Pictured Above: Redshirt junior guard Romone Saunders (Credit: Dave Saffran)
 

Staten Island, NY  -  The Wagner men's basketball team will look to remain perfect at the Spiro Sports Center this season as it concludes its short two-game homestand by welcoming the Robert Morris University Colonials to Grymes Hill.

Last Time Out: vs. Saint Francis U (January 18, 2018): 

• Senior guard JoJo Cooper recorded 17 points and 10 assists, junior guard Devin Liggeons added 15 points to go with a game-high 12 rebounds, and Wagner held the Northeast Conference's (NEC) top offensive team 20 points below its season scoring average in running past Saint Francis U 73-64 on Thursday night at the Spiro Sports Center.
• Redshirt junior guard Romone Saunders was the third Seahawk in double figures in this night, hitting for 14 points, along with seven rebounds and four assists. Scott and freshman guard Chase Freeman, who was pressed logging a career-long 34 minutes of action in Francis' absence, wound up with eight and six points, respectively.
• With Wagner on top 60-48 after a one-of-two trip to the foul line by Cooper with 5:18 to play, the Red Flash had one last gasp in them, going on an 11-4 run, capped by a Keith Braxton three-pointer that made it a 64-59 game with 1:31 left.
• After Liggeons split a pair from the line to increase the lead to 65-59, Wagner forced Mark Flagg into a missed layup in traffic which was rebounded by redshirt junior forward AJ Sumbry, who was fouled in the process. Just a 55 percent foul shooter entering the game, the 6-8 Sumbry calmly swished both clutch free throws, pushing the lead to eight at 67-59 with 55 seconds to go.
• Saunders and Cooper then combined to make five of their final six free throws to seal the win.
• For Cooper, tonight's double-double was his fifth of the season and eighth of his career. In 109 career games as a Seahawk, the 6-0 Delaware native has led or tied for the team lead in assists and astounding 70 times, including 16 of 18 this season.
• Liggeons, meanwhile, registered the first double-double of his career, with his 12 rebounds tying a career high which he set on February 18, 2017 at St. Francis Brooklyn.

All-Time Series Against The Robert Morris University Colonials: 

• Wagner and Robert Morris are meeting for the 72nd time in program history with Robert Morris holding a 44-27 advantage in the head-to-head series.
• Last season, the teams split its season-series with each winning on their respective home courts. 
• Both meetings a season ago were decided by less than five points. 
• All-time, Wagner is 21-13 against the Colonials at the Spiro Sports Center. 
• Coach Mason holds a career record of 5-6 against the Colonials but is 4-1 at home when facing Robert Morris at the Spiro Sports Center. 

SERIES BREAKDOWN

Overall Series Record	Wagner 27, Robert Morris 44
Last Five Games	Wagner 4, Robert Morris 1
Last Ten Games	Wagner 5, Robert Morris 5
Most Points Scored By Wagner	101: January 25, 2003 - Wagner 101, Robert Morris 80
Fewest Points Scored By Wagner	48: February 11, 2017 - Wagner 48, Robert Morris 50
Wagner's Largest Win Margin	26: January 5, 2002 - Robert Morris 63, Wagner 89
Most Points Scored By Robert Morris	104: January 17, 2009 - Wagner 56, Robert Morris 104
Fewest Points Scored By Robert Morris	48, (2x), last March 1, 2014: RMU 48, Wagner 59
Robert Morris Largest Win Margin	48: January 17, 2009 - Wagner 56, Robert Morris 104
Current Wagner Streak Against Opponent	Lost, 1
First Meeting	February 13, 1982 - Wagner 70, Robert Morris 84
Last Meeting	February 11, 2017 - Wagner 48, Robert Morris 50
Last Wagner Win	January 14, 2017 - Robert Morris 50, Wagner 53
Last Robert Morris Win	February 11, 2017 - Wagner 48, Robert Morris 50

All-Time vs. the Current Members of the Northeast Conference: 

 

2017-18 Northeast Conference (NEC) Standings (including contests through 1/18/2018)

SCHOOL	NEC	PCT	OVERALL	PCT	STREAK
1. Robert Morris	6-1	.857	12-8	.600	W2
2. WAGNER	5-2	.714	12-6	.667	W1
3. Saint Francis U	4-3	.571	10-8	.556	L2
Mount St. Mary's	4-3	.571	10-10	.500	L1
LIU Brooklyn	4-3	.571	9-11	.450	W3
St. Francis Brooklyn	4-3	.571	7-12	.368	W1
7. Central Connecticut	3-4	.429	10-10	.500	W2
8. Sacred Heart	2-5	.286	7-13	.350	L1
Fairleigh Dickinson	2-5	.286	5-13	.278	L4
10. Bryant	1-6	.143	2-18	.100	L3

Scouting The Robert Morris University Colonials:

• Robert Morris is 12-8 overall and currently sits atop of the league standings at 6-1. 
• The Colonials are 7-6 away from Moon Township, PA. 
• RMU leads the conference in three-point field goal percentage defense at 30.5 percent while pacing the conference in turnover margin at +2.95
• Dachon Burke, who is the team's leading scorer at 17.3 ppg, is among the top-10 overall scorers in the conference while tallying 19.0 ppg in league-only contests, good for fourth among league players. 

Last Time Out Against Robert Morris (February 11, 2017): 

• Corey Henson led all scorers with 20 points but it wasn't enough as the men's basketball team saw its season-best four-game win streak snapped at Robert Morris, 50-48. 
• Henson's 20-point outing marked the second time this season in which the junior sharpshooter reached the plateau, with the first coming at home against Sacred Heart back on January 7 when he scored 24 points. Today also marked the 18th time Henson scored in double-digits and the 53rd time in his career. 
• JoJo Cooper chipped in nine points in 33 minutes of play while redshirt sophomore forward AJ Sumbry scored eight and grabbed nine rebounds. Michael Carey was held to just four points but cleaned up on the boards, grabbing a game-best ten in defeat. It is the tenth time this season that Carey has pulled down at least ten caroms and in the process marked the 27th time in his near two-year career. 
• The Colonials, like the Seahawks, had just one player in double-figures as Isaiah Still led the way with 14 points. Aaron Tate and Kavon Stewart each had eight points apiece. 

Coach Mason Approaching The Century Mark For Career Wins: