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Staten Island, NY - The Wagner College men's basketball will look for its 13th straight win on Saturday, when the Seahawks host LIU at the Spiro Sports Center, with tip-off set for 1:00 pm.
Seahawks Soar In The Rankings
Wagner checks in at #16 in this week's Mid-Major Top-25 poll, released by collegeinsider.com, up two spots compared to last week.
Wagner remains the lone Northeast Conference (NEC) team ranked in the poll, with fellow NEC school Bryant receiving one vote.
In the national rankings, Wagner has improved to 106th in the KenPom rankings and 83rd in the NCAA's NET rankings.
Historic Win Streak
As a team, Wagner remains unbeaten at 11-0 in Northeast Conference (NEC) play and is 15-2 overall on the year. The Seahawks have won 12 straight games. Wagner is now alone in second place for the longest active winning streak in Division I men's basketball, trailing only #1 Auburn (18).
The 12 straight victories also sets the record for the longest winning streak for a Wagner team under head coach
Bashir Mason and is the longest winning streak at Wagner since the 1978-79 season.
Wagner's 11-0 start in NEC play is the best in the league since CCSU compiled 12 straight wins to begin its conference slate and finished 15-3 as a precursor to winning the program's first NEC Tournament title in 1999-00.
Morales Continues To Dominate
For a league-best fifth time this season, graduate student
Alex Morales of the Wagner College men's basketball team was named the Northeast Conference (NEC) Player of the Week earlier this week. Morales shared the honor with Mount St. Mary's junior guard Jalen Benjamin.
The reigning NEC Player of the Year averaged 19.5 points, six rebounds, and five assists in Wagner's victories over Saint Francis U and St. Francis Brooklyn.
Against the Red Flash, Morales led the Seahawks with 18 points on 7-15 shooting while also contributing six rebounds, seven assists, and two blocks. Three days later, the Paterson, NJ native scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half to lead Wagner over St. Francis Brooklyn.
Additionally, the graduate student is just nine points away from 1,000 career points in a Seahawk uniform.
Entering the week, Morales ranked in the NEC top-6 in scoring (17.6, fourth), rebounding (7.7, sixth), assists (3.9, third), steals (1.9, second), FG percentage (.554, sixth), FT percentage (.810, fourth) and A/TO ratio (1.5, sixth).
Earlier this season, Morales was named to the 2022 Lou Henson Award Mid-Season Watch List.
Scouting The Sharks
Since the last meeting between the two teams, LIU is 2-2, most recently earning a 79-75 win over Sacred Heart on Thursday night.
LIU is 9-12 overall and 6-5 in NEC play on the season.
Going For The Sweep
In the first meeting between the two teams,
Elijah Ford's three at the buzzer sent the game to overtime and
Alex Morales scored 12 of his career-high 35 points in the extra period to give the Seahawks a thrilling 92-85 road victory at LIU.
Morales finished with 35 points, 12 rebounds, four steals, and three assists, becoming the first Division I player since 2018 and just the fourth over the last decade with at least 35 points, 12 boards, 3 assists, and 4 steals in a game.
Trailing 72-69 with 20 seconds remaining, redshirt-senior
Raekwon Rogers tied the game on a three with 10 seconds to play. On the ensuing possession, LIU's Ty Flowers knocked down a three to put the Sharks back up by three, before Ford's tough buzzer-beater tied the game at 75-75 and sent the game to overtime.
Last Time Out
Alex Morales' game-saving block on the final possession of the game preserved a 54-52 victory for Wagner over CCSU on Thursday night.
Morales led Wagner with 11 points and is now nine points away from reaching 1,000 points for his career. Sophomore
DeLonnie Hunt was the second Seahawk in double figures with 10 points on the night. Junior
Ja'Mier Fletcher led the Green and White with seven rebounds.
Mason's Milestone Victories
Wagner's win over Fairleigh Dickinson marked the 100th career victory in conference play for head coach
Bashir Mason, who became the 11th coach in NEC history to reach the century mark.
Earlier this season, Mason earned his 150th overall victory against Fairfield. Mason is already Wagner's winningest coach in the Division I era and reached the milestone in 276 games, winning more than 54% of his games
Mason was named to the Athletic's "40 Under 40 – Rising Stars In Men's College Basketball" list.
According to the article, which features Mason at #15, Mason "has established himself as one of the top mid-major coaches in America."
Last season, 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.
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 and is the fastest coach to win 100 games in Seahawk history.
The Schedule
Following Saturday's game, Wagner will host Mount St. Mary's on Thursday, February 10. The re-match of last year's NEC Tournament semifinal will air nationally on ESPNU, starting at 7:00 pm. For tickets, visit wagnerathletics.com/tickets
