CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Redshirt sophomore Bryce Laskey scored a career-high 12 points and senior Mark Flagg added 11, but the Saint Francis men's basketball team was otherwise stymied by a defensively efficient No. 15 Virginia squad, 76-51, Tuesday afternoon.
 
A strong first-half run from the defending national champions gave Virginia a comfortable halftime advantage, but the Red Flash battled with the Cavaliers throughout, as Saint Francis outscored Virginia 38-31 in the second half.
 
No. 15 Virginia 76, Saint Francis 51
Records: Saint Francis (1-2), Virginia (2-1)
Location: John Paul Jones Arena (Charlottesville, Va.)
 
COACH KRIMMEL'S COMMENTS
"I never feel good walking out of a locker room with a loss, regardless of who the opponent is. We played an extremely talented, well-coached, disciplined team today. I thought in the first half we had some good looks offensively, but I wasn't pleased how we responded when they went on a couple different runs … I'm never happy with a loss, but I thought there was a lot of growth in the second half to be able to use that momentum going into Thursday."
 
KEY MOMENT

• Three-pointers from freshman Maxwell Land and Laskey helped trim the Virginia advantage to 21-10, but the Cavaliers closed the half on a 24-3 run to take control of the contest.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Virginia opened the game on an 8-0 run before a jumper from junior Myles Thompson got the Red Flash on the board 3:19 into the contest.
• Threes from Land and Laskey got the Red Flash back within 21-10, but the Cavaliers responded with a 24-3 run to close the half and head to the locker room with a 45-13 lead.
• A 12-0 Saint Francis run helped cut into the Cavaliers' largest lead of the afternoon, bringing the Red Flash to within 62-32 with 8:51 to play. Flagg scored six points and Laskey added four during the stretch.
• The Red Flash closed the contest on a 13-2 stretch with two threes from Thompson and the first of Brad McCabe's career in his collegiate debut.

STATS

• Laskey's career-high 12 came 5-of-12 from the field with a pair of three-pointers.
• Flagg was in double figures for the third-straight game to open the season, going 5-for-8 on field goals. Flagg is 18-of-25 (76.0%) for the season.
• Thompson added nine points with two second-half threes.
• Freshman Zahree Harrison dished out a career-high five assists in his first-career start.
• Land grabbed a team-high and career-best five rebounds.
• Saint Francis was 2-for-14 from distance in the first half but improved to a 5-for-10 mark after the intermission.

GAME NOTES

• Saint Francis falls to 0-1 all-time against Virginia.
• The Red Flash drops to 1-1 this season against the ACC.
• Redshirt freshman Josh Cohen and freshman Jeriah Coleman scored their first-career points in the contest. Cohen, Coleman, and McCabe became the fifth, sixth, and seventh SFU players to score their first collegiate points this season.

UP NEXT 
The Red Flash conclude their two-game trip to Virginia on Thursday when Saint Francis faces Liberty. The 7 p.m. game can be seen on ESPN+.
 
Follow Saint Francis Men's Basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get up-to-date information and a behind-the-scenes look at the Red Flash.
 
To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.