Saint Francis University (8-14, 3-5 NEC) at Mercyhurst University (10-13, 4-4 NEC)
Date | Time	Thursday, January 30, 2025 | 7 p.m.
Location	Erie, Pa. | Owen McCormick Court at Mercyhurst Athletic Center
Television	NEC Front Row
Live Stats	Sidearm
Printable Notes	Saint Francis | Mercyhurst
Stats	Saint Francis | Mercyhurst | Northeast Conference
Social Media	@RedFlashMBB  | #BELIEVE | @RedFlashMBB | Facebook

 

Saint Francis Probable Starters
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	FG%	Note
G	5	Daemar Kelly	6-5	195	So.	6.5	3.0	38.7	Averaging 9.4 ppg and 4.6 rpg in last five tilts
G	7	Jeremy Clayville	6-0	160	Fr.	8.5	1.8	37.3	Leads the team with 44 triples
G	11	Riley Parker	6-2	195	Jr.	12.7	3.3	48.2	Averaged 22.0 ppg last weekend
G	14	Bobby Rosenberger III	6-5	205	So.	10.6	4.5	42.3	Averaging 12.4 ppg against teams from the Keystone in 2024-25
F	31	Valentino Pinedo	6-8	230	Jr.	9.6	6.9	55.3	Hauled in at least five boards in all but two games played
Top Players Off the Bench
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	FG%	Note
G	0	Chris Moncrief	6-6	190	Jr.	4.2	2.2	47.1	NEC career-high 13 points at Wagner
G	2	Ace Talbert	6-0	185	So.	10.2	2.8	35.4	Averaging 12.8 ppg in last four games played
F	3	Miles Webb	6-8	190	Jr.	4.6	3.2	59.7	Had a double-double on the road at Niagara
G	4	Juan Cranford, Jr.	6-3	205	Fr.	9.9	3.7	50.3	NEC Rookie of the Week for second time
G	15	Victor Payne	6-4	190	Fr.	2.1	1.3	39.4	Sealed FDU win with three free throws
F	21	Gestin Liberis	6-9	225	Jr.	---	---	---	Averaged 11.0 ppg and 7.7 rpg in last four games played
G	23	Wisler Sanon II	6-4	190	Jr.	0.0	0.5	0.0	Made 2024-25 debut vs. LIU on January 24
F	32	Aidan Harris	6-7	205	So.	2.0	2.1	53.3	18 rebounds in last six tilts

SELECT GAME NOTES VS. MERCYHURST (FULL GAME NOTES PDF)

FRANKIES TIDBITS IN A FLASH
• Thursday's game between Saint Francis and Mercyhurst marks the sixth meeting in the all-time series, dating back to the 1982-83 season. The Red Flash are 5-0 against the Lakers, including a 73-59 win in Loretto in the first Division I meeting between the two teams.
• This will be the first time the Red Flash will visit Erie since November 28, 1983. Lionel Richie was dancing "All Night Long" to the top of the radio charts that week; Dallas was the No. 1 show even though we figured out who shot J.R. Ewing three years prior, and the world was still reeling from the most watched television finale of M*A*S*H* (Goodbye, Farewell and Amen) a few months prior (February 28, 1983).
• For Saint Francis men's basketball, the only trip to Erie was the first game on the road for  first-year head coach Kevin Porter. The Red Flash would start the season 2-0 under Porter thanks to a 90-78 win against Lock Haven on November 26 and an 89-75 win against the Lakers. After this iteration on Thursday, Saint Francis returns home to host Le Moyne on February 6 for Kevin Porter Night. Along with honoring Porter, many of his 1971-72 teammates will be at the game.
• The Saint Francis men's basketball staff will join the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) for Coaches Vs. Cancer: Sneakers and Suits Week, and wear suits and sneakers for its game at Mercyhurst to help raise awareness for the fight against cancer. Saint Francis' coaching staff is one of the only staff in the country that has returned to wearing suits at every contest instead of continuing what was called "COVID casual" during the 2021-22 season by wearing a quarterzip. LIU in the game on January 24 was one of the few times a visiting coaching staff has worn suits for a game this season.
• "Cookie stand isn't part of the food court... Eateries that operate within the designated square downstairs qualify as food court. Anything outside of said designated square is considered an autonomous unit for mid-mall snacking." - Brodie Bruce from Mallrats. On a recent road broadcast, the announcers said that the West Coast trip is back in the NEC, referring to what they once called the trip to Western PA with Saint Francis and Robert Morris, but now that Mercyhurst is in the league, the West Coast trip is back. If we are on the West Coast trip, does that mean that the trip to Chicago State is like going to Hawaii?
• "Three cheeseburgers, two large fries, two chocolate shakes and one large coke... and some flapjacks.... too early for flapjacks?" - Phil Connors in Groundhog Day. Groundhog Day is Sunday, but the Red Flash does not play on the day to see whether there will be six more weeks of winter in 2025. Saint Francis has played 33 times on the day, most recently in 2023. The Frankies are 5-3 at home on Groundhog Day but have not played at home on the day since 2002 and 5-10 on the road.
• Saint Francis has played five of the first eight NEC games at home, so the script will be flipped for the rest of the season with five of the final eight games on the road, including five of the next six, starting with Thursday's game at Mercyhurst. The Red Flash will wrap up the season with two games at home. 
 

AN SFU WIN WOULD
• Be the team's first win in Erie since 1983
• Improve the team's record against the state of Pennsylvania to 5-2 on the season
• Be the squad's fourth win in the month of January
• Be the Red Flash's second conference road win of the year and third overall win away from Loretto
• Be the team's sixth win against Mercyhurst in team history and sweep the season series


ABOUT THE LAKERS
• Mercyhurst comes into the contest 10-13 overall and 4-4 in Northeast Conference play after defeating LIU 85-80 in double overtime on Sunday. 
• Bernie Blunt III paced the Lakers with 27 points, while Jeff Planutis (23 points), Aidan Reichert (16 points), and Shemar Rathan-Mayes (10 points) also found double figures in the double-overtime thriller. Planutis gave Mercyhurst the lead for good on a jumper with 65 seconds left in double OT. 
• Planutis leads the team with 14.7 points per game, while Reichert is second in points (13.1 ppg.) and leads the squad in rebounding (5.2 rpg.). Blunt is third on the Lakers with 11.7 points per game and leads the team in steals (34). Rathan-Mayes powers the team with 88 assists. 
• Mercyhurst is 7-2 at home this season with a non-conference 77-73 loss to Lafayette on December 5 and a 62-50 defeat to preseason favorite CCSU on January 5. 

LAST TIME WE MET
• Junior Valentino Pinedo notched a career-high 18 points to lead Saint Francis past Mercyhurst 73-59 on January 10. 
• Freshman Jeremy Clayville (17 points), junior Riley Parker (13 points, six rebounds, six assists), and sophomore Bobby Rosenberger III (10 points, six boards) also found double figures. 
• Bernie Blunt (13 points), Shemar Rathan-Mayes (11 points), and Jake Lemelman (10 points) posted 10+ points for the Lakers.

LAST TIME OUT
• Saint Francis fell 68-66 on Sunday to Wagner.
• Junior Riley Parker paced the Red Flash with 15 points, six assists, and three steals. Freshman Juan Cranford, Jr. added 14 points and six rebounds, while junior Valentino Pinedo finished with 10 points and eight boards.


TRENDING UP
• When you have someone who hails from Australia, the two things that people who grew up in the 1980s think about: the song "Land Down Under" and the movie Crocodile Dundee, but maybe that is just "Overkill": "Especially at night, I worry over situations that I know will be alright. It's just overkill." (for those that do not get the joke, "Overkill" is a song also by Men At Work from its second album Cargo). Junior Riley Parker must know everything will be alright regarding free-throw shooting. In conference, Parker is shooting 90.3 percent from the free throw line and is 20 for his last 21 from the charity stripe. Parker had made 20 free throws in a row until he intentionally missed a free throw at the end of the game against Wagner on January 26. Parker's scoring prowess is well documented, but the little things like his free throw shooting, assists, steals, and rebounding do not get overkilled with respect. He had a career-high three steals against the Seahawks to notch his third game with multiple thefts. He registered six assists or more for the fifth time (he also had six in the first meeting with Mercyhurst on January 10). He may have only had two boards in his last game, but has five games this season with five or more caroms.
• "Are you crazy? A man in a really nice camper wants to put our song on the radio! Gimme a pen; I'm signin', you're signin', we're all signin'!" - Lenny from That Thing You Do. Sophomore Bobby Rosenberger III loves to play teams from the Keystone State, so he is probably like Lenny and ready to do that thing he does and reach double figures against teams from Pennsylvania. Rosenberger has posted double figures in eight of his 10  games against his home state. The only two times he has not hit 10 points against a Pennsylvania school was twice against non-Division I teams. The Quakertown native numbers are very similar, averaging 13.2 points per game against the Keystone State overall, 12.8 points per game at home, and 13.7 points away from Loretto and those teams. This season, he averages 12.4 points per game against his home state and 14.7 points per game against NCAA Division I teams in his career in the state.
• After not reaching double figures in his first three conference games, freshman Juan Cranford, Jr. has registered 10+ points in four of his last five tilts and has at least nine points in his previous six contests. Cranford is averaging 11.2 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in his last six games. He also has double digits in points in five of his last six contests away from DeGol Arena and is averaging 14.3 points per game in those road tilts. According to @NECHoopsRon, the freshman ranks fifth nationally among freshmen performers in eFG% at 60.9 percent.
• Since returning from injury, junior Valentino Pinedo might be like John McClain in Die Hard and telling you to "Welcome to the party, pal," or maybe "Ho-ho-ho, Now I am Scoring and Rebounding," which on the basketball court might be just as impressive as the original line in the movie. Pinedo has scored double figures in three straight games and eight of his last 10 contests. The junior has also grabbed at least five boards in all 10 games except for the season opener at Dayton on November 4 and his return from injury game at Maryland on December 17; he has grabbed at least five boards in every game he has played.
• Sophomore Daemar Kelly has registered at least eight points in each of his last five games and is averaging 9.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in that stretch. The sophomore registered a career-high 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists against LIU on January 24. 

ON THIS DATE
• Saint Francis is 9-8 on this date, including holding a 3-5 record on the road and 5-3 in Northeast Conference play.
• Sorena Orandi made two free throws with four seconds left in overtime to lift Saint Francis past LIU 74-73 on this date in 2010. Will Felder sent the game to overtime with a dunk with 46 seconds left in regulation. Devin Sweetney paced the Red Flash with 28 points and 10 rebounds. Felder added 14 points and Orandi registered 13 points off the bench.
FUN FACT
• Saint Francis has won the last five games on this date with all five contests being played at DeGol Arena. The Red Flash is 5-2 at home and 0-1 on the road in league games on this date.
• The only time the Frankies played on the road in an NEC game on this date was a 67-54 loss at FDU in 1993.