North Andover, MA – Trailing the 38-31 at the half, the Wagner men's basketball team outscored Merrimack 40-27 in the second period to earn a thrilling 71-65 victory on Friday night.
 
With the victory, the Seahawks move to 3-1 in Northeast Conference (NEC) play and are tied for the best record in conference play four games into the league slate, while the Warriors fall to 3-2 in NEC action. Tonight's game marked the first loss at home for the defending NEC champions since January 28, 2023.
 
Limited to just seven players once again, the Seahawks were led by freshman Seck Zongo and junior Melvin Council Jr., who scored 15 points apiece, while junior Tahron Allen added 14 points. Zongo added two blocks and seven rebounds to his career-high point total, while Council grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.
 
Defensively, the Seahawks limited the Warriors to 37% (10-27) shooting from the field in the second half, including a 2-14 (14.3%) clip from long range.
 
Merrimack used a 9-0 run late in the first half to grab a seven-point lead at the midway mark. The Seahawks took over immediately in the second half, as a 10-2 run put Wagner in front 41-40 with 16:36 to play.
 
Another 6-0 Wagner run eight minutes later, capped by a Council layup, gave Wagner an eight-point advantage at 60-52.
 
The Warriors cut down the Wagner lead to four with 16 seconds left, but it wasn't enough, as the Seahawks hung on late for the victory.

Offensively, Wagner converted on 25-50 (50%) of field goals, including 12-22 (54.5%) in the second half. Wagner dominated the glass, outrebounding Merrimack 38-22, including an 8-2 edge in offensive rebounds. The Green and White also held a 39-19 advantage in bench points. 
 
The Seahawks will continue their road trip on Sunday in a meeting of 3-1 teams at Sacred Heart, with tip-off at 2:00 pm on ESPN+.