LORETTO, Pa. – The Saint Francis men's basketball team honored former great Kevin Porter prior to Saturday afternoon's game against Albany at DeGol Arena. Porter, who played for Saint Francis from 1968-72 and amassed 1,766 points in his time in Loretto, had his No. 10 retired and hung in the rafters alongside fellow greats Maurice Stokes and Norm Van Lier.
 
Playing in front of Porter and a score of former Saint Francis players on Alumni Weekend, the current Red Flash players gave those veterans something to be proud of in a 69-59 victory over the Great Danes. It's the first time the Flash has started 3-0 at home since 2004-05.
 
The Saint Francis defense was stifling in the first half. It held Albany to just 25 percent (5-of-20) from the field in the opening 20 minutes and just 1-of-10 from three-point range. Ronnie Drinnon (Jamestown, Ohio/Greenview) fueled a 10-3 run to close the half with a bucket and two free throws as the Flash built a 31-15 lead heading into halftime. SFU held Albany without a field goal for the final 4:13 of the half.
 
The Flash (4-4) built that lead by making 4-of-9 three pointers and shooting 50 percent from the field in the first half. Earl Brown (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) scored five of the Flash's first eight points as SFU never trailed in the game. Brown had a team-high 16 points and five rebounds while making six of his 10 shots. Ollie Jackson (Dallas, Texas/Pinkston ) made a pair of three pointers in the first half and added a third in the second to finish with nine points.
 
The Flash lead grew to as big as 19 in the second half on two Greg Brown (Odenton, Md./Archbishop Spalding) free throws with 7:17 to play to make it 58-39, but the Great Danes pushed back with a 13-2 to cut the lead to single digits at 60-52 with 4:41 remaining. After a dunk by Earl Brown (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) to push it back to a 10-point lead, the Flash was held scoreless for nearly four minutes. But the SFU defense rose to the occasion, holding the Great Danes to four points in that span.
 
Ben Millaud-Meunier (Montreal, Quebec/Vanier), Malik Harmon (Queens, N.Y./Christ the King) and Greg Brown (Odenton, Md./Archbishop Spalding) combined to make seven free throws in the final 45 seconds to seal the win. Millaud-Meunier finished with 14 points and four made three-pointers off the bench. The Flash reserves outscored their Albany counterparts, 25-6. Harmon had five points, three assists and three steals.
 
The Flash tied a season high with 11 three-pointers on 20 attempts. Dominique Major (Woodbridge, Va./Forest Park) finished with nine points on three made three-pointers.
 
Saint Francis returns to action Dec. 17 at Duquesne.