NCAA Tournament: University Prep grad Melvin Council Jr. leads Wagner to opening win

Junior College transfer scores 21 as Seahawks top Howard NCAA Tourney First Four

Gary Adornato | Mar 19, 2024

NCAA Tournament: University Prep grad Melvin Council Jr. leads Wagner to opening win /

DAYTON, OHIO – Melvin Council Jr., a one time University Prep (New York) star, poured in 21 first half points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out seven assists to lead Wagner to a 71-69 First Four victory over Howard in the 2024 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament opener, Tuesday evening.

Council set the tone in the first half when he scored 13 points to help the Seahawks build a 38-27 lead. Howard made a run in the second half, but Wagner never relinquished the lead.

Council came to Wagner after earning NJCAA Division I All-American during two seasons at Monroe College. H led Monroe with 18.7 points, 4.1 assists, and 2.4 steals per game in 2022-23. In two seasons for the Mustangs, he scored exactly 1,400 points, most all-time in the history of the Monroe program. He also averaged 21 points, 5.5 assists, and five rebounds in two games at the 2023 NJCAA Division I Championship tournament.

His 13 points in Tuesday's first half was just shy of his 14.6 points per game season average. He is also averaging 3.4 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 1.4 steals. Council hit 6-of-9 shots in the first half against Howard including a three-pointer which he launched from just inside mid-court.

Melvin Council Jr. pulls up from the LOGO 😤 pic.twitter.com/jQmEaEE4hN
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 19, 2024

Published Mar 19, 2024

GARY ADORNATO

Gary Adornato began covering high school sports with the Baltimore Sun in 1982, while still a mass communications major at Towson University, and in 2003 became one of the first journalists to cover high school sports online while operating MIAASports.com, the official website of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association. Later, Adornato pioneered market-wide coverage of high school sports with DigitalSports.com, introducing video highlights and player interviews while assembling an award-winning editorial staff. In 2010, he launched VarsitySportsNetwork.com which became the premier source of high school media coverage in the state of Maryland. In 2022, he sold VSN to The Baltimore Banner and joined SBLive Sports as the company's East Coast Managing Editor.