when scoring at least 70, 45-3 when leading at the half, 34-4 when shooting 45 percent or higher and 19-7 following a loss.
* Wagner has been solid on defense this season, leading the NEC in rebounding (38.7), blocks (6.0) (16th NCAA), field goal percentage defense (.400) (32nd NCAA) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.308) (45th NCAA).
* The Seahawks are 30-8 at home (19-4 NEC) over the last three years and 128-69 (.650), all-time, at the renovated Spiro Sports Center (since 1999).
INTERESTING
Wagner, which was forced to alter its scheduled game against FDU has now had one game cancelled and one postponed due to weather this season. In the two ensuing games after the postponements, the Seahawks outscored the opposition by 20.5 points per game while shooting a blistering 55.6 percent (20-of-36) from long range.
CLOSING IT OUT
In the final five minutes of games decided by 10 points or less, the Green & White has converted 79.2 percent (84-of-106) from the line, led by Burton (14-of-14).
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT
Rivers notched the 17th 20-point game of his career the first time out against FDU while pacing Wagner in scoring for the 34th time with the Seahawks going 14-3 and 22-12 during that time, respectively.
UNDER THE BRIGHT LIGHTS
The Green & White improved to 3-1 over the last three years when playing on National Television thanks to its 73-61 victory over Bryant in a game that appeared on the
CBS Sports Network.
BLOCK PARTY
Folahan's four-block performance vs. Sacred Heart marked the 17th time in his career that he has rejected at least four shots with Wagner going 13-4 during that time.
SERVING IT UP
Ortiz has recorded at least seven assists on 19 occasions in his career with the Seahawks posting a 16-3 mark during that time.
SACRED HEART SPURTS
After using a 14-0 first-half ending run to grab control in the teams' first match-up with SHU, the Green & White posted a 17-3 spurt to end the first while grabbing an insurmountable advantage in the rematch.
THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT
Freshman
Nolan Long notched career-highs of six points, nine rebounds and 16 minutes against Sacred Heart after recording just two points, five rebounds over 15 minutes in three previous NEC games.
THE GLASS
Thanks to Parker and Folahan, Wagner has won the rebounding battle in 11 of their 12 NEC games while grabbing at least 40 on nine occasions while grabbing a NEC-best 40.5 caroms per game.
THE SENIORS
Folahan, Ortiz, Parker and Rivers comprise the Seahawk senior class, which has registered 72 wins since descending on Grymes Hill and have accounted for 51.0 percent (950-of-1862) of the team's offense.
MAKES SENSE
When outshooting the opposition, Wagner is 14-1 this season and 31-3 since the start of last season.
A TALE OF TWO HALVES
The Seahawks are averaging 32.6 points per game in the first half while shooting 39.3 percent from the floor, including 33.5 percent from deep, and 68.4 percent from the line. After halftime, the Green & White is scoring 38.3 points each time out while shooting 45.1 percent from the field, including 34.6 percent from deep, and 75.4 percent from the line.
IN THE RANKINGS
* Ortiz is eighth in school history with 415 assists, 40 behind
Tony Rice for seventh.
* Ortiz is seventh with 172 steals and with four more will match
Terrance Bailey.
* Rivers is fourth with 361 free throws and needs 64 to equal
Mark Porter.
* Rivers is sixth with 191 triples and needs one more to match
Bobby Hopson.
* Moody is eighth in school history with 90 blocks and with four more will equal
Dave Smolka.
THE GLASS
Thanks to Parker and Folahan, Wagner has won the rebounding battle in 11 of their 12 NEC games while grabbing at least 40 on nine occasions while grabbing a NEC-best 40.5 caroms per game.
THE SENIORS
Folahan, Ortiz, Parker and Rivers comprise the Seahawk senior class, which has registered 72 wins since descending on Grymes Hill and have accounted for 51.0 percent (950-of-1862) of the team's offense.
60-POINT CLUB
Wagner has have won 26 straight games (24-0 since 2011-2012) when limiting teams to 60 points or less thanks to impressive defensive performances against Saint Francis U, CCSU, Monmouth and Sacred Heart.
FEBRUARY FURY
The Seahawks are 5-1 in February this year and 17-5 over the last three season.
HIGH-POWERED BACKCOURT
Thanks to the stellar play of Burton, Ortiz and Rivers, the Seahawk backcourt has accounted for 70.0 percent (1304-of-1862) of the team's offense while posting 70 of the Green & White's 87 double-digit performances.
INSTANT OFFENSE
Burton has led Wagner in scoring at Coppin State (21), at CCSU (18), vs. UIC (17), vs. CCSU (16), at Saint Francis U (14) and against Sacred Heart (19) despite coming off the bench.
DOUBLE-DUTY
Following in the footsteps of former Green & White student-athlete, head coach and current Brooklyn Nets announcer
Tim Capstraw, Long will play both baseball and basketball at Wagner. On the diamond, Long was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 38th round of the 2012 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.
LONG GARNERS BASEBALL ACCOLADES
Long was recently selected as the second-best pro baseball prospect in the NEC by
Baseball America and was named as the league's preseason Rookie of the Year.
MASON ANNOUNCES CLASS OF 2018
Mason recently announced the signings of
Joseph Cooper (Wilmington, DE / Concord),
Aaren Edmead (Deer Park, NY / Deer Park) and
Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD / DeMatha Catholic) to National Letters of Intent. Cooper will be playing his senior season at Concord High School averaging 13.0 points, 4.0 steals, 3.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game as a junior at the Tatnall School. As a junior, Edmead averaged 14 points per game while helping lead Deer Park to a 17-4 record, a league championship and the Suffolk Class AA title game. Henson averaged 10.7 points while draining 48 three-pointers for DeMatha Catholic as a junior.
WAGNER PICKED TO REIGN SUPREME
For the first time in 21 years Wagner was picked in the annual NEC Coaches Poll to stand atop the summit at the end of the season as The Seahawks received seven of the 10 first place votes. Robert Morris and Bryant tied for second with the Colonials earning two first place nods. Three-time defending champion LIU Brooklyn garnered the final first place vote and was tabbed fourth. Central Connecticut was fifth, followed by last year's runner-up Mount St. Mary's, St. Francis Brooklyn, Sacred Heart, SFU and FDU.
NEC TELEVISION PACKAGE ANNOUNCED
For the third-straight year Wagner will play at least two televised games at home, including one on national television as part of the NEC package. Before the aforementioned two televised home games, the Seahawks played on
Fox College Sports (FCS) at Mount St. Mary's (1/16) before hosting Bryant (2/16) on the
CBS Sports Network. The Green & White will welcome FCS to the Spiro for Senior Day against Robert Morris in the season finale on March 1 at 6:00 pm.
SENIORS PACE RESURGENCE
The senior class of Folahan, Ortiz, Parker and Rivers is arguably the main reason that Wagner in considered among the elite of the NEC. The Seahawks are an impressive 72-46, including 45-22 during league play, since the foursome arrived on Staten Island.
UP NEXT
Wagner hosts Saint Francis U on Thursday, February 28 with tip time slated for 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.
