Men's Basketball Holds Off Wagner for Third Straight Win

Central Connecticut held off Wagner, 58-57, on Thursday night in Northeast Conference men's basketball in New Britain, CT. The Blue Devils built a 14-point lead in the second half, before holding off a late rally by the Seahawks, to win their third straight.

Nigel Scantlebury and Jayden Brown led a balanced Blue Devils attack with 10 points apiece. CCSU shot 18-of-47 (.383) from the field overall and 5-of-14 (.357) from three-point range. Central was 17-of-23 (.739) from the foul line.

Javier Ezquerra led Wagner with a game-high 19 points, while Delonnie Hunt had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Seahawks shot 23-of-61 (.377) overall and 4-of-21 (.190) from the arc. Wagner was 7-of-14 (.500) from the foul line.

The Blue Devils host Stonehill on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: CCSU 58, Wagner 57
Records: CCSU (9-19, 6-7 NEC), WC (13-11, 6-7 NEC)
Location: Detrick Gymnasium | New Britain, CT

KEY MOMENTS

• The game started slowly offensively with the teams shooting a combined 6-of-23 to open the game and CCSU was scoreless for the opening 4:33. Wagner led 8-6 at the 11:06 mark before CCSU took its first lead on a three-point play by Davonte Sweatman. Sweatman accounted for five straight points for the Blue Devils, who would lead 11-10 with 8:09 to play in the half.
• A three-pointer by Snoddy would open a spurt of nine unanswered points by the Blue Devils. Scantlebury would account for four foul shots during the 9-0 run and CCSU held Wagner scoreless for four minutes to build a 26-17 lead. A jumper by Ezquerra would make it 26-19 at the intermission.
• Wagner would outscore the Blue Devils, 8-3, in the opening 4:56 of the second half to cut the deficit to two points. CCSU was assessed a pair of technical fouls at the 16:17 mark, but Wagner hit just 2-of-4 foul shots and would trail 29-27 with 15 minutes to play.
• The Blue Devils' lead was just 34-30 with 13:15 to play before a putback by Snoddy opened a run of 10 straight points. Joe Ostrowsky would cap the run with a layup to make it 44-30 with 8:06 to play.
• Wagner would outscore CCSU, 16-5, over a span of 4:21 to get within 49-46 after a layup by Hunt. Scantlebury would hit four straight foul shots to help push the margin back to seven with 1:01 to play. Wagner would outscore Central, 9-3, in the final minute and had a chance to tie with a three-pointer, but could only settle for a layup at the buzzer.

QUOTABLE

"As we mature in our roles, this type of game is going to help us," said head coach Patrick Sellers. "We had a lead, they came back, we kept our poise and kept fighting and scratching and clawing. They [Wagner] got back in the game, but I give us credit and we're getting mature and poised in our roles at the right time."

NUMBER TO KNOW

+3 – Central outrebounded the league's top rebounding team, 37-34.

NOTES

• Wagner leads the all-time series, 35-22, but CCSU snapped a three-game slide in the series and earned a split in the season series with Thursday's win.
• Brown added seven rebounds and was 4-of-6 at the foul line in 26 minutes off the bench.
• Scantlebury went 8-for-8 at the foul line, including 4-of-4 in the final 1:20 of the game.
• CCSU has won three straight for the first time since Jan. 13-25, 2018 when it won four in a row.
• Andre Snoddy had 10 rebounds and is grabbing an NEC-best 10.4 per game in league play.

UP NEXT

The Blue Devils host Stonehill on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.