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LORETTO, Pa. (Jan. 25 2012) – The Saint Francis University men's basketball team welcomes St. Francis (NY) to DeGol Arena Thursday at 7 p.m.
 
FLASH FACTS
- The Red Flash return to DeGol Arena after a weekend road trip to New Jersey as winners of two of their last three.
 
- Scott Eatherton (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) stands as the only player in the Northeast Conference to rank in the top five in league play in scoring, rebounding, field-goal percentage and blocks.
 
- Eatherton also sits fourth in the country in field goal percentage connecting on 64.1-percent of his field goals, ranking him just ahead of Kentucky's Anthony Davis.
 
- Eatherton added a pair of double-doubles to his resume last week and posted a career-high 14-rebounds at Monmouth and career-high 25 points at Fairleigh Dickinson.
 
- Eatherton ranks second among NEC players in double-doubles with four in league play this season. Only preseason player of the year Ken Horton has more with five. When Eatherton faced off with Horton earlier this season, the SFU forward got the better of the match up, despite foul trouble, with 24 points and 12 rebounds while holding the first-team NEC forward to just 11 points and 10 rebounds.
 
- Jon Taylor (Bowie, Md./Montgomery College-Germantown) posted solid numbers at Monmouth with 10 points and seven rebounds. The senior forward has scored in double-figures in three of his last four games. The native of Bowie, Md. has also recorded five or more rebounds in four of his last five games.
 
- After posting back-to-back single digit games for the first time since November, Anthony Ervin (Chesterfield, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) posted 15 points at FDU on 4-of-8 shooting, his best field goal percentage since moving back into the starting line up Dec. 20.
 
- Ervin owns 12 double-digit scoring efforts this season with five coming off the bench and seven as a starter. The junior has struggled in his last three games going 7-of-22 from the field and has just one double-figure scoring effort.
 
- Ollie Jackson (Dallas, Texas/Pinkston ) has returned to his hot 3-point shooting form going 11-of-27 (40.7-percent) from behind the 3-point arc in his last six games. Before his recent surge, the SFU rookie had just five 3-point makes in six contests.
 
- Thursday's contest features the two top shooters in the Northeast Conference in Eatherton and Jalen Cannon of the Terriers. Cannon ranks first in league action in shooting percentage but Eatherton holds the better overall mark even with more attempts.
 
- Kameron Ritter continues to move up the steals rankings in the NEC. In league action this season, the sophomore has 15 swipes and averages 1.88 per conference contest, ranking him third in the NEC.
 
- Ritter posted a career-high six assists at Fairleigh Dickinson and has averaged 4.2 helpers a game in his last five.
 
- Since posting zero assists in the CCSU and Bryant games, Stephon Whyatt (Jersey City, N.J./St. Peter's Prep) has returned to form with 13 assists in the last four games.
 
- Tony Peters (Roselle, N.J./Seton Hall Prep) continues to post solid numbers off the bench for the Red Flash. Peters has scored in his last four games including posting a season-high seven against Sacred Heart. SFU holds a record of 2-1 this season when Peters tallies four or more rebounds.
 
- St. Francis (NY) has been very good at home this season owning a 5-3 record but have gone just 4-7 on the road. The Terries only losses in league play have come to Wagner. Against teams currently in the top eight of the league, SFC holds a 2-2 record with just one road win.
 
ASSIST-TO-TURNOVERS
The Red Flash own a record of 3-2 this season when they post more assists than turnovers with wins in their last three. In games in which the Red Flash have posted a positive assist-to-turnover ratio the Flash have shot over 50-percent four times in five games and 40-percent or better from behind the 3-point arc in four, including two games of 50-percent or better 3-point shooting.
 
THURSDAY STRUGGLES
Saint Francis owns a record of 1-3 in league games on Thursday with its only win coming in its first Thursday conference game of the season. SFU scores seven fewer points in Thursday league games compared to Saturday and the Flash own a worse 3-point percent on Thursday. The Red Flash's 3-point efforts goes up nine percent in NEC games on Saturday. The Red Flash get to the free throw line more on Saturday's and give up fewer free throw attempts (22 fewer). SFU's leading scorer, Scott Eatherton (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) averages more rebounds on Thursday but more points on Saturday, despite shooting a lower percentage on Saturday. The biggest individual change from Thursday to Saturday is by Kameron Ritter, who averages five less points on Thursday and two fewer assists. The sophomore guard also sees his shooting percentage go from 36.8-percent on Thursday to 54.5-percent on Saturday. The only SFU loss on Saturday in league play came on the road by just three points.
 
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
The Red Flash owns a 4-4 record this season at DeGol Arena with wins in four of the their last five contests in Loretto. SFU shoots a remarkable 53.3-percent from the floor in home contests and boasts eight players averaging seven or more points at home. SFU's four losses at home have all come by three-points or fewer and the Red Flash have had a shot to tie or win the game in each one of their home defeats. Scott Eatherton (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) shoots 78.8-percent from the floor in home games and has missed just 14 shots (in 66 attempts) in DeGol Arena this season. Ollie Jackson (Dallas, Texas/Pinkston ) also enjoys the home court advantage as the freshman shoots 51.7-percent from the behind the 3-point arc in Loretto.  
 
SFU VS. THE TERRIERS
The Red Flash holds an all-time record of 38-30 against St. Francis (NY) and have won seven of the last 10 meetings between the two schools. Last season, SFU won the meeting in Loretto but fell to the Terriers in Brooklyn.
 
In last season's meeting in Loretto, Umar Shannon (Atlantic City, N.J./Atlantic City) led the Flash with 20 points but the biggest surprise was a young freshman named Scott Eatherton (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) posting 15 points in just 16 minutes off the bench. Jon Taylor (Bowie, Md./Montgomery College-Germantown) and Anthony Ervin (Chesterfield, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) also scored in double-figurers as SFU used a dominant second half to overcome a five-point half time deficit and earn a 75-56 win.   
 
A LOOK AHEAD
The Red Flash meet LIU Brooklyn for the first time this season on Saturday. The two teams met three times last season with the Blackbirds taking two of the three including the first round NEC tournament match up en route to the NEC Tournament title. LIU sits a top the conference entering the weekend with an unbeaten league record. The Blackbirds have not lost to a conference foe since falling to the Red Flash in Loretto a season ago.
 
NEXT UP
The Red Flash returns to action Jan. 28 against LIU Brooklyn in DeGol Arena, tipoff is schedule for 7 p.m.