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Staten Island, NY - The Wagner College men's basketball team will open the 2021-22 season at the Spiro Sports Center on Tuesday, November 9, when the Seahawks host Hartford at 7:00 pm.
Welcome Back Fans
Wagner will provide free admission to all for the Seahawks' home opener on November 9th at 7:00 p.m. against Hartford University. To show the community how much their support means to the team, the athletic department will open the doors free of charge for the season-opener.
Pregame Festivities
Prior to Tuesday's tip-off, the men's basketball program will also receive their championship rings in honor of the 2020-21 Northeast Conference Regular Season title.
Wagner earned its third NEC regular season title under ninth-year head coach
Bashir Mason, who previously led the Green and White to regular season championships in 2015-16 and 2017-18. After being picked 8
th in the NEC preseason poll and starting the year with a 1-5 record, the Seahawks won 12 of their last 13 games to finish the regular season with a 13-6 overall record.
The Seahawks re-wrote the record books in the process. The 10-game streak was the longest by an NEC team since LIU reeled off 13 straight victories during the 2010-11 campaign and longest by the Seahawks since a 16-game streak under PJ Carlesimo in 1978-79.
Wagner also became one of just 11 NEC teams over the past 25 years to string together at least 10 consecutive wins.
Preseason Favorites
Wagner was predicted to finish first in the league's annual preseason poll, the NEC announced at its virtual media day.
Additionally, graduate students
Alex Morales and
Elijah Ford were named to the six-person Preseason All-NEC team.
The Seahawks received seven first-place votes to claim the top spot in the league's preseason poll for the third time ever and first time since the 2013-14 season.
The Returners
Overall, the Seahawks will return 82.6% of total minutes played and 89.4% of points scored from last year's team, highlighted by the return of graduate students
Alex Morales,
Elijah Ford,
Will Martinez, and
Nigel Jackson.
Last season, Morales, Ford, Martinez, and Jackson accounted for 57% of all minutes played and 981 points, 68.9% of the team's total points.
After helping the Seahawks to an NEC regular season title, Morales became the first Wagner player since Jermaine Hall and third Wagner player ever to be named NEC Player of the Year. The Paterson, NJ native was also a First Team All-Met and NABC District 15 First Team selection.
One of the most versatile guards in the nation, Morales was the only player in the NEC to earn four Player of the Week awards throughout the 2020-21 regular season. The senior finished the regular season ranking in the Top-10 in the conference in scoring (17.1, fourth), rebounding (7.4, eighth), assists (4.26, fourth), and steals (1.8, seventh).
The dynamic Ford earned a spot on the All-NEC First Team after a dominant season on both ends of the floor. The senior finished the regular season second in the league in scoring at 17.8 points per game, ninth in the circuit with 7.4 rebounds per contest and third in the NEC in steals (1.94).
One of the most efficient scorers in the country, Ford was among the top-20 players in the nation in field goal percentage, converting 59.5% of his shots throughout the regular season.
In his second season on Grymes Hill, Martinez developed into one of the most improved players in the NEC, raising his average from 5.8 points per game during the 2019-20 campaign to 12.4 points per contest.
Serving as the Seahawks' sixth man for a majority of the season, the versatile Martinez scored in double digits in nine of Wagner's final 11 games while recording three 20-point games throughout the season.
Jackson, the longest tenured Seahawk on the team, will enter his fifth season at Wagner in 2021-22 and has appeared in 86 games throughout his career.
The Baltimore, MD native has accounted for 571 points in four years on Grymes Hill, scoring in double figures four times as a valuable piece in
Bashir Mason's system in 2020-21.
Other returners include reigning NEC Rookie of the Year
DeLonnie Hunt, the first Seahawk since Jermaine Hall in 1999-2000 and fourth Wagner player ever to win the top award for newcomers in the NEC. Hunt became the first NEC player since LIU's E.J. Reed during the 2012-13 season to earn three straight NEC Rookie of the Week honors.
The Newcomers
Wagner welcomed five newcomers throughout the offseason in
Raekwon Rogers,
Jahbril Price Noel,
Rob Taylor II,
Zaire Williams, and
Javier Esquerra Trelles. The class consists of three guards and two forwards comprised of two transfers and three first-year student-athletes. Additionally, this year's recruiting class includes two local products, with Taylor and Williams both coming to Grymes Hill from Brooklyn.
The Staff
Bashir Mason entered elite territory, becoming just the second coach in the conference's 40-year history to win three Jim Phelan Coach of the Year honors, joining NEC Hall of Fame coach Howie Dickenman, who earned the distinction four times in his storied career at CCSU.
Following the 2020-21 season, Mason was also a finalist for the 2020-21 Hugh Durham Award, which is presented annually to the top Division I mid-major coach in college basketball.
Wagner's head coach was also a finalist for the Ben Jobe award, which is presented annually to the top Division I minority coach.
Two new faces will be on the sidelines for the Seahawks this season, as Mason added
Pete Gash and
Scott Rodgers to his coaching staff during the offseason. Gash will serve as an assistant coach, while Rogers joins the Seahawks as the Director of Player Development.
The Series
Tuesday's matchup marks the fourth-ever meeting between Wagner and Hartford, with Wagner winning two of the previous three matchups.
During the 2018-19 season, the Seahawks ripped off a 20-0 run to open the game, including 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 win on Saturday at the Spiro Sports Center.
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.
One year earlier, three players scored in double figures to carry Wagner to its third straight victory, a convincing 72-50 wire-to-wire triumph in West Hartford.
Opening At Home
This marks the first time since the 2010-11 season that the Seahawks open the season at the Spiro Sports Center.
The Seahawks have won four consecutive home-openers, including last season's 74-46 victory over Sacred Heart.
Wagner's last victory in a season-opener dates back to the 2017-18 season, when the Seahawks earned a 60-49 victory at NJIT.
During the 2016-17 opener, Wagner earned a 67-58 upset victory over #18 UConn.
Scouting The Hawks
Hartford comes into the 2021-22 season after earning an NCAA Tournament bid last season. The Hawks finished the 2020-21 campaign with a 15-9 overall record and an America East Title before falling to #1 Baylor in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Hartford was picked to finish fourth in the America East Preseason Poll. The Hawks were projected behind preseason favorite Stony Brook, Vermont, and New Hampshire.
Hartford graduate student
Austin Williams enters the season as an America East Preseason All-Conference Team selection.
The Schedule
Following a road contest at Atlantic 10 member VCU on November 13, the Green and White will play consecutive home games against Saint Peter's and NJIT on November 17 and November 20.
Next up, the Seahawks will play four straight road games, traveling to Army (11/23), Seton Hall (12/1), Stony Brook (12/4), and Penn State (12/8).
Wagner will host Immaculata on December 16 and Delaware State on December 20, before closing out the non-conference schedule at Fairfield on December 23.
The Seahawks will open conference play on December 29 at Saint Francis U.
Spiro Sports Center Safety Protocols
In accordance New York State and New York City guidelines the Wagner College Athletic department has announced the following spectator policy for all indoor athletic competitions:
- All guests will be required to wear masks
- All guests over 11 years old must show proof of vaccination
- Children under 12 must be accompanied by a vaccinated adult
- Physical tickets must be picked-up on game day (can still be purchased and reserved in advance)
