SAINT BONAVENTURE, N.Y. -- Romone Saunders scored 21 points with four 3-pointers and eighth-seeded Wagner upset No. 1 seed St. Bonaventure 79-75 Wednesday night in an opening-round NIT game.

After trailing by as many as 16 in the second half, St. Bonaventure went on a 9-2 run to pull to 62-53 -- cutting the margin to single digits for the first time since 19-10.

The Bonnies got within two before Saunders sank a 3-pointer from the wing for a 74-69 lead with 1:45 left. Neither team scored again until JoJo Cooper hit two free throws with 12.6 seconds left to extend the Seahawks' lead to 76-69.

Mike Aaman and Michael Carey controlled the paint and scored 13 points apiece for Wagner (23-10), which will play at Creighton on Saturday. Aaman grabbed nine rebounds and Carey eight.

Wagner went on an 18-2 run, capped by Saunders' 3-point play, to take a 26-10 lead. St. Bonaventure started the game shooting just 4 of 17 from the field (23.5 percent). A Saunders 3-pointer from the wing with four minutes left increased the Seahawks' lead to 36-19.

Jaylen Adams led St. Bonaventure (22-9) with 24 points and six 3-pointers.