New Britain, CT - The Wagner College men's basketball team improved its Northeast Conference (NEC) record to 1-2 with a victory over preseason favorites CCSU on Friday night.

Overall, the Seahawks record climbs to 9-7 while the Blue Devils falter to 11-5 with a 2-1 mark in conference play.

CCSU started the game on a 12-2 run, but Wagner clawed its way back with its own 17-7 run to tie the game at 19 midway through the first half. 

The Blue Devils would respond with another 8-1 run, but baskets from graduate students Ja'Kair Sanchez and Zae Blake brought the Seahawks to within one at the break. 

In the first half, Wagner dominated the paint in the first half, outscoring CCSU 20-12 in the category. The Seahawks also were treated to 18 bench points to the Blue Devils 10. 

Sanchez led all scorers with nine at the half, followed by senior Zaire Williams who had seven. Blake and senior Javier Ezquerra chipped in five points each during the first 20 minutes of action.

However, the Blue Devils held a one-point lead at half, 33-32.

In the second half, Wagner's bench continued to outscore that of CCSU, 17-6 during the frame.

Williams scored 11 during the second half as Sanchez added 10. Blake chipped in seven as Ezquerra scored one huge floater late in the game.

The second half saw 11 lead changes and six ties, with the game tied at 56 with two minutes remaining. 

An Ezquerra layup, a floater from Sanchez, and a successful one-and-one trip from Blake sealed the win for the Seahawks late in the stretch. 

As a team, Wagner's bench was responsible for 56% of the Seahawks offensive, compared to only 28% for CCSU.

CCSU had the biggest scoring lead (10), biggest scoring run (9), and held the lead for over half of the game. Regardless, Wagner would prevail over CCSU, 62-57, after holding the Blue Devils to 24 points in the second half. 

Wagner shot 6-13 from beyond-the-arc compared to a 7-24 shooting clip from CCSU. 

Individually, Sanchez led all scorers with 19. Williams followed closely with 18, Blake scored 12, Ezquerra added eight, redshirt senior Churchill Bounds added four, and senior Di'Andre Howell-South was responsible for the Seahawks' first basket of the game.

Freshman Zavier Fitch grabbed a team-high seven rebounds while junior Keyontae Lewis grabbed two. 

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Next up, the Seahawks will head back to Grymes Hill and welcome conference newcomer Mercyhurst to the Spiro Sports Center on Saturday, January 18. Tip-off is set for 1:00 pm.