BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The No. 7 Wagner College men's basketball team continues NEC Tournament play in the semifinal round against No. 1 LIU on Saturday, March 7. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. inside the Steinberg Wellness Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. The game will air live on ESPN+, YES and NESN Nation with Dave Popkin and Joe DeSantis on the call.

NEC Tournament Format
The 2026 NEC Tournament began on March 4, with Wagner, LIU, Stonehill and Mercyhurst earning victories. Following the opening round, the teams were reseeded. All semifinal games will air on ESPN+, YES and NESN Nation, while the championship game will air on ESPN2.

#5 Stonehill at #3 Mercyhurst – 12 p.m.
#7 Wagner at #1 LIU – 2 p.m.
Wagner In The NEC Tournament
Wagner is 29–35 all-time in the NEC Tournament.

This season, the No. 7 Seahawks earned a 70–60 victory in the quarterfinal round over No. 2 CCSU.

The last time Wagner reached the NEC semifinals was in 2024 as the No. 6 seed, defeating No. 3 CCSU.

The Seahawks have won the NEC Tournament twice — as the No. 1 seed in 2003 and as the No. 6 seed in 2024. Wagner has also reached the NEC Championship game five times (1993, 2005, 2016, 2018, 2022).

Wagner returns to the NEC Tournament for the 15th time in the past 16 years. The only time the Seahawks missed the postseason during that stretch was in 2020. This will be Wagner's sixth straight NEC postseason appearance, a streak that leads all current NEC members. The Seahawks are 1–7 all-time as the No. 7 seed.

The Series
Saturday's matchup will mark the 125th meeting all-time between the programs, with LIU holding a 68–56 advantage in the series.

LIU won both meetings this season (Feb. 12, 67–57; Feb. 16, 83–65).

Wagner is 5–3 all-time against LIU in the NEC Tournament. The teams last met in the NEC Tournament in 2022, when No. 2 Wagner defeated No. 3 LIU, 82–62, in the semifinal round.

Scouting the Sharks
LIU (22–10, 15–5 NEC) is coming off a 79–75 quarterfinal home win over No. 8 Chicago State.

The Sharks are coached by Rod Strickland in his fourth season. Strickland was named the 2025–26 NEC Coach of the Year.

LIU was unanimously picked to finish first in the NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll.

LIU ranks first in the NEC in scoring with 74.3 points per game and first in blocks (5.31). Graduate student Jamal Fuller leads the team in scoring with 16.5 points per game, ranking fourth in the NEC. Redshirt senior Malachi Davis averages 14.2 points per game, ranking eighth in the league.

Fuller and Davis were named First Team All-NEC while senior Greg Gordon earned the league Defensive Player of the Year award and was named All-NEC Second Team.

Last season, LIU entered the NEC Tournament as the No. 2 seed and lost to the No. 3 seed Saint Francis, 71–68 in the semifinal round.

LIU has won six NEC Championships in its program's history ('84, '97, '11, '12, '13, '18).

On A Roll
Wagner (14–16, 8–10 NEC) continues NEC Tournament play as one of the hottest teams in the conference, having won five games in a row — the program's longest NEC winning streak since the 2021–22 season.

During this five-game stretch, the Seahawks are averaging 72.6 points per game while allowing just 63.8 points per contest.

Jones Named Second Team All-NEC
Junior guard Nick Jones was named to the All-NEC Second Team.

Jones appeared in 27 games this season, averaging 14.3 points per game to rank eighth in the conference. The Edgewood, Maryland native also contributed 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per contest while leading the NEC in steals at 1.8 per game.

During conference play, Jones posted five 20-point outings over a seven-game stretch. That run included a 26-point effort in a victory over FDU and a 24-point, six-assist performance in a win against Le Moyne. He also recorded three consecutive 20-point games during that span — the longest streak by a Seahawk since Alex Morales in 2021.

Overall, Jones scored in double figures 20 times this season and registered multiple steals in 17 contests, highlighted by a six-steal performance against LIU.

Jones earned NEC Co-Player of the Week honors on December 1 after a standout performance in Wagner's 103–101 overtime victory over Manhattan. In that contest, he totaled 35 points, six rebounds, six assists, two blocks, and one steal, including the game-winning free throws.

With that stat line, Jones became one of just four Division I players nationally this season to record at least 35 points, six rebounds, and six assists in a single game. His 35-point outing tied for the 19th-highest scoring performance in Division I this year and marked just the fourth 35/6/6 game by an NEC player over the past 15 seasons.

TG Takeover
Graduate student Travis Gray became the first Seahawk to post four consecutive double-doubles since Michael Carey in 2016.

Gray began the stretch with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and two blocks at Mercyhurst (Feb. 19) before recording a career-high 27 points with 11 rebounds at Saint Francis (Feb. 21). He followed with 10 points and 13 rebounds against New Haven (Feb. 26) and capped the run with 16 points and 12 rebounds against Chicago State (Feb. 28).

Single Digit Games
Wagner is 8–10 this season in games decided by nine points or less and 6–5 in games decided by five points or fewer.

Cleaning The Glass
The Seahawks rank second in the NEC in rebounds per game (37.3). Sophomore Zavier Fitch leads the team with 6.4 rebounds per game, which ranks seventh in the conference.

Next Up
The winner of Saturday's matchup will advance to the NEC Championship game on Tuesday, March 10 against the winner of No. 3 Mercyhurst and No. 5 Stonehill.

If Mercyhurst defeats Stonehill, the winner of Wagner vs. LIU would receive the NEC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament since the program is still in its transition period to Division I and is ineligible for NCAA postseason play.