Staten Island, N.Y. - Five Saint Francis players scored in double figures, led by 22 points each from seniors Keith Braxton (Glassboro, N.J./Delsea) and Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, N.C./West Charlotte), as the Saint Francis men's basketball team (16-8, 9-4 NEC) shot 55.6% from the field in an 85-68 win at Wagner.

Krimmel's Reaction

"We wanted to focus on sharing the ball and getting a really good shot every trip down the floor, and I thought we did that tonight," said head coach Rob Krimmel. "Overall, it was a solid team effort."

Turning Point

Saint Francis erupted for a 48-29 halftime lead thanks to the crafty play of Braxton and sharpshooting of Blackmon. Braxton made all four of his first half shots for 14 points, while Blackmon connected on 4-of-6 threes to lead with 18 points over the first 20 minutes. As a team, Saint Francis shot 16-26 (61.5%) from the field in the first half.

Keeping Its Poise

Saint Francis led 52-31 with 18:38 to play before the Seahawks cut it to seven with 14:42 remaining on a 14-0 run. The Red Flash kept its poised and answered with the next eight points to push the lead back to 15. Wagner never cut the deficit to single digits the rest of the way.

Inside the Box Score

• Saint Francis made 30-of-54 (55.6%) field goals, its third best percentage of the season, in the win. Wagner was held to 25-of-61 (41.0%).
• SFU hit on 6-of-12 (50,0%) from three-point range, holding Wagner to 4-for-29 (13.8%).
• The Red Flash also connected on 19-of-21 (90.5%) from the charity stripe to Wagner's 14-of-16 (87.5%).
• Saint Francis held a 32-29 advantate in rebounds.
• SFU's 18 assists tied its season-high.
• Points off turnovers were 20-5 in SFU's favor.

Notes

• Braxton is averaging 22.3 ppg over his last three ball games.
• Blackmon netted his team-high 10th game of the season with 20 or more points, while Braxton ran his career total to 29 games with 20 or more points.
• Sophomore Myles Thompson (Camden, N.J./Camden) posted his second career double-double with 14 points and 10 boards.
• Senior Randall Gsakins Jr. and junior Mark Flagg (Fairless Hills, Pa./Pennsbury) added 10 points. Flagg also chipped in with a career-high five assists.
• The Red Flash have scored 80 or more points in eight of 13 conference games.
• Saint Francis is just two wins shy of matching its overall totals from each of the last two seasons. 
• SFU's eight wins away from DeGol Arena are its most since 2016-17.
• It's the first two-game season sweep over Wagner for Saint Francis since 2000-01.

Up Next

Saint Francis will enjoy one of its two remaining byes on Thursday before heading to Mount St. Mary's on Saturday, Feb. 15.