The No.1-seeded St. Bonaventure Bonnies (22-8) and No.8-seeded Wagner Seahawks (22-10) meet in the first round of the NIT tournament at Reilly Center. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Mar. 16 and will air on ES3.
The Bonnies fell to Davidson 90-86 in the 3 of the Atlantic 10 tournament. Dion Wright recorded 32 points and 15 rebounds, earning his 13th double-double of the year. The Seahawks, meanwhile, are coming off an 87-79 loss to Fairleigh Dickinson in the 3 of the Northeast tournament. Corey Henson led the team in scoring with 24 points.
Over the last five games, Wright and Marcus Posley have been better than usual for the Bonnies. During that stretch, Wright has averaged 21.2 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.6 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 1.6 three-pointers. Not to be outdone, Posley has put up 26.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.0 steal, and 3.8 three-pointers. On the other side, the Seahawks have been led by Michael Carey. He has upped his play, averaging 17.8 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.0 steal, 1.8 blocks, and 0.6 three-pointers in the same time frame.
The Bonnies are hoping to build on their records of 22-8 Straight Up (SU) and 15-10-1 Against The Spread (ATS). The Bonnies are an incredibly accurate shooting team from the line with a .772 free throw percentage, one of the highest marks in Division I. Crossing over to the defensive side of the court, the Bonnies prevent teams from making three-pointers, ranking 50th in the nation with 211 total three-pointers allowed (7.0 per game). Wagner has a habit of getting in foul trouble (21.8 fouls per game), so expect the Bonnies to get a number of opportunities from the free throw line.
In the other locker room, the Seahawks head into the game with records of 4-4 ATS and 22-10 SU. The Seahawks have controlled the glass with an average of 40.1 rebounds per game, 24th in the country. The Wagner defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing only .407 shooting from the field to its opponents.
St. Bonaventure and Wagner will be facing off for their first head-to-head game in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – StBon, ATS Winner – StBon
Notes
“St. Bonaventure is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home”.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of St. Bonaventure’s last 6 games “.
The St. Bonaventure Bonnies average 69.1 possessions and 1.126 points per possession in games this season. The Wagner Seahawks average fewer possessions with 67.3, as well as fewer points per possession with 1.048.
St. Bonaventure has an average effective field goal percentage of 51.6%. Wagner is an underachieving 2-5 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
St. Bonaventure attempts an average of 21.0 three pointers per game and Wagner attempts 18.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the St. Bonaventure Bonnies have a solid 13-6 record while the Wagner Seahawks have an 8-7 record.
Ranked 24th in the nation, Wagner averages 40.1 rebounds per game. St. Bonaventure ranks lower at 203rd with 35.7 RPG.
On average, St. Bonaventure makes 5.9 steals per game. Wagner has a stellar 16-5 record when it gives up at least 5 steals.
