Philadelphia, PA - The Wagner men's basketball team will play its final non-conference game of the season when the Seahawks travel to Saint Joseph's of the Atlantic 10 on Saturday, December 22 in a 2:00 p.m. tip in a game that can be seen on ESPN-Plus.
All-Time vs. Saint Joseph's
*Saturday's tilt at Saint Joseph's will mark just the second all-time between the Hawks and Seahawks.
*The first matchup between the schools came back on November 27, 1993 when SJU posted an 87-56 victory in Philly.
All-Time vs. Atlantic 10
*The contest vs. Saint Joe's will mark the 42
nd time that the Seahawks have faced a current Atlantic 10 member and the Seahawks are 10-31 in the previous Atlantic 10 matchups.
*SJU is the first A-10 opponent that will Wagner will face since December 22, 2017 when the Seahawks dropped a 79-67 decision at Dayton.
*Following Saturday's game, Seahawk head coach
Bashir Mason and his Seahawks will have faced at least one member of the Atlantic 10 conference in six of his seven seasons at the helm of the Wagner program.
*The last win the Seahawks earned over an Atlantic 10 member came on March 16, 2016, as the Seahawks upset the No. 1-seeded St. Bonaventure Bonnies, 79-75, in Olean, NY in the first round of the 2016 National Invitational Tournament.
Wagner All-Time Record vs.
The Atlantic 10 Conference
| SCHOOL |
RECORD |
LAST MEETING |
W/L |
| Davidson |
--- |
--- |
--- |
| Dayton |
0-2 |
12/23/2017 |
Lost, 79-67 |
| Duquesne |
--- |
--- |
--- |
| Fordham |
3-21 |
1/22/1979 |
Won, 94-78 |
| George Mason |
0-2 |
12/22/2015 |
Lost, 71-60 |
| George Washington |
1-0 |
1/8/1982 |
Won, 67-65 |
| La Salle |
0-1 |
12/19/2013 |
Lost, 80-54 |
| Massachusetts |
0-1 |
11/30/2016 |
Lost, 62-55 |
| Rhode Island |
1-0 |
12/17/2005 |
Won, 63-61 |
| Richmond |
0-1 |
3/13/2002 |
Lost, 74-67 |
| Saint Joseph's |
0-1 |
11/27/1993 |
Lost, 87-56 |
| Saint Louis |
--- |
--- |
--- |
| St. Bonaventure |
3-2 |
3/16/2016 |
Won, 79-75 |
| VCU |
2-0 |
11/30/2002 |
Won, 80-72 |
| TOTALS |
10-31 |
|
|
About the Seahawks
*The Green & White are guided by two-time and reigning Northeast Conference (NEC) Coach of the Year
Bashir Mason (115-84, .578), the fastest coach to win 100 games in Seahawk history, who has developed 12 All-NEC selections during his tenure,
*In his seventh season at the helm of the Seahawk ship, Mason was the youngest head coach at the Division I level when he was named the 18th head men's basketball coach in school history on March 26, 2012. At age 34, he remains one of the nation's youngest head coaches, checking in as the sixth-most youthful head coach heading into the 2018-19 campaign.
*Defense and rebounding have been at the forefront of Wagner's success throughout Mason's tenure and the 2018-19 season has been no different. With just two non-conference games remaining before NEC play begins next month, the Seahawks top the league in both field goal percentage defense (.433) and rebounding margin (+8.3).
*The Green and White, who were picked fourth in the 2018-19 NEC Preseason Poll, are paced in scoring by redshirt senior guard, and captain,
Romone Saunders who checks in with a 17.6 points per game average, a figure that ranks fourth in the NEC. Saunders is also third in the NEC in free throw percentage (.877).
*Physical 6-8, 230-pound redshirt senior
AJ Sumbry mans the post for the Seahawks and, in addition to quarterbacking the Wagner defense, is averaging career-best numbers with 10.6 ppg. and a team-high 7.5 rpg. (5
th in NEC). Sumbry is 5th in the league at 1.33 blocks per game coming off a season-high four-block effort last time out vs. Hartford.
About the Saint Joseph's Hawks
*With the 2018-19 season marking his 24th as the head basketball coach at Saint Joseph's, Phil Martelli has built a program that is consistently one of the top in the conference, a perennial postseason participant and a key player on the national scene. In doing so, he has earned his place among the top coaches in the school's storied history and is one of the more respected coaches in the game.
*Martelli is the Hawks' all-time leader in career victories with a mark of 436-314. Setting the school record for wins in a season (30) in 2004, Martelli has guided SJU to 20 or more victories nine times in his 23 seasons, which is the most for any Hawks' coach. His record of 212-164 in Atlantic 10 play is the most conference wins for any active coach and ranks second all-time in the league.
*Seven of his players have reached the NBA, with First Round draft picks - DeAndre' Bembry (2016), Jameer Nelson (2004) and Delonte West (2004) - and a second-round selection, Ahmad Nivins (2009). Dwayne Jones and Ronald Roberts, Jr. had NBA stints while undrafted free agent Langston Galloway earned All-Rookie Second Team honors with the New York Knicks in 2015. Nelson (Detroit), Galloway (Detroit) and Bembry (Atlanta) are currently playing in the NBA.
*This season, the Hawks are out to a 6-5 start with their most recent contest being a defensive-minded 45-42 win over Loyola of Chicago on December 22.
*Wagner represents the lone Northeast Conference (NEC) school that Saint Joe's will face this season. In fact, the Seahawks and the Hawks have no common opponents at all in 2018-19.
*Saint Joseph's is an explosive offensive team, averaging 75. 3 ppg. and led by four players who check in with double-digit scoring averages.
*Charlie Brown,a 6-7 redshirt sophomore forward, paces the Hawks at 20.9 ppg., followed closely by 6-0 redshirt junior guard Lamarr Kimble who checks in at 18.1 ppg. Rounding out SHU's double-figure scorers are 5-10 freshman guard Jared Bynum and 6-9 sophomore forward Taylor Funk, who come in at 12.6 ppg. and 10.9 ppg., respectively.
Last Time Out
*Wagner ripped off a 20-0 run to open the game, headlined by redshirt senior guard
Romone Saunders' 1000th-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 45th-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. With 1,016 career points, Saunders is ranked 43
rd all-time.
38. Nigel Wyatte (2000-04)..................... 1,060
39. Kenneth Ortiz (2011-2014)............... 1,050
40. Charlie Harreus (1952-55) ............... 1,029
41. Chris Martin (2008-12)..................... 1,024
42. James Ulrich (2004-08).....................1,023
43. Romone Saunders (2014-pres.)……1,016
*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.
*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.
*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.
Next Up
*The Green & White begin Northeast Conference (NEC) play on Tuesday, January 3 when Wagner travels to New Britain, CT to meet Central Connecticut, with tip-off between the Seahawks and the Blue Devils set for 7:00 p.m.
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