Pictured Above: Redshirt senior guard
Romone Saunders (photo by Adrienne Terzuoli)
Postgame Press Conference
Staten Island, NY – Redshirt senior guard
Romone Saunders poured in 27 points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished out six assists, while redshirt senior forward
AJ Sumbry recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, but it was not enough as St. Francis Brooklyn earned a 66-59 win over the Seahawks.
In dropping their Northeast Conference (NEC) home opener following an 80-59 win at Central Connecticut on Thursday, Wagner falls to 1-1 in league play while the Terriers improve to 1-1.
The visitors were led by Jalen Jordan and Glenn Sanabria, who paced St. Francis Brooklyn with 23 and 18 points, respectively, while Deniz Celen added nine.
After the teams battled to a 28-28 stalemate at the half, Jordan was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three free throws to put the Terriers on top by a 31-28 count, a lead they would not relinquish.
The Jordan free throws sparked a 7-0 run to open the second half as St. Francis Brooklyn expanded its lead to 35-28. After the Seahawks managed to cut the deficit to one at 39-38 following a pair of Saunders foul shots, the Terriers outscored the Seahawks 16-12 over the next eight minutes in taking their biggest lead of the game at 55-46 with 4;20 left.
The teams then traded baskets the rest of the way as St. Francis Brooklyn went on to post the seven-point victory.
For Saunders, the season-high 27 points came on 9-of-16 shooting and a perfect 8-of-8 effort from the free throw line. The NEC's leading free throw shooter entering the game, the 6-3 redshirt senior guard is up to 89.8 percent (71-of-79) for the season.
Coming off a season-high 12 made three pointers at CCSU, the Seahawks struggled from beyond the arc this afternoon, hitting on just 2-of-17 attempts. Wagner out-rebounded (40-30) and outshot (44.2%-41.2%), but the Seahawks were undone by committing 18 turnovers which led to the Terriers owning a 21-11 advantage in points off turnovers.
The loss ends a mini two-game winning streak for the Seahawks over the Terriers as St. Francis Brooklyn now holds a 51-44 advantage in the head-to-head series., while Wagner falls to 23-22 all-time at home vs. St. Francis Brooklyn.
The Seahawks are next in action on Thursday, January 10 as they continue a four-game homestand with a 7:00 p.m, tip vs. Sacred Heart in a game that can be seen on ESPN 3.
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Men's Basketball:
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