Pictured Above: Senior
Elijah Ford
Staten Island, NY – In a back-and-forth thriller that featured eight ties and five lead changes, the Wagner College men's basketball team dropped a memorable 86-85 thriller to Sacred Heart on Tuesday.
Following their convincing 74-46 win in game one of the series yesterday, the Seahawks split the two-game set with the Pioneers and fall to 1-4 on the season, while Sacred Heart improves to 2-3.
Senior
Elijah Ford once again led Wagner with 29 points on 10-15 shooting. Through four conference games against Bryant and Sacred Heart, the senior has scored 91 points. Fellow senior
Alex Morales recorded another strong performance with 20 points and a game-high nine rebounds, while freshman
DeLonnie Hunt was the third Seahawk in double figures with 12 points.
The Pioneers held a 34-31 edge at the half, but Wagner used a 10-0 run in the second half to take a 47-46 lead with 9:34 to play. The scoring run included eight free throws by Hunt, Morales, senior
Will Martinez, and redshirt junior
Justin Brown.
From there, Ford took over the Seahawk offense, scoring seven of the last nine Wagner points in regulation, including the game-tying layup with four seconds to play to send the game to overtime tied at 68-68.
The biggest Seahawk lead of the game came in the first overtime period, as three points by Morales and a basket by Ford made it 73-68 with two minutes on the clock, but the Pioneers answered and knotted the game at 75-75 after the first extra period.
A basket by Brown on the first possession of the second overtime proved to be the final lead of the game for Wagner, as a 5-0 run by Sacred Heart gave the visitors a 80-77 lead.
Wagner fought back and tied it on a pair of Ford free throws with 30 seconds to play. With three seconds remaining the Pioneers' Aaron Clarke drew a foul and connected on the first free throw, missing the second. A last-second attempt by Ford did not fall, as the Pioneers earned the win.
Overall, Wagner held a 47-47 advantage on the glass and outscored the Pioneers 46-30 in the paint.
Next up, Wagner is scheduled to travel to Fairleigh Dickinson on January 7.
