Post-Game Press Conference /
Coach Mason One-on-One with Joey Wahler
Box Score
Pictured Above: Redshirt Senior Captain Romone Saunders (photo by Adrienne Terzuoli)
Staten Island, NY – The Wagner men's basketball team ripped off a 20-0 run to open the game, including redshirt senior guard
Romone Saunders' 1000
th-career point, holding Hartford scoreless for more than nine minutes, before withstanding a late Hawks' run in earning a 77-68 wire-to-win on Saturday at the Spiro Sports Center.
With the victory, the Seahawks reach the .500 mark at 5-5 on the season, while America East member Hartford falls to 5-8.
During the epic game-opening 20-0 run, the Green & White shot a blistering 57 percent from the field while holding the Hawks to 0-for-8 shooting with eight turnovers during the 9:20 stretch, as Hartford didn't get on the board until the 10:40 mark of the opening half on a Max Twyman layup.
Saunders, sophomore guard
Chase Freeman, and senior guard
Elijah Davis each hit for five points during the run while junior guard
Jeff Coulanges and redshirt senior forward
AJ Sumbry added three and two points, respectively, in the surge.
Entering the game with 999 career points scored, Saunders became the 45
th-player in Seahawk history to reach the 1,000-point plateau on a three-pointer from left of the key after receiving a feed from Freeman at the 17:44 mark, that made it an 8-0 game.
The captain's historic three-pointer came after Freeman had tossed in the game's first five points on a three-pointer, followed by a jumper, en route to a career-high 17-point outburst.
Hartford scrapped back, ending the first half on a 19-12 spurt in drawing to within 32-19 at the break. The Seahawks maintained a double-digit lead until Travis Weatherington knocked down a three with 9:26 left to make it a 51-42 game.
After Wagner pushed the lead back to 12 at 55-43 with 5:37 left on a pair of Sumbry free throws, Twyman answered with a three-pointer that triggered a 16-9 Hartford spurt, capped by a Jason Dunne three-ball, that made it a five-point game at 64-59 with two minutes remaining.
Davis then hit perhaps the biggest shot of the game, a three-pointer from right of the circle with 1:54 left, to make it a 68-59 game, and the Seahawks remained in control the rest of the way, salting it away by hitting 11 of their last 12 free throws, led by Freeman's clutch 9-of-10 effort from the charity stripe down the stretch.
Saunders recorded a double-double on his big afternoon, posting game highs with 18 points and 10 rebounds. He was followed in scoring by Freeman's 17, along with 16 and 10 points, from Davis and Sumbry, respectively. Coulanges added eight points on the afternoon while sophomore
Nigel Jackson and senior guard
Devin Liggeons chipped in with five and three points, respectively.
Dunne led all scorers with a game-high 20 points for Hartford, while J.R. Lynch added 14 with Weatherington chipping in seven points for the Hawks.
With the win, Wagner improved to 2-0 all-time vs. Hartford with the lone previous meeting coming a season ago when the Seahawks posted a 72-50 road win.
The Seahawks are next in action on Saturday, December 29 when Wagner closes out the calendar year with a matchup at Saint Joseph's of the Atlantic 10 Conference. Tip-off between the Seahawks and the Hawks in Philadelphia is set for 2:00 p.m. The Wagner-St. Joe's game will mark the final non-conference game of the season for the Seahawks, who begin NEC play on January 3 at Central Connecticut.
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Wagner Athletics
Men's Basketball:
Head Coach
Bashir Mason:
