BOX SCORE Staten Island, N.Y. - Freshman Mark Flagg (Fairless Hills, Pa./Pennsbury) scored a career-high 18 points but the Saint Francis men's basketball team (10-8, 4-3 NEC) couldn't withstand a 20-0 Wagner run early in the second half in a 73-64 defeat. 

Turning Point

The Red Flash played one of its best defensive halves of the season over the first 20 minutes to lead 32-25. Junior Jamaal King (Salisbury, Md./Bishop O'Connell (Va.)) opened the second half with two free throws to extend SFU's lead to nine before the Seahawks rattled off the next 20 points to take a 45-34 lead with 12:46 to go. Flagg ended the drought with a nice up-and-under but the damage was done. 

SFU would pull within six, 60-54, on a Flagg layup with 3:19 and within five after a three-pointer by sophomore Keith Braxton (Glassboro, N.J./The Lawrenceville School) with 1:31 to go but could get no closer.

Inside the Box Score

• Saint Francis missed its first seven shots of the first half and finished the game 21-52 (40.4%) from the field. Wagner made 27-55 (49.1%) shots.
• The Red Flash went 6-19 (31.6%) from three-point range while the Seahawks hit 5-14 (35.7%) triples.
• SFU was 16-21 (76.2%) from the line to 14-20 (70.0%) for Wagner.
• The Seahawks dominated the backboards, 38-25.
• Led by Flagg's 18, SFU outscored Wagner's bench 32-18.
• Wagner outscored SFU 40-24 in the paint.

Notes

• Fifteen of Flagg's 18 points came in the second half as he accounted for 46.9% of SFU's scoring over the final 20 minutes.
• Junior guard Andre Wolford (Willowick, Ohio/Saint Ignatius) was the next high scoring with 13 points on 3-of-6 three-point field goals.
• Braxton was the other player to net double figures with 11 points and five rebounds.
• Senior Malik Harmon (Queens, N.Y./Christ the King) and junior Scott Meredith (Pilot Mountain, N.C./Hargrave Military Academy (Va.)) added seven points apiece.
• SFU has led by nine or more in the second half in each of its last two losses.

Up Next

Saint Francis tries to put a stop to its two-game losing streak on Saturday at Sacred Heart at 1 p.m.