SFU Postgame Quotes

Loretto, Pa. - The Saint Francis men's basketball team (22-9) will make its third NEC Championship appearance in the last four seasons after taking down Sacred Heart (20-13) 84-72 in Saturday's NEC Semifinal.
 
Redshirt senior Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, N.C./West Charlotte) poured in a team-high 24 points with eight rebounds and senior Keith Braxton (Glassboro, N.J./Delsea) added 18 and five rebounds.
 
The Red Flash will head to Moon Township for Tuesday's NEC Championship game on ESPN2 at Robert Morris.
 
Krimmel's Reaction
 
"This time of year, there are a couple things that seem to separate teams," said head coach Rob Krimmel. One is being able to play with a level head, and then also having that desire to win. I think for the better part of 40 minutes, our guys did that, and they were able to compete and execute, and take care of the basketball and get a great shot. Those are the things that you learn with experience and this group has been through so many difference scenarios that it is starting to show."
 
How It Happened
 
The Red Flash and Pioneers traded buckets for much of the early going as Saint Francis led 24-23 with 6:12 to play in the first half. That's when Braxton started to take over, scoring eight of his 14 first half points over the final six minutes. His bucket at the end of the half extended SFU's lead to 43-30.
 
If it was Braxton's effort which helped Saint Francis grab the first half lead, it was Blackmon who brought it home. He drilled a three-pointer on the first possession of the second half, his first of three in the second half, as the NEC Player of the Year was off and running.
 
Sacred Heart trimmed it to 52-40 with 15:12 remaining, but a huge 10-4 run from the Red Flash, capped by a layup from senior Randall Gaskins Jr., made it 62-44 and brought the home crowd to its feet.
 
The Pioneers made one final push, making it a 10-point game with 1:26 left, but Braxton closed it out at the free throw line down the stretch by making all four of his attempts from the charity stripe.
 
Inside the Box Score 

• For the second consecutive tournament game, the Red Flash shot better than 50% from the floor, knocking down 33-62 (53.2%) shots. Sacred Heart made 26-64 (40.6%).
• The Pioneers hung around thanks to its three-point shooting, making 11-29 (37.9%). Saint Francis went 6-16 (37.5%) from three.
• SFU made 12-17 (70.6%) from the free-throw line. The Pioneers hit 9-12 (75.0%).
• Saint Francis forced Sacred Heart into 13 turnovers, converting them into 19 points.
• The Pioneers came into the game with a size advantage at the rim, but it was the Red Flash who dominated inside, outscoring the Pioneers 42-24 in the paint.
• Rebounds ended 39-33 in Sacred Heart's favor. 

Notes
 

• SFU's senior class will make its third appearance in an NEC Title game. No previous class had ever appeared in more than one.
• The Red Flash will enter Tuesday's contest winners of 10 of its last 11 games.
• Eight players scored for the Red Flash. Gaskins netted 14 points on 6-7 shooting and sophomore Myles Thompson (Camden, N.J./Camden) scored 12.
• Gaskins has made 14-18 shots this tournament and are averaging 17.0 ppg.
• Junior Ramiir Dixon-Conover (Newark, N.J./South Kent) drained 3-4 shots for seven points off the bench.
• Saint Francis has yet to trail in its two NEC Tournament games.
• SFU's championship team of 1990-91 entered the NEC title game with 22 wins, just like this current group of 2019-20. The Red Flash went on to win the NEC Championship in 1990-91 and then defeat Fordham in a play-in game to get into the field of 64.
• Saint Francis will finish the season 13-2 at DeGol Arena.
• The Red Flash improved to 3-1 in semifinal games under Krimmel. 

Up Next
 
Tuesday's NEC Championship can be seen on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. The broadcast crew will consist of Dave Flemming (Play-By-Play), Sydney Johnson (Color) and Meaghan McKeown (Sideline Reporter).