FAIRFIELD, CT – The St. Francis Brooklyn men's basketball team (13-10, 5-5 NEC) was topped by Sacred Heart (10-13, 6-4 NEC), 71-62, on Saturday afternoon. With the defeat, the Terriers have split the season series with the Pioneers after they claimed the first meeting on January 19, at the Pope Physical Education Center.
The Terriers controlled a 32-26 lead at halftime, but a hot shooting second half propelled the Pioneers to victory. St. Francis Brooklyn put on a defensive clinic in the first half as it held Sacred Heart to just 26 points and 29.0 percent shooting from the field.
In the second half, the Pioneers shot 46.2 percent from the field and knocked down 6-of-12 (50.0%) from behind the arc en route to putting up 45 points in the frame. For the game, Sacred Heart made 10 three-pointers, the most that the Terriers surrendered since December 3. It marked just the third time all season that St. Francis Brooklyn had a team make 10 or more threes against them.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
St. Francis Brooklyn – 62 | Sacred Heart – 71
- Sophomore guard Chauncey Hawking poured in 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field and went 3-of-5 from three-point range in 26 minutes of play off the bench. The guard gave the Terriers an offensive spark as he scored 11 of his points in the first half of play. Hawkins knocked down all three of his three-pointers on the Terriers' 11-3 run at the end of the first half. Hawkins' offensive contributions in the first half helped the Terriers go up by as many as 16 points. In two games this season against the Pioneers, Hawkins averaged 20.5 points per game.
- Junior forward Deniz Celen scored 16 points on 7-of-16 shooting and pulled down eight rebounds. The forward added three assists and three blocks in 33 minutes. The 16-point performance marked Celen's fifth-straight game scoring in double figures. It was also the third time this season that the forward recorded three or more blocked shots in a game.
- Graduate guard Glenn Sanabria scored 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting from the floor. He dished out three assists in 34 minutes of action. The guard has increased his career points total to 1,222. Sanabria is three assists shy of 300 for his career, he currently sits in ninth-place on the Terriers' all-time assists list.
- Sophomore forward Yaradyah Evans scored three points and pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds. It was the second time this season that Evans recorded 15 or more rebounds in a game (grabbed a career-high 18 against Saint Peter's on Dec. 15). Evans is the only player in the NEC this season to grab 15 or more rebounds in multiple games.
- The Terriers' leading scorer on the season, sophomore guard Jalen Jordan tallied four points and four rebounds. The four points were the fewest in a game for Jordan this season as he entered the contest averaging 16.7 points per game.
- As a team, the Terriers shot 37.1 percent from the field and pulled down 40 rebounds. It was the eighth time this season that the Terriers registered 40 boards as a team.
- After today's game, the Terriers are in a three-way tie for fifth-place and remain two games out of first place as Robert Morris holds the top spot with a 7-3 record.
- The Terriers have dropped back-to-back games for only the second time this season, and it was just their second defeat on a Saturday (also fell to NJIT on Saturday, December 8).
- Sacred Heart received 27 points and eight rebounds from EJ Anosike. Aaron Clarke added 10 points off the bench.
UP NEXT:
The Terriers return to the Pope Physical Education Center as they begin a four-game homestand against Wagner on Thursday, February 7, at 7 p.m.
