BOX SCORE FAIRFIELD, Conn. (Feb. 14, 2013) –
Earl Brown (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) turned in his ninth double-double as Saint Francis U snapped a two-game losing streak and beat Sacred Heart 64-60 Thursday night in Northeast Conference play.
Brown had 13 points and 11 rebounds as the Red Flash (3-21, 3-10) won for the second time in their past three road contests and doubled its road win total from the prior season. The sophomore hit a jumper with 54 seconds left to snap a 56-56 tie and added two free throws for a four-point edge. Sacred Heart never pulled closer than two points after that.
“We did a great job down the stretch getting stops when we needed to,” said SFU coach
Rob Krimmel. “Give credit to the guys. They executed and made great plays. We missed some free throws that would have made things a little more comfortable but we'll take it.”
Ronnie Drinnon (Jamestown, Ohio/Greenview) and
Ollie Jackson (Dallas, Texas/Pinkston ) each added 12 points each for Saint Francis, while
Greg Brown (Odenton, Md./Archbishop Spalding) scored 10 in addition to a game-high five assists.
Shane Gibson scored 26 points with eight rebounds for the Pioneers (9-14, 7-5). The senior hit 8 of 18 from the floor, 3 of 5 from 3-point range and 7 of 8 at the foul line.
The Flash never trailed in the first half and opened up a 14-point lead less than 15 minutes into the contest. Much of the early momentum came from a 5-of-8 start from 3-points range thanks to Jackson and
Greg Brown (Odenton, Md./Archbishop Spalding) who hit on three and two in the half, respectively.
The Pioneers responded with a 16-to-2 run to knot things up at 32-all by the intermission.
“I thought in the first half we started by executing some things offensively but got away from that,” said Krimmel.
“We've talked about playing to win in close games like this. Hopefully, this will build some confidence with our guys. We're in these situations now we've got to grow from them.”
The Red Flash continues its two-game Connecticut road trip on Saturday when it visits Quinnipiac.
