Saint Francis University (4-11, 0-4 NEC) at Merrimack (8-8, 4-0 NEC)
Date | Time	Saturday, January 15, 2022 | 3 p.m
Location	North Andover, Mass. | Hammel Court
Television	NEC Front Row
Live Stats	SideArm
Printable Notes	Saint Francis | Merrimack
Stats	Saint Francis | Merrimack | Northeast Conference
Social Media	@RedFlashMBB  | #BELIEVE  | @RedFlashMBB | Facebook

 

Saint Francis Probable Starters
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	FG%	Note
G	2	Ramiir Dixon-Conover	6-3	185	R-Sr.	13.7	5.1	42.1	Prime Performer for fifth time this season
G	4	Ronell Giles, Jr.	6-4	185	So.	11.5	3.7	37.9	Scored 11 points in last meeting vs. Merrimack
G	11	Maxwell Land	6-4	185	So	10.0	4.1	39.7	Averaging 14.3 ppg and 5.3 rpg in last three games
F	5	Myles Thompson	6-6	220	Sr.	11.0	3.8	48.8	Averaging 10.4 ppg in last five games
F	42	Mark Flagg	6-9	215	R-Sr.	4.8	5.6	41.0	Needs 24 rebounds to join Top-20
Off the Bench
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	FG%	Note
G	1	Zahree Harrison	6-0	190	So.	1.9	0.9	28.6	Dished out two assists in seven games this season
G	3	Luke Ruggery	5-11	160	R-So.	2.0	0.8	25.9	Scored points in seven of 14 games this season
F	13	Marlon Hargis	6-5	205	Sr.	6.7	2.5	46.9	Coming off his fourth game with at least 10 points
F	15	Chukwu Ikediashi	6-8	220	R-Jr.	1.0	3.0	100	Appeared in two games, both at home
G	20	Brendan Scanlon	5-8	155	Fr.	0.7	0.7	50.0	Appeared in three games
G	21	Ben Seidel	6-0	170	Jr.	0.7	0.0	50..0	Scored first points since freshman year against Illini
G/F	22	Tyler Stewart	6-8	195	R-Sr.	--	--	--	Has not played in first 12 games
G	23	A.J. Labriola	6-2	185	Sr.	0.0	1.0	0.0	Appeared in two games this season
G	31	Brad McCabe	6-6	185	R-Jr.	0.3	0.7	14.3	Appeared in six games this season
F	32	Jeriah Coleman	7-0	220	So.	2.4	1.5	59.1	Registered five blocks in last two games
F	33	Josh Cohen	6-10	220	R-So.	11.1	6.1	66.7	Leads the NEC in field goal percentage

GAME NOTES VS. MERRIMACK
need to know... The game between Saint Francis and Merrimack marks the fourth meeting in the all-time series dating back to the 2019-20 season.
• All three meetings have taken place in North Andover and the Warriors have won the first three tilts in the series.
• Merrimack swept the series last year with a 68-62 win and a 59-54 decision on Feb. 4-5, 2021.
• The Red Flash will welcome the Warriors to Loretto for the first time on Feb. 4.
• Merrimack is in its third year of its transition from NCAA Division II to Division I. The Warriors are not eligible for the postseason until their five-year transitional period is over.
• Prior to starting the series with Merrimack, the Red Flash was 2-2 against the state of Massachusetts, but had not played against a team from the state since 1980-81.

a sfu win would... Be the first NEC win of the year
• End a six-game losing streak
• End a three-game skid on the road against the Warriors
• Be the first win of 2022 for the team
• Give the Red Flash a win in three different states (Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts)

next on tap... Saint Francis wraps up its four-game road trip and two-day swing in New England at Bryant on Monday.
• The Red Flash returns home on Jan. 21 for CCSU on ESPN +, and Sacred Heart two days later.
• Saint Francis will play six of its eight games on the road in the month of January.
• The team will wrap up the month of January at Wagner (Jan. 27) and at the Mount (Jan. 29).

the word on the warriors... Merrimack comes into the game riding a five-game winning streak to improve to 8-8 overall and 4-0 in Northeast Conference play thanks to a 66-57 win against Central Connecticut State on Jan. 8.
• Ziggy Reid paced the Warriors with 20 points against the Blue Devils. Mikey Watkins also found double figures with 17 points.
• Jordan Minor leads the team in scoring (14.2 ppg.), rebounding (6.5) and blocks (45).
• Watkins fuels the team with 55 assists and 33 steals, while ranking second in scoring with 9.9 points per game. Reid is third on the squad with 9.3 points per game and second in rebounding (4.3 rpg.).

last time we met... Merrimack defeated Saint Francis 59-54 on Feb. 5, 2021.
• Ramiir Dixon-Conover fueled the Red Flash with 14 points, while Ronell Giles, Jr. added 11 points off the bench.
• Mikey Watkins led the Warriors with 15 points. Malik Edmead (11 points) and Jordan Minor (10 points) also found double figures.

last time out... Despite a combined 41 points from redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover and sophomore Maxwell Land, Saint Francis lost 75-70 in overtime at LIU on Jan. 8.
• Dixon-Conover, who gave the Red Flash a 62-60 lead with three free throws with 16 seconds left, posted 21 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals.
• Land notched a career-high and his first 20-point performance against the Sharks.

national ranking... Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover ranks 47th in steals with 2.07 thefts per game.
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen ranks 21st in NCAA Division I in field goal percentage through games on Tuesday. Cohen is in the rankings based on three made field goals per game with his 66.7 percent. The redshirt sophomore sat in second place for the week prior to the Illinois game for five made field goals per game.
• The team also ranks in the Top-100 nationally in three categories. The squad is 63rd in offensive rebounds per game (12.00), 96th in turnover margin (+1.9) and 97th in turnovers per game (12.2).

trending up... After being held under 10 points in consecutive games for the second time in the last two years, redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover returned to Dixon-Conover-type numbers last week, averaging 17.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game in the two games in Brooklyn.
• The redshirt senior has three 20-point performances this season and eight in his career. He has scored double figures in seven-straight road games and is averaging 14.7 points, 4.0 rebound, 3.7 assists and 2.4 steals per game in that stretch. He is shooting 41.8 percent (38-for-91) from the floor, 36.0 percent from behind the arc (36.0) and 75.0 percent (18-for-24) from the free throw line in that span.
• Prior to his 20-point performance against LIU, sophomore Maxwell Land was averaging just 7.0 points per game on the road with only a pair of 15-point performances away from Loretto against Ohio U and Hartford on his resume compared to five 10+ point games at home this season. This season is a reverse split of last year after the sophomore had six of his nine 10+ point games on the road as a freshman. In addition, the sophomore had a season-high eight rebounds and has registered at least five boards in four of his last five games and eight times this season. Land is averaging 12.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in his last five tilts.
• Land and Dixon-Conover became the first duo to post 20-point games in the same contest since Dixon-Conover (21 points) and sophomore Ronell Giles, Jr. (20 points) turned the trick against St. Francis Brooklyn on Feb. 12, 2021. It was the 29th time under head coach Rob Krimmel that he has had two players register 20 points or more in the same game.
•  Redshirt senior Mark Flagg hauled in 14 rebounds against LIU for his third 10+ rebound game of the season and second with 14 rebounds or more after his 17-board performance against George Washington on Nov. 9. Flagg now has 629 career caroms and needs 24 to join the program's career Top-20.
• Sophomore Jeriah Coleman  has 13 career blocks and registered a career-high three rejections against LIU on Saturday. The sophomore must like to protect the rim against Brooklyn schools after posting eight of his rejections against either St. Francis Brooklyn or LIU including all three multi-block games in his career.
• Senior Myles Thompson has posted double figures in three of his last five games and is averaging 10.4 points per game during that span. The senior has scored at least 17 points in a game nine times in his career. Thompson has moved over 850 points for his career and stands at 866 points.
• Saint Francis played its 17th overtime game under head coach Rob Krimmel with 15 of the 17 extra session games taking place in NEC play. It was the third time the Red Flash has tangled with LIU in overtime, but the last meeting was the first time it has happened in Brooklyn. Thompson has scored double figures in three of the last four games he has played. He is averaging 11.3 points per game in that stretch and 14.3 points per game in the three contests he started.

road warriors part deux... After playing at home for a three-game homestand, Saint Francis is in the midst of its second four-game road trip of the season. The Red Flash will have spent 22 of the 45 days over the span of December 4-January 17 on the road riding on a bus or a hotel.
• It will also mark the seventh time the Loretto program will play four straight conference games on the road, joining the 1988-89, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2004-05 and 2006-07 teams.
• Saint Francis has not been too successful in these trips, posting no more than one win per four-game road trip:
Year NEC Season Record (4-game road trip record)
2020-21 – 0-4   (0-2)
2006-07 – 5-13 (0-4)
2004-05 – 10-8 (1-3)
1999-00 – 7-11 (1-3)
1998-99 – 7-11 (0-4)
1993-94 – 9-9   (1-3)
1992-93 – 7-11 (1-3)
1988-89 – 6-10 (1-3)

you've lost that winning feeling... It marks the seventh time the Red Flash has endured a losing streak of five games or more under head coach Rob Krimmel.
• The team has lost six-straight games after defeating Hartford on Dec. 14.
• Last year, the squad lost six-straight with the last two defeats coming at the hands of LIU before Saint Francis ended the streak with an 89-82 win against Bryant.
• Saint Francis has also overcome a long losing streak to notch some good feats before the end of the season.
• In 2016-17, the squad lost seven in a row including a loss to the preseason favorite, Fairleigh Dickinson, and opened league play 4-4 before ending with an 11-7 NEC record and a win in the CIT postseason tournament. The 2021-22 team also opened the circuit with a loss to the preseason favorite (Wagner).
• In 2013-14, the Red Flash had five- and six-game losing streaks. The team finished 8-10 in league play and advanced to the NEC Semifinals.
start to the league slate... Saint Francis has opened the NEC slate with four-straight losses for the fourth time in program history (1987-88, 2005-06, 2010-11).
• With a win, the Red Flash can avoid an 0-5 start just like the 1987-88 and 2010-11 teams were able to accomplish.
• The 2005-06 team lost its first six games in league play.

in the nec… Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover ranks second in steals (2.07), second in assist/turnover ratio (1.62), second in assists (3.93), fifth in minutes played (32.21) and ninth in the scoring (13.7 ppg.).
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen leads the conference in field goal percentage (66.7),and ranks fourth in the circuit in offensive rebounds (2.54) and 17th in scoring (11.1 ppg.).
• Sophomore Ronell Giles, Jr. ranks sixth in minutes played (32.46), 10th in steals (1.60), 10th in free throw percentage (73.3) and 16th in scoring (11.5 ppg.).
• Senior Myles Thompson ranks second in 3-point field goal percentage (48.8) and 18th in scoring (11.0 ppg.).
• Saint Francis ranks in the Top-5 in the Northeast Conference in 12 team categories
• After leading the conference for the majority of the non-conference slate in scoring offense, the Red Flash have dropped to fourth with 71.5 points per game.
• The Red Flash also ranks second in assist/turnover ratio (1.21), fourth in field goal percentage (42.5), fourth in 3-point field goal percentage (33.5), third in turnover margin (+1.93), second in offensive rebounds (12.00), fourth in steals (7.13), fifth in defensive rebounding (36.1), fifth in rebounding offense (36.1), fifth in assists (13.47) and fifth in offensive rebound percentage (31.5).

yada, yada yada... ramiir stuffed the stat sheet... There is a lot to fall in love with in redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover's game.
•  He has posted double figures in 11 of the 14 games he has played this season, and has reached double figures in 25 of his last 29 games. He has recorded double figures 30 times in his career.
• Dixon-Conover is a stat stuffer and has grabbed five rebounds 24 times in his career including nine times this season.
• He also has 12 games this season with at least three assists and 46 in his career, and nine games with at least two steals in 2020-21 and 37 times in his career.
• Dixon-Conover became the sixth player in the nation to register 13 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals in a game against a Division I opponent against Hartford on Dec. 18. He had a career-high six steals in the tilt against the Hawks.
• Dixon-Conover has eight 20-point performances, including three times this year. He registered a career-high 23 points against Bucknell on Dec. 1 along with 20 points against Robert Morris on Dec 23 and 21 points against LIU on Jan. 8.
• The redshirt senior has 14 games with 18 points or more in his career.
• Dixon-Conover moved over 600 points in his career in the first half against St. Francis Brooklyn on Jan. 6 and now has 632 career points.
• Dixon-Conover also has 256 rebounds, 225 assists and 110 steals in his career.

march to some milestones... Redshirt senior Mark Flagg and senior Myles Thompson continue their march up the career charts.
• Flagg ranks third in program history with 112 career blocks, and is one of three players in program history to have 110 rejections.
•The redshirt senior grabbed his 600th career rebound in the first half against Illinois on Dec. 18, and currently has 629 caroms. He needs 24 rebounds to join the program's Top-20 list for career rebounds, and tie William Saller (653, 1952-56) for 20th in team history.
• Flagg has 850 career points, and needs 150 points to reach 1,000 for his career.
• Flagg reached 100 assists for his career after dishing out three assists against Wagner on Dec. 29.
•Thompson is 134 points away from 1,000 points. The team has 15 games left including postseason and Thompson would need to average 8.9 points per game to reach the milestone.
• Thompson needs 67 rebounds to reach 500 caroms for his career, currently sitting at 433 boards for his career.

not so fashionable... Saint Francis has now worn four different color uniforms this season.
• The Red Flash has donned black, white, red and gray uniforms this season. The squad won its season debut with the white jersey against Franciscan on Nov. 15, but lost its first game wearing black (George Washington, Nov. 9), red (Ohio University, Dec. 4) and gray (Robert Morris, Dec. 22).
• White: Record 2-1 (Franciscan, Bucknell, Wagner)
• Black: Record - 2-5 (George Washington, Virginia Tech, Cornell, Lehigh, at St. Francis Brooklyn)
• Red: Record: 0-3 (Ohio U, Illinois, at LIU)
• Gray: Record: 0-2 (Robert Morris, FDU)

home, sweet home, loretto... Saint Francis is 76-50 at DeGol Arena under head coach Rob Krimmel.
• The Red Flash is 50-32 in Northeast Conference play at home, and 26-18 in non-conference action.
• Saint Francis is 2-3 this season at home after losing its last three at DeGol Arena. Its the first time since 2013-14 the squad has lost three-straight in Loretto.
• The Loretto program has registered a winning season at home from 2014 to 2020, and the squad posted at least a non-losing season in each of those campaigns.

career night... Sophomore Maxwell Land has re-established his career high with 20 points at LIU on Jan. 8 after posting a then career-high 19 points against Franciscan on Nov. 15.
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen notched a career-best 23 points against American on Dec. 8 after establishing a then career-best against Cornell on Nov. 24 and again against Lehigh on Nov. 28. Cohen had a career-best 11 boards against Franciscan on Nov. 15.
• Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover scored a career-best 23 points against Bucknell on Dec. 1.
• Redshirt sophomore Luke Ruggery posted a career-best nine points against Bucknell, while sophomore Jeriah Coleman had a personal-high seven points and seven rebounds against the Bison on Dec. 1.
• Senior Marlon Hargis has improved his best scoring output in the Red and Black in the last two games. After reaching a then-best 15 points against Virginia Tech on Nov. 18, Hargis scored two more points for 17 points against Cornell on Nov. 24. The senior's career high is 19 points against Harvard on Nov. 22, 2019 when he played for Holy Cross.
• Redshirt senior Mark Flagg hauled in a career-high 17 rebounds against George Washington on November 9.

benchmarks for success... Saint Francis is 4-4 this season when it reaches 70 points in a game, and 4-1 when it posted 79 points.
• Seventy is usually a magic number for success under head coach Rob Krimmel. The squad is 92-49 overall when it posts 70 on the scoreboard, including 42-35 (70-79 points), 38-12 (80-89 points), 12-2 (90-99 points) and 10-0 (over 100 points) in a game.
• The squad is also 105-31 when leading at halftime, and 92-54 when it had more free throws than the opponent.
• Defensively, the team is 73-31 when it allows under 69 points in a game. This season, the team is 4-0 after allowing 54 points against Franciscan,68 points to Lehigh, 67 points to Bucknell and 66 points against Hartford.

first collegiate points... Freshman Brendan Scanlon, the lone newcomer on the team, notched his first collegiate action against Franciscan on Nov. 15. The freshman registered a pair of rebounds and received a huge ovation when he scored off the glass with 27 seconds left  for his first collegiate points.

preseason poll... Saint Francis was picked eighth in the Northeast Conference preseason poll. Wagner College received seven of the 10 first place votes to be selected as the preseason favorite. Bryant University picked up two first place nods to finish second, while Mount St. Mary's University earned the final first place selection to place fourth. Long Island University, Merrimack College, Sacred Heart University, St. Francis Brooklyn, the Red Flash, Fairleigh Dickinson University and Central Connecticut State rounded out the 10-team poll.

captain, my captain... Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover, senior Myles Thompson and sophomore Luke Ruggery have been named team captains for the 2021-22 season.
• Dixon-Conover and Thompson were also team captains in 2020-21.

20-point club... Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover leads the team with eight games with at least 20 points in his career. Dixon-Conover registered five 20-point performances in 2020-21 and reached 20 points against Bucknell (23 points) on Dec. 1, Robert Morris (20 points) on Dec. 22 and at LIU (21 points) on Jan. 8.
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen joined the 20-point club after his career-high 23-point outburst against American on Dec. 8. The 23 points matched Dixon-Conover's total for the most points scored in a game this season by a Red Flash player.
• Redshirt seniors Mark Flagg and Tyler Stewart, and senior Myles Thompson both have one 20-point performance in their career. Flagg posted his 20-point game in 2018-19 while Stewart and Thompson both recorded their 20-point game in 2019-20.
• Sophomore Ronell Giles, Jr. posted two 20-point games last year with his career-best 21 points in the first match up against Bryant.

double vision... Redshirt senior Mark Flagg posted double-doubles in his first two games this season, while sophomore Josh Cohen turned the trick against Franciscan on Nov. 15, and against Lehigh on Nov. 28.
• Flagg posted the first double-double of this season with 17 points and 17 rebounds against George Washington on November 9, and followed that performance up with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Franciscan. Cohen had 11 points and a career-best 11 rebounds against Franciscan, and 18 points and 10 rebounds against Lehigh on Nov. 28.
• Flagg now has five double-doubles and Cohen has three double-doubles in their career. Senior Myles Thompson also has three career double-doubles.
• Cohen, Flagg and Thompson each have double-doubles that are points and rebounds. Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover has two double-doubles in his career, one with points and rebounds and one that is with points and assists against Bryant last season.

boards up... Redshirt senior Mark Flagg has seven double-digit rebound games in his career with three coming this season, including a career-high 17 caroms against George Washington on November 9.
• Sophomore Josh Cohen has two career 10+ rebound games, including a career-best 11 boards against Franciscan and 10 caroms against Lehigh on Nov. 28.
• Senior Myles Thompson ranks second on the team with three 10+ rebound games.

non-conference slate... Saint Francis concluded its non-conference slate with a 4-7 record.
• It was the 14th time the team recorded at least four wins in the non-conference schedule since joining the NEC.
• When the team wins at least three non-conference games, the squad has posted at least a .500 record in the circuit in nine of the previous 13 occasions including seven 10-win seasons in league play.
• Under head coach Rob Krimmel, the squad has won at least four non-conference games in 2014-16, and 2017-20. The Loretto program finished 2014-15 and 2015-16 with a 9-9 record, and then won 12  (2017-18, 2018-19) and 13  (2019-20) conference games in that span.
• In 2014-15 and 2017-18 the team participated in the CIT and in 2019-20 advanced to the NEC Championship Game.
• In 2018-19, Saint Francis started the year 4-5 and went on to win the NEC regular season, and play in the conference championship game and the NIT.

within hop, skip and a jump of loretto... Saint Francis has three local players on the team. Senior A.J. Labriola (Altoona), junior Ben Seidel (Johnstown) and redshirt sophomore Luke Ruggery (Duncansville) all hail from within 30 minutes of the Saint Francis campus.

flash return... Saint Francis returns all, but two players from last year's team.
• The squad returns 91 percent of its minutes, points and rebounds from last year.
• The Red Flash also returns its Top-6 scorers from 2020-21 with redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover leading the way with 15.5 points per game and senior Myles Thompson ranking second with 10.1 points per game. Redshirt senior Mark Flagg led the team on the boards with 6.0 rebounds per game.

coaches dream team... Head coach Rob Krimmel has assembled a coaching staff with strong ties to Saint Francis.
• Krimmel, a 2000 graduate of Saint Francis, was an Academic All-American.
• Assistant coach Eric Taylor, a 1998 graduate, was a three-time All-NEC selection, ranks 23rd in program history in points (1,287) and fifth in rebounding (967).
• Graduate assistants Ronnie Drinnon, an All-NEC first team selection as a senior and Jamaal King, who was named to the all-conference first team in his last two seasons, both played for Krimmel and also have etched their name into Saint Francis lore. King ranks 10th in program history in points (1,517 points) while Drinnon is 11th in rebounding (804). Drinnon graduated from Saint Francis in 2016 and King graduated in 2019.
• Assistant coach Luke McConnell, a 2012 Saint Francis graduate, played on the Red Flash football team as a student-athlete. McConnell is the son of former Saint Francis men's basketball head coach Tom McConnell (1992-99), while his cousin T.J. McConnell is in his seventh season in the NBA.