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Richmond, Va. – The Saint Francis men's basketball team (0-1) looks to rebound from an opening night loss at No. 25 VCU on Friday vs. another Atlantic 10 opponent in the Richmond Spiders (0-0). It will be Richmond's first game of the season.

2018-19 Record: 13-20
Postseason: A-10 Tournament Second Round
Starters Returning: 5
SFU Record in Series History: 1-2
Last Meeting: Richmond 98 SFU 78 – Mar. 3, 1981 @ Saint Francis (ECAC South Tournament)
 
Richmond returns all five of its starters next season, including its leading scorer Grant Golden (17.2 ppg). Jacob Gilyard (16.2 ppg) also returns after being named to the A-10 All-Conference Second Team and All-Defensive Team, while Golden landed on the Third Team. The Spiders were 13-20 overall and 6-12 in the Atlantic 10. Saint Francis fans will remember former Wagner guard Blake Francis who led the Seahawks in scoring in 2017-18. He transferred to Richmond before the 2018-19 season and will be eligible after sitting out all last season due to the NCAA transfer rules.

 Offense Struggles to Find its Footing
 
Saint Francis put itself in an early hole on Tuesday night with its inability to find any sort of offensive rhythm in the first half. The Red Flash were held to 22 points on 8-33 (24.2%) shooting from the field and 1-10 (10.0%) from three-point range. SFU's 58 points on the night tied the second lowest total from last season and its 19 turnovers against a suffocating VCU defense would have been its third highest output from last season. Saint Francis did shoot it better in the second half, going 13-32 (40.6%) from the field and 5-11 (45.5%) from three.
 
Strong Finish
 
Due to its lackluster start, the Red Flash trailed VCU 32-15 with 4:12 to play in the first half. Saint Francis proceeded to outscore the No. 25 VCU Rams 43-40 over the game's final 24:12 while second-half scoring was even at 36-36.
 
New Pieces Show Flashes
 
Redshirt sophomore Binghamton transfer Tyler Stewart (Silver Spring, Md./St. Andrew's Episcopal) and redshirt freshman Bryce Laskey (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands) were the only two Saint Francis players to make their Saint Francis debuts on Tuesday night but the Red Flash did see expanded roles for a few other guys. Junior point guard Ramiir Dixon-Conover (Newark, N.J./South Kent) earned his first career start and senior forward Deivydas Kuzavas (Kretinga, Lithuania/St. Mary's Ryken (Md.)) started his first game since 2017-18. Redshirt senior Scott Meredith (Pilot Mountain, N.C./Hargrave Military Academy (Va.)) also saw his first action since the 2017-18 season after sitting out all of last season with an injury. Stewart finished with seven points and four rebounds in 16 minutes while Dixon-Conover added career-highs in points with six and rebounds with four to go with three assists. He was second on the team in minutes played with 32.
 
Getting on the Glass
 
Saint Francis led the NEC in 2018-19 in offensive rebounding and picked up where it left off with 15 offensive rebounds at VCU. Sophomore Myles Thompson (Camden, N.J./Camden) led the way with three of his team-high eight rebounds coming on the offensive glass. Redshirt senior Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, N.C./West Charlotte), senior Keith Braxton (Glassboro, N.J./Delsea) and the aforementioned Stewart also collected two offensive rebounds. Saint Francis lost the overall rebounding battle to the Rams 42-39, but grabbed 15 offensive rebounds while holding VCU to 10.
 
Vying for an A-10 win
 
Saint Francis is hoping to put an end to a four-game losing streak against Atlantic 10 affiliated opponents when it heads to Richmond on Friday. The Red Flash are 1-17 in its last 18 meetings vs. A-10 schools, the lone win a 67-52 triumph over Duquesne on Dec. 17, 2014. Earl Brown led the Red Flash with 16 points in the win.