Staten Island, NY – Redshirt senior forward
Mike Aaman (Hazlet, NJ / Raritan / Rhode Island) scored 17 of his game-high 22 points in the second half, which tied his career-high, and senior guard
Michael Carey (Nassau, Bahamas/Lamar Consolidated [San Jacinto College] recorded his fifth double-double of the season and 20th of his career with 12 points and 13 rebounds to carry the Wagner men's basketball team to a 53-50 Northeast Conference (NEC) win over Robert Morris this afternoon at the Spiro Sports Center.
With the win, the Seahawks improve to 7-9 on the season and even their NEC mark at 3-3 while the Colonials fall to 6-13 overall, 2-4 in league.
The 6-8 Aaman was 9-of-16 from the floor while adding two blocks and three steals in a spirited 23-minute stint. Carey's 12 points came on 6-of-7 shooting and his 13 rebounds marks the third time in the last four games that the 6-5 athletic guard has corralled double-digit rebounds. Junior guard
Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD / DeMatha Catholic) added nine points, two assists and a steal. For Henson, he is now just 66 points from becoming the 43rd member of the 1,000-Point Club as he now has 934 career points.
For Robert Morris, the Colonials placed three players in double figures, led by Dachon Burke's 13 points while Matty McConnell and Isaiah Still contributed 12 and 10 points, respectively. McConnell also pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds in recording the double-double for the Colonials.
Today's contest featured the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams in the league in scoring defense (Wagner No. 1 at 66.1 ppg/Robert Morris No. 2 at 69.3) and stayed true to form with the lead never exceeding five points. RMU took a 11-8 lead thanks to a Still three-pointer at the 14:30 mark.
Wagner responded, scoring 12 of the next 19 points over a 10:17 stretch that saw the Seahawks cling to a 20-15 advantage as Aaman was able to convert on a contested layup. The Colonials closed out the stanza on a 7-3 but still trailed by one, 23-22, after being held to just 25.0 percent shooting from the floor in the opening frame.
When play resumed for the second half, both teams continued its back-and-forth exchange, as neither team could take full advantage, with the lead not going past three, as Aaman was able to tip-in his missed opportunity as Wagner led 32-29 at the 15:22 mark.
The visiting Colonials mounted a comeback, outscoring the Seahawks 13-11 over the next nine minutes as McConnell drilled a deep three to knot the game at 40 apiece with 7:15 left in regulation.
Wagner was able to keep the Colonials at bay, closing out the game scoring 13 of the final 23 points in earning the hard-fought, tightly contested 53-50 victory that had a total of eight tied and seven lead changes.
The Seahawks held a 38.9 percent to 33.9 percent in shooting and owned an overwhelming 53-29 edge in the rebounding department, including a 13-7 advantage on the offensive glass.
Wagner held a 34-20 edge in points in the paint and a 17-6 advantage in second-chance points while RMU led in points off turnovers (12-8), fast-break points (9-2) and bench scoring (5-4).
The Seahawks are next in action on Thursday, January 19 when they make the short trip to LIU Brooklyn for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off vs. the Blackbirds.
