Loretto, Pa. - The Saint Francis men's basketball team (14-11, 10-4 NEC) grabbed a stranglehold on first place with a thrilling 72-69 win on Saturday night in front of a capacity crowd. Senior Jamaal King (Salisbury, Md./Bishop O'Connell (Va.)) scored a game-high 23 points in the win while junior Keith Braxton (Glassboro, N.J./Delsea) registered 11 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. With the win, the Red Flash take a two-game lead on first place with four contests remaining in the regular season.

Krimmel's Reaction

"Andy (Toole) and the Robert Morris staff did a tremendous job tonight in getting their team ready to play," said head coach Rob Krimmel. "We didn't have the best shooting night but we played extremely hard for 40 minutes. I am so proud of this group for continuing to fight, staying together and playing for one another. Now it's time to hit the reset button and get ready for another dogfight Thursday night."

Turning Point

Saint Francis led 38-28 at the half and 49-36 with 13:22 to play after a Braxton bucket before the Colonials mounted a furious rally. They hit five of six three-pointers over a four minute stretch, tying the game at 64-64 on a jumper from Malik Petteway with 4:05 to play. Senior Andre Wolford (North Olmstead, Ohio/Saint Ignatius) answered with the biggest bucket of the night, a corner three to put SFU back in front. Sophomore Mark Flagg (Fairless Hills, Pa./Pennsbury) received a Braxton pass on the next possession and slammed it home as SFU went in front by five. The Colonials continued to fight and tied the game at 69-69 on a layup with 58 seconds. Braxton was fouled on the next possession and made one of two from the line. Robert Morris had a chance to take the lead but freshman Myles Thompson (Camden, N.J./Camden) forced a stop, first blocking a shot out of bounds and then stepping in front of Petteway and taking a charge with six seconds remaining. King hit two free throws to push the lead to three and SFU celebrated the victory when Matty McConnell's desperation three-point attempt sailed wide.

Inside the Box Score

• After shooting 52.0% in the first half, the Red Flash cooled in the second to finish the game 23-of-51 (45.1%) from the field. Robert Morris shot 26-of-58 (44.8%).
• Saint Francis went just 1-for-9 from three in the second half, finishing 6-of-20 (30.0%) for the game. The Colonials connected on 9-of-22 (40.9%) three-point tries.
• The Red Flash got RMU in the penalty and knocked down 20-of-29 (69.0%) from the charity stripe. Robert Morris converted 8-of-12 (66.7%).
• The Red Flash won the turnover battle and turned the RMU miscues into points on the other end. Points off turnovers favored SFU 20-15 and fast break points were 26-5.
• Robert Morris held a 36-30 reboundind edge.
• Saint Francis blocked six shots, its second most of the season, thanks to three from Flagg.
• The Red Flash led for 36:09 of the 40 minutes and never trailed after 5:34 of the first half.

Notes

• King's 23 point night was his 25th career game with 20 or more points. He ranks 12th in career scoring at SFU with 1,384 points.
• Braxton notched his league-leading 10th double-double.
• Flagg finished with 12 points, four rebounds and three blocks before fouling out.
• Junior Randall Gaskins Jr. made all three of his field goal attempts, two of which were from behind the arc, for eight points.
• SFU's seven-game win streak is one shy of an eight-game win streak during the 1990-91 season for the longest in the last 30 years.
• The Red Flash moved to 9-2 at home this season and 20-5 at DeGol Arena over the last two seasons.
• Saint Francis is 14-5 when scoring 70 or more points.
• SFU is looking to win the outright NEC regular-season title for the first time in program history. The Red Flash shared the title with Fairleigh Dickinson in 1990-91.
• Saint Francis ran its win streak over in-state rival Robert Morris to eight games. No other team in the NEC has a win streak greater than two games over the Colonials.

Up Next

Saint Francis hosts St. Francis Brooklyn on Thursday, Feb. 21, at 7 p.m. The Terriers will enter the game in a five-way tie for second place and defeated the Red Flash earlier this season in Brooklyn, 91-87.