Loretto, Pa. - Senior Keith Braxton (Glassboro, N.J./Delsea) recorded 24 points and 10 rebounds to pass Saint Francis legend Kevin Porter for fourth on the school's all-time scoring list in a 72-65 win over Sacred Heart (10-8, 3-2 NEC) on Saturday night.

Krimmel's Reaction

"I have tremendous respect for coach Latina and his team," said head coach Rob Krimmel. "They played hard tonight and gave us all we could handle. At the end of the day, our guys made some veteran plays down the stretch that ended up being the difference."

Turning Point

Saint Francis led 34-33 at the half and stretched it to 56-50 with 9:08 to play when things started to get wacky. Braxton was fouled hard on his way to the basket and took exception. After a skirmish, five players in total were issued Class A technical fouls, which resulted in two Saint Francis free throws and four four Sacred Heart. The incident led to a 9-0 Sacred Heart run and its first lead of the half. Redshirt sophomore Tyler Stewart (Silver Spring, Md./St. Andrew's Episcopal) helped Saint Francis get back on track with a three-point play with 6:20 to play to give Saint Francis a 62-61 lead, and Braxton followed with a three-pointer to increase the lead to four. Saint Francis led 68-61 after a steal and score from senior Randall Gaskins Jr. before Sacred Heart whittled it to three at 68-65. Redshirt senior Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, N.C./West Charlotte) was fouled shooting a three on the next possession and sank two of three, then Braxton sealed it with two more free throws after corralling his 10th rebound of the game.

Inside the Box Score

• Saint Francis made 28-of-61 field goals (43.8%) to Sacred Heart's 24-of-54 (44.4%).
• The Red Flash knocked down 6-of-18 (33.3%) three-pointers, while Sacred Heart went 8-for-21 (38.1%) from behind the arc.
• Saint Francis struggled from the free-throw line, going 8-for-17 (47.1%). Sacred Heart made 9-of-12 (75.0%) free throws.
• Thanks to four steals from Gaskins Jr., Saint Francis won the turnover battle 18-9. Points off turnovers favored Saint Francis, 23-11.
• Saint Francis also won the battle on the glass over Sacred Heart, 36-34. The Pioneers entered the game as the top rebounding team in the conference.
• The Red Flash led in points in the paint, 30-22.
• Each team took the lead on nine difference occasions.

Notes

• Braxton's 24 points were his most since scoring 26 in a win at Saint Joseph's on Nov. 30. He recorded his third double-double of the season and the 40th of his career.
• Only Joe Anderson, Maurice Stokes and Jeff Hamilton stand in front of Braxton on the school's scoring list and the Glassboro, N.J. product is just 22 points from catching Hamilton for third place.
• Blackmon followed Braxton with 18 points on three three-point field goals.
• Stewart was the other player to score in double figures, scoring all 11 of his points in the second half to finish with 11 points and five rebounds.
• Saint Francis is 6-1 in DeGol Arena this season.
• Saint Francis is 10-1 over its last 11 games, the best 11-game stretch since 1969-70.

Up Next

A pair of 5-1 teams meet on Monday, Jan. 20, at 4 p.m. when Saint Francis joins newly-acquainted NEC member Merrimack in the first meeting between the schools in program history.