Saint Francis University (7-12, 3-5 NEC) at Wagner College (12-2, 8-0 NEC)
Date | Time	Thursday, January 26, 2022 | 7 p.m
Location	Staten Island, N.Y. | Spiro Athletic Center
Television	NEC Front Row
Live Stats	SideArm
Printable Notes	Saint Francis | Wagner
Stats	Saint Francis | Wagner | 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.	12.6	4.8	40.7	Leads the NEC in steals
G	11	Maxwell Land	6-4	185	So.	10.3	4.4	40.1	Pair of 20-point games in last five games
F	5	Myles Thompson	6-6	220	Sr	12.1	3.7	44.4	NEC Prime Performer
F	13	Marlon Hargis	6-6	205	Sr.	7.1	2.9	45.2	Posted 15 points three times this season
F	33	Josh Cohen	6-10	220	R-So.	11.1	6.4	64.9	Five-straight games with double figures
Off the Bench
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	FG%	Note
G	1	Zahree Harrison	6-0	190	So.	1.9	1.1	31.4	Appeared in every game this season
G	3	Luke Ruggery	5-11	160	R-So.	2.4	0.9	26.1	Registered six points against CCSU
F	4	Ronell Giles, Jr.	6-4	185	So.	11.5	3.7	37.9	Ranks second on the team in scoring
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	Played in last two road games
G	21	Ben Seidel	6-0	170	Jr.	0.7	0.0	50..0	Played in last two road games
G/F	22	Tyler Stewart	6-8	195	R-Sr.	--	--	--	Has not played in first 18 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.	2.9	2.2	67.7	Ranks ninth in NEC in blocks (0.88 bpg)
F	42	Mark Flagg	6-10	205	R-Sr.	4.4	5.1	43.7	Needs 11 rebounds to join Top-20

GAME NOTES VS. WAGNER
need to know... The game between Saint Francis and Wagner marks the 80th meeting in the all-time series dating back to the 1956-57 season.
• The Seahawks have won the last three meetings to take a 40-39 edge in the all-time series
• The current trend in the series is three-game streaks in the last nine meetings. Wagner won three, then Saint Francis won three, and the Seahawks are currently riding a three-game winning streak.
• The Seahawks defeated the Red Flash 72-64 in the NEC opener on Dec. 29 It was Wagner's first win in Loretto since 2018-19..
• Saint Francis is looking for its first win in the series since defeating Wagner 85-68 in Staten Island in 2019-20.
• Both head coaches in this matchup are in their 10th season and will face off for the 20th time.

a sfu win would... Be the team's first three-game winning streak since the 2019-20 season when the Red Flash won eight-straight
• End a three-game losing streak against Wagner
• Be the second NEC road win
• Be the fourth win in the last five games

next on tap... Saint Francis wraps up the month of January at Mount St. Mary's on Saturday.
• Saint Francis, who will play five of its first six games in February at DeGol Arena.
• Bryant starts the month of February at DeGol Arena on Feb. 3 and then Merrimack will come to Loretto two days later. The Red Flash went 1-1 on Jan. 15 and 17 against the two teams in the first tilts this season..

the word on the seahawks... Wagner comes into the contest 12-2 overall and 8-0 in league games after defeating Merrimack 71-57 on Sunday.
• Elijah Ford paced five Seahawks in double figures with 20 points, while Zaire Williams (16 points), Alex Morales (12 points), Will Martinez (11 points) and Raekwon Rogers (10 points) also found double figures.
• Morales, the reigning NEC Player of the Year, leads the team in scoring (17.3 ppg.), rebounding (7.5 rpg.), assists (49) and steals (27).
• Ford is tied with Morales with 27 steals, while ranking second in  scoring (13.3 ppg.).
• Martinez (12.6 ppg.) and DeLonnie Hunt (12.0 ppg.) are also averaging double figures.

last time we met... Wagner defeated Saint Francis 72-64 in the NEC opener for both teams on Dec. 29 in Loretto.
• Ronell Giles, Jr. paced the Red Flash with 18 points. Marlon Hargis (15 points) and Maxwell Land (12 points) also scored 10+ points against the Seahawks.
• Raekwon Rogers fueled Wagner with 18 points. Alex Morales and Will Martinez each added 16 points, while Elijah Ford chipped in 14 points.

last time out... Sophomore Maxwell Land matched his career high of 20 points and all five starters reached double figures in an 85-74 win against Sacred Heart on Sunday.
• Senior Myles Thompson (17 points), redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover (15 points), senior Marlon Hargis (13 points) and redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen (12 points, 12 rebounds) also reached double figures for the team's second-straight win.
• The starters scored 77 of the 85 points in the game for the Red Flash.

national ranking... Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover ranks 21st in steals with 2.17 thefts per game in NCAA Division I.
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen ranks 25th 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 64.9 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 is 73rd in offensive rebounds per game (11.82) in NCAA Division I.

trending up... Since the start of the New Year, senior Myles Thompson is averaging 15.2 points per game and has registered double figures in four of the five games he has played in 2022. He has posted at least 17 points in three of those games and six times this season.
• Thompson has also been a facilitator in the last two games with nine assists in the two tilts. He notched three assists for the third time in his career against Central Connecticut State on Jan. 21 and then a career-high six helpers against Sacred Heart on Jan. 23. Prior to this last weekend, the senior had eight total assists in the previous 15 games.
• Sophomore Maxwell Land notched his second 20-point performance in five games on Sunday after establishing a career-best 20 points against LIU on Jan. 8. The sophomore has nine games with at least 10 points in his last 14 games, including six in his last nine tilts. He is averaging 12.3 points per game in his last nine games. The Red Flash is 3-3 when Land drains three baskets from behind the arc in a game.
• Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover ended his longest streak without double figures since joining the starting lineup in 2020-21 at three games. The redshirt senior had been held to single digits in five of his last seven games and was averaging 9.5 points per game in that stretch. Prior to his last five games, Dixon-Conover scored 10+ in 10 of his first 11 games and was averaging 13.1 points per game in that stretch.
 • Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen registered double figures in the last five games that he has played and is averaging 12.0 points and 7.6 rebounds per game in that stretch. The sophomore has posted double figures in seven of his eight career starts and is averaging  13.0 points per game as a starter.
• Senior Marlon Hargis notched double figures for the fourth time as a starter and since conference began. The senior has registered six double-figure games this season including three with 15 points or more. He has registered four of his six 10+ games on the road, but did have a 15-point performance against Wagner in the NEC opener on Dec. 29.
• Saint  Francis notched its second two-game winning streak this season after taking back-to-back games against Lehigh on Nov. 29 and Bucknell on Dec. 1 early this season.
• The Red Flash came into the weekend against the Connecticut schools 1-11 on the season when trailing at the half and came out of the weekend with two wins to improve to 3-11 when trailing going into the locker room.
• After not hitting 50 percent shooting from the field in nine-consecutive games, the Red Flash has shot 50 percent in its last two contests.
• Saint Francis has posted a 20-point scoring output four times in the last five games. Land has a pair of 20-point games against LIU on Jan. 8 and against Sacred Heart on Jan. 23. Dixon-Conover had 21 points against LIU and Thompson posted 21 points against Central Connecticut State on Jan. 21. The squad had three 20-point performances in its first 14 games.
• The Red Flash went 0-5 from Dec. 18 to Jan. 6 and were averaging 58.8 points per game and allowing 78.6 points per game. While the team lost an overtime thriller 75-70 against LIU, the team started to turn its statistics around. Since that game in Brooklyn, the team is 3-2 and has scored 67.4 points per game while allowing 68.8 points per game in that stretch. The team is scoring 8.6 more points per game in the last five games and allowing almost 10 points less a game.

for starters... Saint Francis used its five different starting lineup combinations in this season. Despite using five different combinations, only eight players have heard their name in the starting lineup.
• Sophomore Maxwell Land is the only player to start all 18 games this season.
• Land, sophomore Zahree Harrison and senior Marlon Hargis are the only players to appear in every game this season.
• The Red Flash has had all of its top rotational players available for 10 games this season. The squad is 4-6 in those games, while averaging 73.2 points per game.
• When one of those players is missing the team is 3-6 and averaging 64.9 points per game. They have won two of the last three games missing a piece.
• Saint Francis had all of its rotational pieces for nine of the 11 non-conference games, but has had a piece missing in five of the seven games in league play.
• The team went from averaging 77.2 points per game in November to 70.4 points per game in December to 59.3 points per game in January. The squad was the top scoring team throughout the non-conference season and was ranked in the Top-100 of NCAA Division I.

home, sweet home, loretto... Saint Francis is 78-50 at DeGol Arena under head coach Rob Krimmel.
• The Red Flash is 52-32 in Northeast Conference play at home, and 26-18 in non-conference action.
• Saint Francis is 4-3 this season. The season started with back-to-back wins in Loretto and then a three-game losing streak around the holiday before the squad rebounded to win its last two games in DeGol Arena.
• In three of its four wins at home, the squad has scored 85 points (vs. Sacred Heart, Jan. 23), 93 points (vs. Bucknell, Dec. 1) and 100 points (vs. Franciscan, Nov. 15)
• 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.

in the nec… Redshirt senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover leads the league in steals (2.17) and ranks fourth in assists (3.72), sixth in minutes played (33.22) eighth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.37), and 13th in the scoring (12.6 ppg.).
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen leads the conference in field goal percentage (64.9) and ranks fifth in the circuit in offensive rebounds (2.53).
• Sophomore Ronell Giles, Jr. ninth in steals (1.60) and 19th in scoring (11.5 ppg.).
• Senior Myles Thompson ranks fifth in 3-point field goal percentage (44.6)  and 16th in scoring (12.1 ppg.).
• Sophomore Jeriah Coleman has moved into ninth in blocked shots (0.88), while sophomore Maxwell Land is ninth in minutes played (32.11).
• Saint Francis ranks in the Top-5 in the Northeast Conference in 10 team categories.
• After leading the conference for the majority of the non-conference slate in scoring offense, the Red Flash have dropped to fifth with 70.5 points per game.
• The Red Flash also ranks third in assist/turnover ratio (1.08), third in turnover margin (+1.11), fourth in offensive rebounds (11.84), fourth in field goal percentage (43.2), fourth in rebounding offense (36.3), fourth in offensive rebound percentage (31.7), fifth in steals (6.79), fifth in rebounding defense (37.1),  fifth in blocked shots (2.89), fifth in steals (6.94), and fifth in defensive rebound percentage (69.5).

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 12 of the 18 games he has played this season, and has reached double figures in 26 of his last 33 games. He has recorded double figures 31 times in his career.
• Dixon-Conover is a stat stuffer and has grabbed five rebounds 26 times in his career including 11 times this season.
• He also has 14 games this season with at least three assists and 48 in his career, and 13 games with at least two steals in 2020-21 and 41 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 668 career points.
• Dixon-Conover also has 271 rebounds, 237 assists and 120 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 114 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 635 caroms. He needs 11 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 863 career points, and needs 137 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 82 points away from 1,000 points after registering a season-high 21 points against Central Connecticut State on Jan. 21. The team has 11 games left including postseason and Thompson would need to average 7.5 points per game to reach the milestone.
• Thompson needs 58 rebounds to reach 500 caroms for his career, currently sitting at 440 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: 3-1 (Franciscan, Bucknell, Wagner, Central Connecticut State)
• Black: Record: 2-6 (George Washington, Virginia Tech, Cornell, Lehigh, at St. Francis Brooklyn, at Bryant)
• Red: Record: 1-3 (Ohio U, Illinois, at LIU, at Merrimack)
• Gray: Record: 1-2 (Robert Morris, FDU, Sacred Heart)

sharp dressed men... Fans of ZZ Top will remember that "every girl crazy 'bout a sharp-dressed man," but during this basketball season the Saint Francis staff and the opposing teams have both worn dress clothes three times this season.
• During the Red Flash games against George Washington (Nov. 9), Hartford (Dec. 14) and Bryant (Jan. 27) the opposition also dressed in the traditional suit while the other 16 games the opposing team has been in what has been called COVID casual.

career night... Sophomore Maxwell Land has registered three career-best performances this season The sophomore started the season by scoring 19 points against Franciscan on Nov. 15 and then notched a career-best 20 points against LIU on Jan. 8 and again against Sacred Heart on Jan. 23.
• Sophomore Jeriah Coleman registered a career-high eight points against Bryant on Jan. 17. Coleman, who also matched his career high with seven rebounds against the Bulldogs, surpassed his previous high of seven points and seven rebounds against Bucknell on Dec.1
• 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.
• 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 5-4 this season when it reaches 70 points in a game, and 5-1 when it posted 79 points.
• Seventy is usually a magic number for success under head coach Rob Krimmel. The squad is 93-49 overall when it posts 70 on the scoreboard, including 42-35 (70-79 points), 39-12 (80-89 points), 12-2 (90-99 points) and 10-0 (over 100 points) in a game.
• The squad is also 106-31 when leading at halftime, and 94-54 when it had more free throws than the opponent.
• Defensively, the team is 75-31 when it allows under 69 points in a game.
Six of the seven wins this season have come after holding the opponent under 69 points in a game. Sacred Heart broke that streak when it posted 74 points in the Red Flash 85-74 win on Jan. 23.

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, senior Myles Thompson and sophomores Josh Cohen and Maxwell Land have all registered a 20-point performance this season. Dixon-Conover has three 20-point performances this season while Land has notched a pair of 20-point games.
• 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 this season. He leads the team with eight games with at least 20 points in his career.
• Thompson notched a 20-point output with a season-best 21 points against Central Connecticut State on Jam. 21 It was the second 20-point game of his career after notching a career-best 23 points against Florida State in 2018-19.
• Land became the fourth player on this year's team to add a 20-point performance to his resume thanks to a 20-point game against LIU on Jan. 8. He then added a 20-point game against Sacred Heart on Jan. 23.
• 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.
• Sophomore Ronell Giles, Jr. posted two 20-point games last year with his career-best 21 points in the first match up against Bryant.
• Redshirt seniors Mark Flagg and Tyler Stewart each have one 20-point performance in their career. Flagg posted his 20-point game in 2018-19 while Stewart recorded his 20-point game in 2019-20.

double vision... Redshirt senior Mark Flagg posted double-doubles in his first two games this season, while sophomore Josh Cohen has turned the trick three times against Franciscan on Nov. 15, Lehigh on Nov. 28 and Sacred Heart on Jan. 23.
• 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 four 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 and a 14-board game against LIU on Jan. 8.
• Redshirt sophomore Josh Cohen has four career 10+ rebound games, including a career-best 12 caroms against Sacred Heart on Jan. 23.
• 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.

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.