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Loretto, Pa.– The Saint Francis men's basketball team (12-8, 5-4 NEC) returns to Loretto with aspirations of ending a three-game skid. Saint Francis hosts CCSU (2-20, 1-8 NEC) on Thursday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m., and Bryant (10-10, 2-5 NEC) on Saturday, Feb. 1 at noon on CBS Sports Network.
 
Scouting CCSU
 
The Blue Devils got their first win in conference play last time out, defeating Wagner 86-76 thanks to 18 points from Ian Krishnan. Central Connecticut has been limited offensively, averaging a league-worst 61.2 ppg, while shooting just 38.6% from the field. The Blue Devils have been exposed on the glass with a -9.0 rebounding margin. In the first meeting with SFU, Saint Francis held a 51-25 rebounding edge. Krishnan leads the team in scoring at 13.2 ppg and is 49.0% from three-point range.
 
Series History
 
Saint Francis won its fourth straight over the Blue Devils on Jan. 4 with a 93-69 win. Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, N.C./West Charlotte) tied his career-high in the win with 28 points on eight made three-point field goals.
 
 Scouting Bryant
 
The Bulldogs have won just one of its last six league games after opening conference play with a 67-63 win over Saint Francis. Bryant protects the rim better than any team in the conference, averaging 4.55 blocks per game. Junior Elisias Hall tops the NEC at 3.0 blocks per game and had four in the win over the Red Flash in Smithfield.  Offensively, Bryant loves to hoist three-pointers led by senior guard Adam Grant. The Bulldogs rank second in the league in made three-point field goals per game at 9.80, while Grant leads the league with 3.70 makes from behind the arc per contest. The second leading scorer in the NEC at 18.6 ppg, Grant made four threes and finished with 20 points in the Jan. 2 meeting.
 
Series History
 
Bryant tied the series at 11-11 with its win to open league play. Blackmon was stellar in the loss for SFU with a game-high 24 points.
 
Back to the Basics
 
Saint Francis is mired in a three-game slump because of the disappearance of its defense. The Red Flash are allowing 81.3 ppg over the three games while opponents are shooting 50.6% from the field and 40.5% from three-point range. In SFU's 12 wins, Saint Francis is allowing just 69.3 ppg. In the eight losses, the Red Flash are yielding 80.2 ppg with opponents going 49.8% from the field.
 
Blackmon Carrying the Load
 
Redshirt senior Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, N.C./West Charlotte) is the hottest player in the league at the halfway mark. Not only does Isaiah lead the league during conference play at 22.1 ppg, but he is shooting 50.0% from three-point range. Blackmon averaged 25.0 ppg and 6.0 rpg at LIU and St. Francis Brooklyn, leading the Red Flash in scoring in both contests. With 24 points at St. Francis Brooklyn, he moved into a tie for 14^th place on the school's all-time scoring list.
 
No Time to Panic
 
Through nine league games, Saint Francis has an identical 5-4 record to this point last season. The Red Flash started league play 3-4 before going 9-2 down the stretch to share the NEC regular-season title. However, Saint Francis has lost three consecutive league games for the first time since ending the 2015-16 regular-season with five consecutive defeats.