Game 14 Wagner College Seahawks (8-5; 1-1 NEC) vs. Bryant University Bulldogs                 (5-10; 2-0 NEC)
Game Details	Thursday, January 7, 2016 | Staten Island, NY 7:05 p.m. | Spiro Sports Center (2,100)
Game Coverage	TV: CBS Sports Network Play-by-Play: Dave Popkin Color: Tim Capstraw Sideline: Paul Dottino CBS Sports Network Channel Finder  Radio: Redzone Media (Listen Live) Play-by-Play: Joey Wahler Live Stats: Click Here Twitter: @WagnerAthletics  Twitter: @Wagner_MBB Twitter Hashtag: #CHAOSonthehill
Wagner Links	Media Guide | Game Notes | Roster | Schedule
Bryant Links	Game Notes | Roster | Schedule

Staten Island, NY -  After splitting the Northeast Conference (NEC) opening weekend in Western Pennsylvania, the Wagner men's basketball team returns home to the friendly confines of the Spiro Sports Center as the Seahawks welcome the Bryant University Bulldogs on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. 
 
This contest, which will air live nationally in prime time on CBS Sports Network, marks the second time these two schools have met on a national broadcast. The previous matchup between the Seahawks and Bulldogs on CBS Sports Network was back on February 16, 2014, at the Spiro Sports Center, when Wagner defeated Bryant, 73-61 
 
The Green & White look for their third win in its last four games, after opening conference play on January 2 with a 73-65 setback while holding on for a gritty, hard-fought, 72-69 triumph at Robert Morris on January 4 in Moon Township.
 
Bryant enters Thursday's contest looking for its first 3-0 conference start since the 2012-13 campaign when they opened league play with six straights wins. The Bulldogs defeated Fairleigh Dickinson, 85-80, on Monday in Teaneck, NJ.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES:

• Thursday's game marks the 11th all-time meeting between the Seahawks and the Bulldogs, with Wagner holding a 6-4 advantage in the head-to-head matchup.
  Bryant swept last season's contests, defeating Wagner, 81-73, on January 15 in Smithfield, Rhode Island while escaping Staten Island with a 66-65 victory on February 19.

  

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS:

• Bryant is one of three teams with a perfect 2-0 record in league play and features three underclassmen that average in double-figures, led by sophomore guard Hunter Ware, who is pouring in 14.4 points per game, good for ninth in the conference. Ware is shooting at a 44.7 clip, ranking among the top-15 in the circuit, while leading the Bulldogs in six statistical categories.
  Freshman forward/center Marcel Pettway, the reigning NEC Rookie of the Week, has achieved that accolade a total of four times this season.  Pettway averaged 19.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 steals and shot a scorching 71.9 percent from the floor in a 3-0 week for the Bulldogs.
  Following a six-point, seven-rebound performance in Bryant's 62-60 win over Dartmouth on New Year's Eve, Pettway was unstoppable in a pair of NEC wins, averaging 26.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists, while draining 74.1 percent from the field.
  Pettway scored a career-high 26 points and added five rebounds and five assists in an 88-72 win over CCSU on Saturday. In doing so, he became just the fourth player in program history to produce a 25/5/5 game. 
  Two days later he made 9-of-10 shots and finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds in Bryant's 85-80 win at FDU. The North Providence, RI native is currently averaging 10.4 ppg and 6.4 rpg and ranks second in the NEC in field goal shooting at 60.6 percent.
  Nisre Zouzoua has started in 12 of 15 games this season, scoring 11.1 ppg while converting on 40.0 percent from long range.  In its last contest, Zouzoua was one of five Bulldogs to finish in double figures at Fairleigh Dickinson, ending the game with 13 points and five rebounds in 31 minutes of play. 

WAGNER ALL-TIME VS. THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE:

• All-time, Wagner is 280-309 against teams in the Northeast Conference.
• The 280 wins are the fourth-highest total among the ten-team conference, trailing Robert Morris (336), Fairleigh Dickinson (311), and LIU Brooklyn (284).
• Fourth-year head coach Bashir Mason is 33-21 all-time in conference games, ranking 11th all-time in league history.

 
WAGNER ALL-TIME VS. RHODE ISLAND DIVISION I SCHOOLS:

• Wagner holds an all-time mark of 12-13 (.480) against Division I programs from the state of Rhode Island.
• In its history, Wagner has played all four programs: Brown (5-5); Bryant (6-4); Providence (0-3) and Rhode Island (1-0)

 
CURRENT SEAHAWKS AGAINST BRYANT:

• Nine current Seahawks have squared off against the Bulldogs in their careers, with seven of them seeing action on more than one occasion.
  In his lone game against Bryant on February 19, 2015, redshirt senior forward Mike Aaman (Hazlet, NJ/Raritan [University of Rhode Island]) went for a career-high 22 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field, while he pulled down 15 rebounds and swiping two steals in the process. 
• The combination of sophomore guards Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD/DeMatha Catholic), Aaren Edmead (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park), JoJo Cooper (Wilmington, DE/Concord) and Romone Saunders (Temple Hills, MD/Potomac [Mt. Zion Prep) have scored 43 total points, averaging just under 11 points between the quartet.

UP NEXT FOR WAGNER:

• The Seahawks will conclude the second week of conference play on Saturday, January 9 as they travel up I-95 to Fairfield, Connecticut to tangle with Cane Broome and the rest of the Sacred Heart University Pioneers. Tip-off from the William H. Pitt Center is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.

 
LAST TIME OUT FOR WAGNER:

• Behind a balanced overall performance, in which four players scored in double figures, Wagner gutted out a 72-69 NEC win at defending champion Robert Morris on Monday night.
• For Wagner, which improved to 8-5 and 1-1 in league play, the victory at the Charles L. Sewall Center tonight snaps a 12-game losing streak in Moon Township with the last victory occurring back on March 3, 2005, in the NEC Tournament, a 69-65 Wagner win.
• Sophomore guard Romone Saunders (Temple Hills, MD/Potomac [Mt. Zion Prep]) led the team in scoring with a season-best 17 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field off the bench, which included a 3-of-5 performance from long range. The second-year guard, who missed the previous two games due to injury, also grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds in 28 minutes of action. 
• Redshirt senior forward Mike Aaman (Hazlet, NJ/Raritan [University of Rhode Island]) also gave Wagner a huge boost off the bench, posting his second straight double-digit outing, contributing 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting in 23 minutes of play. 
• Junior guard Michael Carey (Nassau, Bahamas/Lamar Consolidated [San Jacinto College]) tallied 12 points and tied Saunders with eight rebounds despite being saddled with early foul trouble. 
• Sophomore guard Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD/DeMatha Catholic) ended the game with 11 points, five rebounds and three steals for the Seahawks.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE THREAT IN CAREY:

• In the 76-62 victory over UMass Lowell on December 30,  junior guard Michael Carey (Nassau, Bahamas/Lamar Consolidated [San Jacinto College]) posted this third double-double of the season, finishing with 13 points and tying a career-high, 13 rebounds, 
• Carey is tied with Bryant's Dan Garvin and Marcel Pettway and Robert Morris' Rodney Pryor the most double-doubles in the league this season.
• Central Connecticut's Brandon Peel has five double-doubles on the year.
• In Carey's three double-double performances, he is averaging 13.7 ppg and 12.3 rpg.

 
HOME SWEET HOME

• Wagner is 5-0 at the Spiro Sports Center this season, the best home start since the 2012-13 season when the Green & White started 5-0 (11/28 to 1/3).
• Under fourth-year head coach Bashir Mason, the Seahawks are 34-11 at the Spiro Sports Center.
• All-time, Wagner is 145-76 since the Spiro Sports Center opened on February 20, 1999, in which the Seahawks played Fairleigh Dickinson to a 78-56 victory.
• This season, Wagner is outscoring its opponents by 12.0 points (72.6-to-60.6) while holding a +9.8 on the glass (40.4-to-30.6)
• Three Seahawks are averaging double figures at home, led by Corey Henson's 16.0 ppg.  Redshirt senior guard Dwaun Anderson (Suttons Bay, MI/Suttons Bay [Michigan State]) has tallied 13.8 ppg in five home contests while Michael Carey is averaging nearly a double-double, scoring 11.4 ppg and grabbing 9.8 rebounds a game this season at the Spiro Sports Center.

 
NATIONAL STATISTICS:

• Through games of 1/5/16, Wagner ranks among the top-100 in the NCAA in eight statistical categories while ranking among the top-50 in four categories.
• The Seahawks are 13th in Offensive Rebounds Per Game (14.69), 30th in Turnovers Forced (16.15), 44th in Steals Per Game (8.0), 45th in Rebound Margin (6.2) and Free-Throw Percentage (73.3), 60th in Scoring Defense (65.5), 77th in Total Rebounds Per Game (39.23), and 84th in Total Steals (104).
• Individually, junior guard Michael Carey (Nassau, Bahamas/Lamar Consolidated [San Jacinto College] is 51st in the nation in Free-Throw Percentage, shooting at an 85.7 clip. Carey is 71st in the NCAA in Rebounds Per Game, grabbing 8.5 caroms a contest.  Additionally, Carey is 82nd in Defensive Rebounds Per Game, averaging 5.77 a game.'
• Sophomore guard Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD/DeMatha Catholic) ranks within in the top-25 in Three-Point Field Goal Percentage at No. 23, shooting 45.8 from long-range.  Henson is 46th in Three-Point Field Goals Per Game (2.92), which is first among all-Northeast Conference players. Lastly, Henson is 71st in the nation in Total Three-Point Field Goals Made with 38, which also leads the NEC.

 
OVER THE LAST FIVE CONTESTS:

• The Seahawks are 3-2 in its last five games.
• The trio of Henson-Carey-Anderson are each averaging double-figures (13.2, 12.0, 11.0 ppg, respectively) during the last five games.
• Carey is pulling down 9.6 rebounds a contest while shooting 91.7 percent from the free-throw line. 
• Over the last five, Wagner is a +5.8 on the glass (37.2 to 31.4) and is outmuscling their opponents on the offensive glass, 65-43, during this stretch.

 
THREE-BALL GALORE:

• The men's basketball team have connected on at least one made three-pointer in 317 straight contests.
• The last time the Seahawks didn't convert a three-pointer was back on February 28, 2004, at home against NEC-foe, Mount St. Mary's in which the Green & White were held to 0-of-13 shooting from beyond the arc.

 
ENDING THE DROUGHT:

• The Wagner men's basketball team earned a gritty 72-69 Northeast Conference (NEC) victory at defending league champions, Robert Morris, on Monday evening
• For Wagner, who improves to 8-5 and 1-1 in league play, the victory at the Charles L. Sewall Center tonight snaps a 12-game losing streak in Moon Township with the last victory occurring back on March 3, 2005, in the NEC Tournament, a 69-65 Wagner win.

 
CONTROLLING THE GLASS:

• Wagner has done a tremendous job on the boards this season, leading the NEC in Rebounding Offense, Rebounding Defense, and Rebounding Margin.
• The Seahawks have outrebounded its opponents in nine of the first 13 games this season.
• The Green & White, so far, has outmuscled the opposition by at least 20 caroms in two games this season, most recently at Robert Morris on January 4 (44-24) and at home against College of Staten Island (50-29), back on November 28.

PAINTING A PICTURE:

• The Seahawks have tallied 372 of its 871 from inside the paint. The Green & White have allowed its opponents to score 358 points inside the painted area.
• Wagner has allowed 20-points or fewer from inside the paint in three games this season (at St. John's [14], vs. Morgan State [18], and vs. American [16])
• The most points the Seahawks have allowed inside the paint this season is 40 at Saint Francis U back on January 2.

 
OFF THE BENCH:

• Wagner's reserves this season have outscored its opponents, 315-231, which translates to 24.2 points per game for the Wagner bench.
• Junior guard Michael Carey, who has come off the bench in six contests this season, is averaging 11.8 points per game as a reserve while pulling down 9.2 rebounds, shooting 47.8% from the field and 81.5% from the free-throw line.

WE ARE WHAT OUR RECORD SAYS WE ARE:

• 45-20 when outrebounding their opponents.
• 39-4 when leading at halftime.
• 21-7 when allowing opponents to score 60-69 points in a game.
• 20-6 at home in conference contests under head coach Bashir Mason.
• 15-6 on games played on Thursdays
• 8-3 when committing more turnovers than opponent
• 7-3 when Corey Henson scores in double-figures.
• 4-0 when Michael Carey rebounds in double-figures.
• 3-0 in close games (3 or fewer points)
• 1-1 in blowouts (15 or more points)

 

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