Team preview: Wagner

Blue Ribbon Illustrated previews the 2004-05 college basketball season, exclusively on Insider.

Updated: October 20, 2004, 3:22 PM ET
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COACH AND PROGRAM

It's not easy to repeat in the NEC.

Wagner found that out last season as the Seahawks went from defending champions to one and done in the conference tournament.

In fairness to the Seahawks, they were hardly the same team that won the championship in 2002-03. First, head coach Dereck Whittenburg left for Fordham and then the Seahawks lost player-of-the-year Jermaine Hall and guard Dedrick Dye as seniors.

New coach Mike Deane did the best he could with the cast he inherited, but the Seahawks never really clicked despite having three starters back, including NEC first-team forward Nigel Wyatte (13.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg).

"Last year was a transition year," Deane said. "They were coming off their best season in school history, but things never really came together."

While Wyatte bought into Deane's style, senior guards Courtney Pritchard (10.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 5.6 apg) and Teoine Carroll (11.9 ppg, 61 3-pointers) had a more difficult time adjusting to the new head coach.


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