Frazier Powers Men's Basketball by Wagner

The Central Connecticut State men's basketball team came away with a 62-55 win in NEC action at Wagner on Thursday night in the Spiro Center. The Blue Devils used a strong defensive outing and balanced offensive showing with all nine players scoring to end a three-game slide.

Max Frazier was the only Blue Devil in double-figures with 17 points. Central shot 22-of-49 (.449) from the field, hitting 6-of-21 (.286) on three-pointers. CCSU converted 12-of-16 foul shots. 

Wagner was led by 17 points from Travis Gray. The Seaawks shot 17-of-54 (.315) overall and 6-of-27 (.222) on three-pointers. Wagner was 15-of-22 (.682) at the foul line.

GAME INFORMATION | BOX SCORE
Score:  CCSU 62, WAGNER 55
Records: CCSU (11-9, 5-4 NEC), Wagner (6-12, 1-6 NEC)
Location: Spiro Center | Staten Island, NY

KEY MOMENTS

• Wagner scored the first five points and held CCSU to one field goal in the first 4:42. A three-pointer by Roddy Jones would make it 7-5 at the 15:18 mark before a foul shot by Darin Smith, Jr. cut the deficit to one point in the early going.
• CCSU would score six unanswered points to tie the game midway through the opening period. An Ashton Reynolds layup opened the run before Daniel James tied the game 12-12 with a layup. Smith, Jr. would account for four straight points after a Wagner foul shot to extend the run to 10-2 and put Central ahead, 16-13 at the 7:42 mark. The Seahawks would be held without a field goal for almost seven minutes until a hook shot by Bryan Akanmu tied it at 17-17.
• A quick 8-0 run in a span of 2:25 would put CCSU ahead 27-19. Central's second unit would power the surge with Reynolds, Nico Ashley and Elijah Parker accounting for the offense. A driving layup by Parker made it 27-19 at the 3:50 mark. Central would extend the lead to nine following a pair of foul shots by James with 1:13 to go in the half. Jaden Baker would cut the margin to 32-26 with a three-pointer just before halftime.
• CCSU would push the lead to eight points following a Max Frazier hoop in the early moments of the second half. Wagner would respond with six straight points and get within 36-34 following a Travis Gray three-pointer with 16:21 remaining. The run would go to nine straight points after a Baker trey put Wagner up one with 15:32 to play. CCSU responded quickly with five straight points from Frazier to go ahead 41-37.
• Wagner would score five straight points to recapture the lead midway through the second half. CCSU would answer with layups from Melo Sanchez and James to make it 50-47 before a trifecta by Awoke drew the Seahawks even with 7:16 to play. A Sanchez trey would break the tie and put Central up 53-50.
• The Blue Devils would outscore Wagner, 9-0, over a four-plus minute span to push its lead to double-figures at 62-52 with 2:11 to play. A Sanchez trey opened the run before a pair of foul shots by Frazier would push the lead to double-figures. Although CCSU would go without points over the final 4:14, its defense would not allow Wagner to cut into the lead.

NUMBER TO KNOW

20 – The CCSU reserves outscored Wagner, 20-7, in the game 

NOTES

• The teams were meeting for the first time this season, Wagner is 37-25 in the series.
• Frazier made his first six shots of the game. He finished 7-of-8 from the field with four rebounds.
• Elijah Parker collected a career-high 11 rebounds to lead CCSU.
• Central outscored Wagner, 32-20, in the paint.                                                                                                                                          

UP NEXT

• The Blue Devils host LIU at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday in a game that will be televised on ESPNU.

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