Choice Hotels/NEC Player of the Week
Jamal Olasewere, LIU Brooklyn
6-7, 215lbs
Jr., F, Silver Spring, MD/Springbrook

Choice Hotels/NEC Rookie of the Week
Kyle Vinales, Central Connecticut
6-1, 180lbs
Fr., G, Detroit, MI/Phelps School

AROUND THE LEAGUE

2 double-doubles last week for Saint Francis (PA) sophomore forward Scott Eatherton (Hershey, PA/Hershey) were the first two of his career.  He posted career-highs with 24 points and 12 rebounds at CCSU on Thursday.

3 blocks for 6’0” Wagner freshman guard Marcus Burton (Charlotte, NC/David W. Butler) in Saturday’s 89-79 win over Monmouth.  Prior to this, Burton had not blocked a shot in his first 14 games in a Wagner uniform.

4 separate 8-0 runs for Monmouth helped lead the Hawks to a 73-59 win over Mount St. Mary’s last Thursday.

5 straight 20+ point scoring efforts for Sacred Heart junior guard Shane Gibson (Killingly, CT/Killingly) until the streak was broken with a 15-point outing against St. Francis (NY) on Saturday.  Gibson averaged 23.8 ppg during the five-game span and ranks third in the NEC with 19.5 ppg.

5 straight road wins for Wagner, the longest such streak for the Seahawks since 2002-03, the year they won their lone NEC crown.

6 straight losses to Quinnipiac for Long Island before finally defeating the Bobcats, 79-75, on Saturday.

6 three-pointers in seven attempts for Bryant junior guard Raphael Jordan (Bel Air, MD/John Caroll) against Robert Morris last Thursday.  He netted a career-high 21 points in the game.

6-0 record for CCSU when holding opponents to fewer than 70 points.

9 different starting lineups used by Fairleigh Dickinson this season.

11 consecutive games Robert Morris had held opponents to under 70 points.  The Colonials have posted an 8-3 record in that time.

15.0 assists per game, a league-leading figure for Sacred Heart this season.

20.5 points per game scoring average last week for Fairleigh Dickinson graduate student forward George Goode (Raytown, MO/Raytown South), who has 23 points versus Wagner and 18 more against Mount St. Mary’s

TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES

Bryant (2-13, 1-3 NEC, RPI: 328)

Last Week: Jan. 5 vs. Robert Morris L, 84-53; Jan. 7 vs. Saint Francis (PA) W, 59-56
This Week: Jan. 12 at Wagner; Jan. 14 at Mount St. Mary’s

• Sophomore leading scorer Alex Francis (Harlem, NY/Holderness Prep) recorded his fifth 20-point outing of the season Saturday off the bench to lead the Bulldogs to their first Northeast Conference win of the season, 59-56, over Saint Francis (PA). Francis led the game with 23 points and shot 63.6 percent (7-11) from the floor and 81.8 percent (9-11) from the line, both numbers besting his season averages.
• The three-point win over the Red Flash snapped a 12-game Bryant losing streak, six-game NEC losing skid dating back to last season and five-game home losing stretch, also dating back to 2010-11.
• Francis also pulled in a team-high eight rebounds against Saint Francis (PA) to eclipse the 100-rebound threshold on the season (107 on the year) and had a team-best 13 boards on the week. He is now just three points shy of the 250-point mark on the year and averaged team-leading numbers on the Bulldogs’ 1-1 week with 14.5 points per game, 6.5 rebounds per outing, 53.3 percent shooting (8-15) from the floor and 81.3 percent shooting (13-16) from the free throw line (all team bests).
• Junior guard Raphael Jordan (Bel Air, MD/John Carroll) averaged 12.0 points per game in two starts and shot an impressive 53.8 percent from 3-point land (7-13) and 46.7 percent from the field (7-15) while averaging 32 minutes per game. Against Robert Morris Thursday, Jordan scored a career- and game-high 21 points off 6-of-7 shooting from long range, also setting a new career mark for 3-pointers made.

Central Connecticut (7-7, 4-0 NEC, RPI: 214)

Last Week: Jan. 5 vs. Saint Francis (PA) W, 69-58; Jan. 7 vs. Robert Morris W, 68-53
This Week: Jan. 12 at Mount St. Mary’s; Jan. 14 at Wagner

• The Blue Devils are 4-0 in league play for the first time since 1999-00, and for just the second time in their time in the Northeast Conference.
• The Blue Devils are an impressive 6-1 at home, with the lone loss coming to La Salle. Senior Ken Horton (Ossining, NY/Ossining) and Robby Ptacek (Bayport, NY/Blue Point), along with freshman Kyle Vinales (Detroit, MI/Phelps School) are averaging 60.6 points per game at home.
• Horton’s double-double on Saturday was his sixth of the season and the 24th of his career. His 21 points give him 1,708 for his career, becoming just the third Blue Devil in school history to score over 1,700 career points. He is 27 points shy of setting the new school record, held by Damian Johnson with 1,734. Horton also jumps to 20th place all-time on the NEC scoring list.
• Ptacek scored 24 and grabbed five rebounds in the win on Saturday over Robert Morris. His career scoring total is now 1,293, good for 17th on the all-time list.
• The Blue Devils allowed fewer than 60 points in both wins last week, and are now 6-0 this season when opponents score fewer than 70 points.
• Robert Morris shot 30.3 percent from the field in the loss at CCSU on Saturday, the lowest FG percentage of any opponent for the Blue Devils this season.
• Vinales continued his spectacular freshman campaign and helped the Blue Devils to a pair of home Northeast Conference victories last week. Vinales scored 27 points, including 20 in the first half, in a 69-58 victory over St. Francis (PA) on Thursday night. He followed that up with 18 points, five assists in a 68-53 win over Robert Morris on Saturday. For the week Vinales averaged a team-best 22.5 points, 3.5 assists and shot 50 percent from the field (14-of-28) and three (7-of-14), while hitting 10-of-12 from the free throw line. He averaged 39 minutes per game in the 20 week. Vinales is now averaging 19.5 points per game, and 15.7 in conference play in his first season in New Britain. His 41 threes lead the team, and he is shooting 40.6 percent from three (41-of-101) for the year. He is second on the team with 44 assists.
• Central opponents are shooting just 31.8 percent from three in Detrick Gym (35-of-110), and have 130 turnovers and only 86 assists. Central has 52 home steals in seven games.

Fairleigh Dickinson (1-13, 0-4 NEC, RPI: 335)

Last Week: Jan. 2 at Columbia L, 67-52; Jan. 5 vs. Wagner L, 88-64; Jan. 7 vs. Mount St. Mary’s L, 66-45
This Week: Jan. 12 at LIU Brooklyn; Jan. 14 at St. Francis (NY)

• Junior Kinu Rochford (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) led the Knights with 15 points in the loss at Columbia.
• Junior Melquan Bolding (Mt. Vernon, NY/Bishop Stepinac) added 11 points off the bench against Columbia.
• Junior Lonnie Robinson (Deerfield Beach, FL/Deerfield Beach) chipped in 10 points and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds which was a career high against Columbia.
• Graduate student George Goode (Raytown, MO/Raytown South) poured in a career-high 23 points and knocked down a career-best 11 free throws on 12 attempts in the loss to Wagner. He also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds and just missed his fourth double-double of the season.
• Bolding added 13 points against Wagner.
• Rochford came off the bench to score 10 points and pulled down six rebounds against Wagner.
• FDU established season highs in both makes (26) and attempts (34) from the free throw line against Wagner.
• The Knights failed to make a three-pointer in a game the first time all season against Wagner but took a season-low three attempts.
• Goode led the Knights with 18 points in the loss to Mount St. Mary’s.
• Senior Briahn Smith (Detroit, MI/Madison) scored a season-high 12 points against Mount St. Mary’s and made both of FDU’s three pointers as the Knights went 2-of-15 from downtown.
• Rochford grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds including six on the offensive glass against the Mount.
• Senior Sam Fernley (Sheffield, England/Silverdale) played in his first three games of the season this week and logged a career-high 31 minutes agaisnt the Mount.
• FDU turned the ball over a season-low 11 times against the Mount but also scored a season low 45 points against them as well.
• FDU has used nine different starting lineups this season.
• FDU is off to its first 0-4 NEC start in program history.

Long Island (10-6, 4-0 NEC, RPI: 115)

Last Week: Jan. 5 at Sacred Heart W, 87-81; Jan. 7 at Quinnipiac W, 79-75
This Week: Jan. 12 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson; Jan. 14 vs. Monmouth

• As of Jan. 1, 2012, Long Island University officially changed its name to LIU Brooklyn.
• The Blackbirds won a pair of tough road games to improve to 4-0 in Northeast Conference play (10-6 overall), defeating Sacred Heart, 87-81, and Quinnipiac, 79-75.
• The last time LIU Brooklyn won its first four conference contests came during the 2009-10 campaign when the Blackbirds started 5-0.
• LIU has had two players record double-doubles in the same game in each of the last four contests. Against Sacred Heart, junior Jamal Olasewere (Silver Spring, MD/Springbrook) led all players with a season-high 29 points to go along with 12 rebounds while classmate Julian Boyd (San Antonio, TX/William H. Taft) registered his fourth straight with 12 points and 12 boards. At Quinnipiac, Olasewere led all players with 25 points and 11 off the glass while sophomore Jason Brickman (San Antonio, TX/Clark) tallied his second double-double with 12 points and 10 assists. Olasewere has double-doubles in three straight games and five overall this season.
• Brickman has handed out double-digit dimes on three occasions this season: 10 at Quinnipiac and 11 both at Mount St. Mary’s and against Texas State. He has dished out at least five assists in 12 contests.
• Boyd needs 11 points to reach 1,000 for his career while Olasewere needs 54.
• LIU’s win at Quinnipiac was its first since Jan. 29, 2005, snapping a streak of six straight road losses to the Bobcats.

Monmouth (3-13, 1-3 NEC, RPI: 286)

Last Week: Jan. 5 vs. Mount St. Mary’s W, 73-59; Jan. 7 vs. Wagner L, 89-79
This Week: Jan. 10 vs. Harvard; Jan. 12 at St. Francis (NY); Jan. 14 at LIU Brooklyn

• Monmouth is now 2-2 at home after playing 12 of its first 14 games of the season on the road.
• Against Wagner, junior guard Jesse Steele (Milford, NJ/Oak Hill (VA)) tied a career-high for points in a half with 17, notching that total in the first half against the Seahawks. Steele scored 17 points in the second half at Vanderbilt on Nov. 25.
• In his last three games, Steele has registered 24 assists, including a career-high at North Carolina. Steele, who has a team-high 63 assists, now has 109 assists in his career, which is the second-highest assist total on the team in just his second year with the Hawks.
• Senior Mike Myers Keitt (Waterbury, CT/Fairfield Prep (Marianapolis Prep)) played in his 100th career game in the Hawks’ win over Mount St. Mary’s. Now with 101 career games played, the guard leads the career list for current players, while classmate Will Campbell (Willingboro, NJ/Paul VI) is second with 85 career games played.
• Steele, with his 20 points against Wagner, upped his career number of 20-point games to five.
• The Hawks had a season-high 12 steals in the win over Mount on Thursday.
• The 59 points scored by Mount St. Mary’s was the lowest total allowed by the Hawks this season.
Monmouth is now 2-1 when it leads at the half. The Hawks lead at halftime in both games this week, leading the Mount by 4, and Wagner by 6.
• Monmouth used four 8-0 runs in the win over Mount St. Mary’s to earn its third straight NEC home opener.

Mount St. Mary's (3-12, 1-3 NEC, RPI: 307)

Last Week: Jan. 5 at Monmouth L, 73-59; Jan. 7 at Fairleigh Dickinson W, 66-45
This Week: Jan. 12 vs. Central Connecticut; Jan. 14 vs. Bryant

• The Mount started 0-3 in Northeast Conference play for the third time over the past four seasons. The Mountaineers recovered from the slow start in 2008-09 and 2009-10 to finish with a 12-6 conference record.
• Danny Thompson (Springdale, MD/C.H. Flowers) had 15 points and 11 rebounds at Monmouth to post his second double-double of the year and third of his career. Thompson averaged 14.5 points and 9.0 rebounds for the week.
• Julian Norfleet (Virginia Beach, VA/Landstown) tallied 20 points in the loss at Monmouth. It was the third career 20-point game for the sophomore, who averaged 17.0 points for the Mount on the week. Norfleet shot 46.7 percent (7-of-15) from three-point range on the week and he leads the team in scoring this season at 11.9 points per game.
• The Mount held Fairleigh Dickinson to 45 points and 29.3 percent shooting in the 66-45 victory on Saturday. It was the third time in the last five games the Mount has held the opponent to 45 points or less.
• The Mountaineers are allowing 65.9 points per game on the year, third-best in the NEC. The defense has been even better over the past five games as the Mount has held the opponents to 54.0 points over that stretch. The opposition is shooting 37.4 percent overall and 16.4 percent (12-of-73) from three-point range over that span.
• The last time the Mount won a road game by 20 or more points was a 69-42 win at Monmouth on Feb. 10, 2011.
• The Mount returns home to host Central Connecticut State and Bryant this week.

Quinnipiac (8-7, 1-3 NEC, RPI: 223)

Last Week: Jan. 5 at St. Francis (NY) L, 73-72; Jan. 7 vs. LIU Brooklyn L, 79-75
This Week: Jan. 12 at Robert Morris; Jan. 14 at Saint Francis (PA)

• The Bobcats were defeated by two NEC opponents last week. QU was defeated by St. Francis (N.Y.), 73-72, after a final-possession three-point play granted the Terriers their second conference win of the season. Later in the week, LIU Brooklyn handed the Bobcats their third conference loss of the campaign at the TD Bank Sports Center, 79-75.
• Against the Terriers, Johnson recorded eight rebounds, four assists and two steals to go along with his season-high 28 points. Three other Bobcats compiled double-digits; Ike Azotam (Boston, MA/O’Bryant (Marianapolis Prep)) finished with 12, Ousmane Drame (Boston, MA/New Mission (Marianapolis Prep)) with 11 and Dave Johnson (Jackson, NJ/St. Mark’s (MA)) with 10. Garvey Young (Washington, DC/Georgetown Prep (Vermont)) added five and Nate Gause (Poughkeepsie, NY/Poughkeepsie) and Zaid Hearst (Bethesda, MD/Salisbury School (CT)) each tallied three.
• For the game, Quinnipiac outshot St. Francis, 44.8 percent to 41.1 percent, from the floor and outscored the Terriers off-the-bench, 16-8. The Terriers finished 72 percent (15-25) of their free-throws to just 60 percent (21-29) of the Bobcats, and controlled the boards, 39-38. It’s just the second game of the season that QU has been outrebounded.
• Against LIU Brooklyn, Azotam recorded his ninth double-double with team-highs in points (17) and rebounds (11). James Johnson (Queens, NY/Bishop Loughlin) finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists, while Young and Hearst added 10 points apiece. Justin Harris (Paterson, NJ/Paramus Catholic), who recently returned to the lineup after missing several games with an injury, fared well with nine points and eight rebounds.
• The Bobcats hauled in 61 rebounds in the game which was just five short of matching the NEC record. Nine players tallied at least four rebounds and two offensive rebounds in the game. Dave Johnson added five points and four assists and Alex Jackson (Baltimore, MD/Randallstown (Frederick CC)) finished with five points and four boards. Drame pulled down seven rebounds.
• LIU went 27-of-67 (40.3 %) from the field and 19-of-27 (70.4 %) from the free-throw line. The Bobcats finished 30-of-77 (39 %) from the floor and 13-of-21 (61.9 %) from the charity stripe. 78 of the 154 total points were scored in the paint.
• QU returns to action on Thursday, January 12, 2012 when the team begins a four game road trip at Robert Morris. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. The Bobcats remain in Pennsylvania for Saturday’s game as well. Game time against the Red Flash is scheduled for 4 p.m.

Robert Morris (12-5, 3-1 NEC, RPI: 80)

Last Week: Jan. 2 at Ohio W, 70-67; Jan. 5 at Bryant W, 84-53; Jan. 7 at Central Connecticut L, 68-53
This Week: Jan. 12 vs. Quinnipiac; Jan. 14 vs. Sacred Heart

• Robert Morris posted a 2-1 record last week, closing out its 2011-12 non-conference schedule with a 70-67 before returning to Northeast Conference action … The Colonials split a pair of league road games, earning an 84-53 win @ Bryant before suffering a 68-53 setback @ Central Connecticut State
• The trio of road games last week closed out a five-game road trip in which Robert Morris posted a record of 3-2
• RMU hasn’t allowed an opponent to reach the 70-point plateau for 11 straight games, a school record … The Colonials are 8-3 over that span and are yielding just 59.4 points per game over that span while holding opponents to a shooting percentage of 39.9 percent (220-for-551)
• Redshirt junior guard Velton Jones (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast Catholic) averaged 12.0 points, 5.0 assists and 3.0 steals in RMU’s three games last week, leading Robert Morris in victories @ Ohio and @ Bryant with 17 and 15 points, respectively
• Jones is RMU’s active leading scorer with 927 points and needs 73 to become the 21st player in school history to join the 1,000-point club
• The Colonials welcomed back junior center Lijah Thompson (Philadelphia, PA/ Monsignor Bonner) last week … Thompson had missed four games with a foot injury and in three games last week averaged 5.7 points and 3.0 rebounds while playing an average o 13.3 minutes per game
• Redshirt junior forward Russell Johnson (Chester, PA/Chester) averaged 10.7 points and 6.0 rebounds last week, leading the Colonials with 13 points @ Central Connecticut State … Each of Johnson’s seven double-figure scoring games on the 2011-12 season have come on the road, where he is averaging 10.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per contest
• Freshman forward Lucky Jones (Newark, NJ/St. Anthony) recorded his first career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds @ Central Connecticut State and on the week averaged 8.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game
• Lucky Jones is RMU’s leading rebounder with 105, an average of 6.2 per game and has proven to be an adept free-throw shooter, converting 82.8 percent (48-for-58) of his shots at the stripe so far this season
• RMU’s 31-point victory over Bryant marks the program’s fifth victory in the last five years against a league opponent in which the margin of victory was 30 points or more
• Robert Morris returns home for a two-game homestand this week, welcoming Quinnipiac to the Charles L. Sewall Center Thursday before hosting Sacred Heart Saturday

Sacred Heart (7-10, 1-3 NEC, RPI: 253)

Last Week: Jan. 5 vs. LIU Brooklyn L, 87-81; Jan. 7 vs. St. Francis (NY) L, 99-84
This Week: Jan. 12 at Saint Francis (PA); Jan. 14 At Robert Morris

• The Pioneers dropped a pair of home NEC games to LIU Brooklyn and St. Francis (NY) and have now lost three-straight in league play as they get ready to head to Western Pennsylvania.
• Junior Shane Gibson (Killingly, CT/Killingly) saw his streak 20-point games extedned to five straight with 28 points against LIU Brooklyn. He saw the streak end scoring 15 in Saturday’s loss to SFNY. He averaged 23.8 ppg during the streak.
• Gibson was recognized before Saturday’s game with a commemorative basketball for becoming the 33rd Pioneer to reach 1,000 career points.
• Gibson made six-for-nine from three against LIU, matching his career-high for three’s in a game. He previously hit six treys at Providence and at home against Monmouth, both last season.
• Junior Justin Swidowski (Cinnaminson, NJ/Holy Cross HS) had a career-night in the loss to LIU Brooklyn. Swidowski made 10-of-18 from the field including a season-best three-of-six from three on his way to 23 points. Swidowski’s previous high was a 21 point effort at CCSU. He backed it up with an 18 point, eight rebound effort against SFNY.
• Sophomore Chris Evans set a new career-high for the second time in three games with a 24 point afternoon against St. Francis NY. Evans had 19 at New Hampshire on Dec. 29th.
• With Thursday’s loss at home to LIU Brooklyn, SHU opened a stretch of six out of eight games at home in the William H. Pitt Center in the month of January. The Pioneers are 3-3 at home this season thus far. SHU finished 5-7 at home last year.
• Thursday marked the first game this season the Pioneers did not play at least 10 players in a game. SHU continues to be without the services of senior guard Steve Zazuri (Monroe, CT/Masuk) and saw fellow senior and captain Stan Dulaire (Bloomfield, CT/Watkinson School) forced to the bench with a shoulder injury. Dulaire returned on Saturday but the Pioneers were without point guard Evan Kelley (Norwalk, CT/Norwalk) who suffered an ankle injury agianst LIU.
• The Pioneers as a team are first in the NEC in assists and had a season high 21 assist effort on Thursday night vs. LIU. Freshman Phil Gaetano (Wallingford, CT/Sheehan (Choate Rosemary)) had a solid week running the point, dishing eight helpers against the Blackbirds and seven against the Terriers against a combined five turnovers. Gaetano jumped into the starting line-up on Saturday for Kelley.
• Sacred Heart has shot 50.0% or better six times this season but is just 2-4 in those games. On the flip side, they have allowed four teams to shoot 50% or better, losing each of those games. The latest being St. Francis (NY) who made 58.2% including 15-27 from three.

St. Francis (NY) (6-9, 3-1 NEC, RPI: 221)

Last Week: Jan. 5 vs. Quinnipiac W, 73-72; Jan. 7 at Sacred Heart W, 99-84
This Week: Jan. 12 vs. Monmouth; Jan. 14 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson

• The St. Francis (NY) Terriers defeated Quinnipiac (74-73) and Sacred Heart (99-84) last week and are now 3-1 in the Northeast Conference for the first time since the 2001-2002 season.
• The 99 points scored against Sacred Heart were the most points by a Terriers’ squad in a regulation game since they defeated Fairleigh Dickinson, 110-103, on February 21, 2005.
• The Terriers drained an NEC-high 15 treys against the Pioneers and finished 15-for-27 (55.6 percent) from beyond the arc. St. Francis also shot a season-best 58.2 percent (32-of-55) overall and were 20-for-22 (90.9 percent) from the free-throw line, also a season-high.
• Sophomore guard Ben Mockford (Shoreham-by-Sea, England/Oak Hill Academy (VA)) splashed a career and NEC-best eight treys against Sacred Heart and finished with a career-high 28 points. Mockford leads the league with 48 trifectas.
• Senior forward Stefan Perunicic (Belgrade, Serbia/Dimitrije Tucovic High School) enjoyed a week to remember as he became the Terriers’ 27th member of the 1,000 point club and then converted a game-winning conventional 3-point play against Quinnipiac. He followed that up with a 21-point performance in the victory at Sacred Heart.
• Junior forward Akeem Johnson (Brooklyn, NY/Susan S. McKinney) averaged 14.0 ppg. last week and has started all 15 games this season. A career 59 percent foul shooter, Johnson is 30-for-38 (79 percent) over his eight contests from the charity-stripe.
• Sophomore center Matt Milk (Wantagh, NY/Pine Crest (FL)) came off the bench to score a season-high 10 points in the victory at Sacred Heart.
• Freshman power forward Jalen Cannon (Allentown, PA/William Alllen) tied his season-high with 14 points in the victory against Quinnipiac. Cannon has started three straight contests and is averaging 7.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.

Saint Francis (PA) (3-12, 2-2 NEC, RPI: 327)

Last Week: Jan. 5 at Central Connecticut L, 69-58; Jan. 7 at Bryant L, 59-56
This Week: Jan. 12 vs. Sacred Heart; Jan. 14 vs. Quinnipiac

• Scott Eatherton (Hershey, PA/Hershey) posted his first two career double-doubles over the weekend, highlighting the effort with career-highs in both points and rebounds against CCSU.
• Anthony Ervin (Chesterfied, VA/Fork Union Military Acadamy) has scored in double figures in nine of his last 10 games.
• The Red Flash ended their season long five game road trip winless but return to DeGol Arena Thursday where they have won three consecutive.
• Kameron Ritter (Niskayuana, NY/Christian Boys Academy) posted one of his best career games against Bryant with 10 points, six rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks.
• Ervin had a solid all-around game against CCSU with 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals.
• Saint Francis returns home Thursday for a 7 p.m. tipoff against Sacred Heart.
• After being on the road for the last five consecutive games, the Red Flash will play four of their next six games at home. 

Wagner (12-3, 3-1 NEC, RPI: 69)

Last Week: Jan. 5 at Fairleigh Dickinson W, 88-64; Jan. 7 at Monmouth W, 89-79
This Week: Jan. 12 vs. Bryant; Jan. 14 vs. Central Connecticut

• Wagner is off to its best start since the 1968-1969 season, when the Seahawks also opened the year with a 12-3 record.
• Wagner captured wins over Monmouth (1/7) and FDU (1/5) by scores of 89-79 and 88-64, respectively, as the Seahawks averaged 88.5 points per game on the week while shooting a blistering 50.4 percent from the floor.
• During the Green & White’s current five-game road winning streak, Latif Rivers (Elizabeth, NJ/Elizabeth (Avon Old Farms (CT)) is averaging a blistering 20.6 points per game. During that time, he is shooting 54.1 percent (33-61) from the floor, 47.2 percent (17-36) from long range and 95.2 percent (20-21) from the line while pacing the team in scoring in four of those games.
• The five-game winning streak away from the Spiro Sports Center is the longest by Wagner since collecting five-straight during the Seahawks’ NEC Championship season of 2002-2003.
• This week Rivers averaged 23.5 points per game while shooting 60.0 percent (15-25) from the floor and 46.7 percent (7-15) from deep. Additionally, over two career games against Monmouth the Garden State native has 55 points (27.5 ppg) while connecting on 18-of-33 (.545) from the floor - highlighted by 30 points after halftime that helped put away the Hawks both times. His 28-point output was two off his career high of 30 set on January 20, 2011 against Quinnipiac.
• Over the last two years, Wagner is an impressive 7-1 when Rivers notches at least 20 points.
• The Seahawks’ season-best 54 second-half points match their previous high notched in a 40-point win over St. Francis (NY) (12/3).
• Head Coach Dan Hurley has started his second conference campaign with a 3-1 record after opening up at 4-0 last season. Through 45 games, he holds a 25-20 career record (12-10 NEC).
• Wagner is 6-2 in games decided by 10 points or less and 9-1 when scoring at least 70 points.
• Additionally, the Seahawks are 11-1 when leading with five minutes to play and 5-1 in Saturday games with seven more to play on the day.
• Senior Tyler Murray (Toronto, Ontario/Eastern Commerce) scored seven points while moving past James Ulrich into 36th place on the Green & White’s all-time scoring list. Classmate Chris Martin (Sicklerville, NJ/Apex Academies) notched eight points and is now 60 short of 1,000 for his career. He also has 188 career three pointers, ranking fifth in the program history.
• Wagner has now won two straight and five-of-six against Monmouth. The Hawks lead the all-time series by a 32-22 margin.
• The Seahawks improved to 7-2 on the road after going 7-26 over the last two season away from Staten Island.
• Sophomore Kenneth Ortiz (Newark, NJ/Science Park (Southern Mississippi)) has led the team in rebounding in each of the last three games, and ranks 18th in the NEC with 5.1 rebounds per game despite standing just 6-0.
• Junior Jonathon Williams (Richmond, CA/Kennedy (CC of San Francisco)) scored a team-best 23 points while converting 5-of-11 from the floor and 11-of-14 from the line to go along with six rebounds in the victory over the Knights.
• For the second-straight week, Wagner received votes in the Associated Press (AP) poll while also ranking 25th in the Mid-Major Top-25 poll.