WATCH | Live Stats | Game Notes
Staten Island, NY - The Wagner College men's basketball team will compete in its final road regular season game of its 2024-25 campaign against Northeast Conference (NEC) rival LIU on Thursday, February 26. Tip-off is set for 7:00 pm.
Last Time Out
The Seahawks took down the Chicago State Cougars by a score of 64-52 at the Jones Convocation Center on Saturday afternoon. The Seahawks jumped out to a 17-7 lead prior to the second media timeout. Wagner would extend its lead to a game-high 22 points with 5:43 left to go in the half after senior Tyje Kelton nailed a corner three off of an assist from graduate student Zae Blake. At the half, the Seahawks led 33-12. Wagner's suffocating defense kept the Cougars to 5-19 from the floor for a shooting percentage of 26.3% and a clip of 2-11 (18.2%) from beyond-the-arc in the first half. Concurrently, the Green & White shot 12-20 (60%) from the floor and 5-9 (55.6%) from the three-point line after 20 minutes of game action. In the second half, Chicago State chipped away at Wagner's lead to eventually bring it to a five points game with 6:10 to play. Crucial baskets from Williams, junior R.J. Greene, and senior Javier Ezquerra lifted the Seahawks late in the game to force Chicago State to foul to stop the clock. Ezquerra, Blake, and freshman Zavier Fitch stepped up and hit big free throws to secure Wagner's fifth conference win of the 2024-25 campaign over Chicago State.
Back-To-Back
The Seahawks defeated Stonehill at the Spiro Sports Center on February 20 before traveling to Chicago State on February 22 and earning their second win in as many games. For Wagner, these two wins counted as the first consecutive victories in NEC play in the 2024-25 season. Blake led the Seahawks with 17 points while Greene added 15 against the Skyhawks. Williams then scored 20 points and grabbed a career-high nine rebounds against Chicago State to earn the Seahawks' sixth conference win of the year.
Among The NEC
Since the new year, Williams is 11th in scoring with 13.9 points, fourth in steals with 1.8 per game, fifth in three-pointers made per game with 2.1,tenth in minutes played with 33.6, and 11th in defensive rebounds with 4.3 rebounds in NEC play. Blake ranks first in the NEC in three-point percentage, shooting 23-47 (48.9%) from beyond-the-arc since January 3. Blake is 16th in points per game since the start of the new year with 11.5 and twelfth in the conference in three-pointers made per game at 1.6. Senior Javier Ezquerra ranks in third in assists per game with 4.1 assists across his first 14 conference appearances this season. Ezquerra is third in assist-to-turnover ratio with a mark of 2.0 in the category, and 63rd nationally with a season-average of 2.34. Junior Keyontae Lewis is sixth in the NEC in offensive rebounds per game, grabbing 2.2 per outing, and tenth overall with 5.7 total rebounds per game. Sanchez ranks fourth in the NEC in free throw percentage with a success rate of 86.8% on 33-38 shooting. In their first 14 conference games, the Seahawks are first in the conference in three-point percentage with a success rate of 35.9% on a 98-273 clip.
Wagner DNA
Since December 4, Wagner has ranked in the top 10 in scoring defensive out of 355 Division I teams. At their peak, the Seahawks were ranked third in the category. Currently, the Green & White allow the fifth least points per game in the country at a tune of 60.9 points per game, tied with WCC member Saint Mary's (CA). Williams is 76nd in the nation in steals per game with 1.83 steals per game.
It Takes A Village
Wagner is 61st in the nation in bench points per game, averaging 25.4 points from non-starters on any given night. Recently, Greene and Blake have provided Coach Copeland valuable production off of the bench, Greene has averaged 14.3 points in his last three appearances while Blake scored a team-high 17 points on 7-9 from the floor in Wagner's win over Stonehill on Thursday. Blake has scored double-digits in four out of his last five games.
Class Cleaners
The Seahawks lead the NEC in offensive rebounds per game, grabbing 10.8 per contest. The Seahawks also lead the conference in offensive rebound percentage, grabbing an offensive rebound on 32.6% of shot attempts, and second in defensive rebound percentage, grabbing a defensive rebound on 75.8% of shot attempts. At a margin of +5.1, Wagner ranks 44th nationally in rebound margin. The Green & White lead the NEC in defensive rebounds allowed, giving up 29.5 defensive rebounds to opponents.
The Series
Wagner and LIU will compete against one another for the 122nd time on Thursday. The Sharks hold an 65-56 all-time lead over the Seahawks, including winning the most recent matchup back on Thursday, February 6 by a score of 60-47. The Seahawks have won seven out of the last nine meetings with the Sharks.
Scouting The Sharks
Blake Lander and Jamal Fuller both scored 18 points with six rebounds in their lone matchup of the season. Malachi Davis averages the third most points per game with 17.4 point per contest in NEC play. As a team, the Sharks ranks first in field goal percentage defense, three-point field goal percentage defense, and steals; and second in scoring defense, scoring margin, rebounding defense, rebounding margin, blocked shots, and offensive rebounds.
Next Up
Wagner will compete in its final game of its 2024-25 season at the Spiro Sports Center against CCSU on Saturday, March 1. Tip-off is set for 6:00 pm on ESPNU. The men's basketball team's senior day ceremony will take place prior to the start of the game.
