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| Saint Francis Probable Starters |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| G |
2 |
Zion Russell |
6-2 |
185 |
R-Sr. |
12.0 |
4.0 |
35.1 |
Has four 10+ point games this season |
| GÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â |
F |
Skylar Wicks |
6-6 |
190 |
R-Sr. |
19.0 |
8.7.5 |
41.2 |
Ranks 28th nationally in defensive rebounds per game |
| G |
15 |
Victor Payne |
6-4 |
190 |
So. |
4.2 |
3.0 |
29.2 |
Scored a career-high 15 points against Troy |
| FÂ Â Â Â |
21 |
Gestin Liberis |
6-9 |
225 |
R-Jr. |
2.8 |
2.7 |
35.0 |
Registered career-high 15 points, 10 rebounds last time played Franciscan (2023) |
| G |
55 Â Â Â |
Ahmad Harrison |
6-1 |
190 |
Sr. |
7.0 |
2.2 |
40.9 |
Scored SFU-high 17 points against Belmont |
| Top Players Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| G |
0 |
Chris Moncrief |
6-6 |
190 |
Sr. |
3.5 |
0.5 |
50.0 |
Missed last four games |
| GÂ |
1 |
KJ Swain, Jr. |
6-1 |
165 |
R-Sr. |
1.7 |
0.2 |
33.3 |
Scored six points at TCU |
| G |
3 |
Brandon Russell |
6-5 |
185 |
Fr. |
3.8 |
1.5 |
18.8 |
Made first two 3's of career vs Belmont |
| G/F |
4 |
Ralph Martino, Jr. |
6-6 Â Â |
180 |
So. |
5.3 |
2.0 |
58.3 |
Matched season high seven points, three rebounds vs Belmont |
| G |
7 |
Paris Papadatos |
6-4 |
185 |
Fr. |
--- |
--- |
--- |
Looking to make his collegiate debut |
| F |
20 Â Â |
Cam Tweedy |
6-6 |
240 |
R-Sr. |
5.5 |
2.8 |
48.3 |
Career-high 14 points vs TCU |
SELECT GAME NOTES VS. FRANCISCANÂ (FULLÂ GAME NOTES PDF)Â
FRANKIES TIDBITS IN A FLASH
• Saturday's meeting between Saint Francis and Franciscan marks the 42nd meeting in the all-time series, dating back to the 1947-48 season.
• Saint Francis is one of the oldest Franciscan schools in the country, founded in 1847, while the Steubenville campus is one of the youngest Franciscan institutions in the country, after being established in 1946. Did you know there are 42 Catholic colleges in the country affiliated with the Franciscan order?
• The Red Flash leads the all-time series 32-9 and has won the last 18 meetings. The Frankies have won all six meetings since the series restarted in 2017-18. The Barons' game returns to November after the two teams played in December last year in the last non-conference home game of the year. It will be the fourth time in the last five years the teams will met in November after not meeting in the COVID-19-shortened 2020-21 season.
• Franciscan's last win in the series was a 64-48 win in Ohio in 1967-68.
• Saint Francis head coach
Luke McConnell is searching for his first win as a head coach with a victory on Saturday. It would be two years to the day that McConnell's mentor, Rob Krimmel, won his 150th game with a 62-61 win at Lehigh on November 29, 2023. Another Saint Francis alum, Dave Magarity, earned his first head-coaching win on November 29, 1978.
• Every head coach since legendary head coach Dr. William "Skip" Hughes (12 coaches total) has picked up their first win as a head coach at home, except for John Clark, John Hiller, and Luke's father, Tom McConnell, who earned their first win on the road.
• McConnell could become the 11th coach to earn his first win in the state of Pennsylvania. Hughes (Alliance), Dick Conover (Old Dominion), Pete Lonergan (Pitt-Johnstown), Magarity (St. Michael's [Vt.]), Kevin Porter (Loch Haven), Jim Baron (Slippery Rock), Bobby Jones (Morehead State), Don Friday (Bucknell) and Krimmel (CCSU) all won their first game at home, while Hiller won his first game on the road at Duquesne.
• McConnell could also become the second head coach to earn his first win against Franciscan. Hiller won his first road game, 77-70, against Stubenville, a team that changed its name to Franciscan in 1980.
• The Red Flash also plays on December 1 against Xavier, and four of the Red Flash coaches made their collegiate coaching debut on that date: Clark (Duquesne), Hiller (Old Dominion), Conover (Old Dominion), and Lonergan (Pitt
Johnstown).
• Speaking of the Musketeers, Saint Francis defeated Xavier 77-73 at DeGol Arena on January 31, 1994. The win was considered the fifth biggest win in Saint Francis men's basketball history, according to an Altoona Mirror 2020 poll. Xavier finished the year 22-8 and advanced to the NIT Quarterfinals. The win was pulled off by Luke's father, Tom.
• After the game at Xavier, Saint Francis returns to Loretto to host Penn State-Shenango on December 3 and will also wrap up non-conference play at home against Robert Morris on December 20.Â
AN SFU WIN WOULD
• Be the team's first win of the season
• Be the Red Flash's fourth win in its last five games at DeGol Arena
• Be the team's 19th straight win against Franciscan
• Give first-year head coach Luke McConnell his first win as a head coach, two years to the day that former head coach Rob Krimmel won the 150th game of his career
• Be Saint Francis' fifth-straight win on November 29 (2008, 2014, 2017, and 2023)
• End the month of November with a victory
ABOUT THE BARONS
• Franciscan will make its second trip to the area in seven days after losing to Penn State Altoona 64-63 in Altoona on November 22. The decisive score was registered on a free throw with 97 seconds left. The Barons are 4-1 on the year after that loss, but the game against Saint Francis will go down as an exhibition game for Franciscan.
• Sawyer Butler powered Franciscan with 19 points, while Zach Oliver added 11 points and 13 rebounds against Penn State Altoona.Â
• Butler leads the Barons with 25.2 points per game. Oliver paces the team in rebounds (8.0 rpg.) and is second on the team with 10.6 points per game.Â
LAST TIME WE MET
• Saint Francis defeated Franciscan 104-47 on December 19, 2024.
• Valentino Pinedo paced the Red Flash with 14 points and five rebounds. Jeremy Clayville (13 points, seven assists), Juan Cranford, Jr. (13 points, six rebounds), and Bobby Rosenberger III (13 points) also had double figures for the Frankies.
LAST TIME OUT
• Saint Francis might have played its best game to date, holding the lead for nearly 25 minutes before succumbing to Troy 74-64 in the consolation game of the Coconut Hoops Royal Palm Division on Wednesday.
• Skylar Wicks paced the Red Flash with 21 points and nine rebounds.
• Victor Payne notched a career-high 15 points, and Zion Russell chipped in 11 points.
TRENDING UP
• Redshirt senior Skylar Wicks registered his 1,000th point while at Coconut Hoops through his time at Missouri State (6 points), State College of Florida- JUCO (463 points), Incarnate Word (412 points), UTSA (36 points), and Saint Francis (114 points). He needs 42 points to reach 600 points in his NCAA Division I career.Â
• Wicks, who will play against an NCAA Division III opponent with Saint Francis, registered his career high of 27 points against Schriener on November 14, 2023 with Incarnate Word. Wicks has recorded a 20-point game three times this season and twice in his last three games. He is looking to notch back-to-back 20-point games for the first time since he turned the trick in four straight games with Incarnate Word, November 14-25, 2023. The redshirt senior is averaging 20.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in his last three games.
• Sophomore Victor Payne notched a career-high 15 points against Troy on November 26 and his second 10+ point game of his career. The sophomore's previous best was 10 points and seven rebounds against Penn State Shenango on December 3, 2024. Payne had a nice 2025-26 DeGol Arena debut with seven points and four rebounds against Mount St. Mary's on November 11 to earn his first collegiate start against Lehigh one week later.  Â
• While Wicks leads the team with six 10+ point games and three 20-point performances, fellow redshirt senior Zion Russell is second on the team with four 10+ point games and is the only other player to hit 20 points this season, which occurred in the last home game against the Mount. Russell has either scored double figures or six points in a game this season. The redshirt senior is averaging 12.8 points per game in his last four games and played in his 100th career game on Wednesday.
• Redshirt junior Gestin Liberis tallied six points and six rebounds against the Trojans, the second time this season he has reached six rebounds after posting six boards against the Mountaineers. Liberis registered a career-high and his first double-double the last time he played for Franciscan, with 15 points and 10 rebounds on November 22, 2023.
LEAGUE LEADERS
• Redshirt senior Skylar Wicks ranks second NEC in scoring (19.0 ppg.), rebounding (8.7 rpg.), and minutes per game (35.3), and ranks sixth in 3-pointers per game (2.3), sixth in free throw percentage (80.0), eighth in steals per game (1.5), ninth in assists per game (2.8) and 10th in field goal percentage (41.2).
• Wicks ranks 21st in minutes per game, 28th in defensive rebounds per game (6.83), 55th in rebounding, 57th in double-doubles (2), 66th in scoring, in NCAA Division I.
• Redshirt senior Zion Russell is fifth in minutes played (32.7), and seventh in free throw percentage (78.9).
• Senior Ahmad Harrison is fifth in steals per game (1.7) in the NEC.
AGAINST THE BUCKEYE STATE
• Saint Francis is 77-69 against teams from Ohio.
• Franciscan is the only team from the Buckeye State to visit Saint Francis since Youngstown State on November 26, 2011.
• With head coach Luke McConnell on staff, the Red Flash has traveled to Cincinnati (2014), Dayton (2013, 2024), Kent State (2015), Ohio State (2022), and Ohio University (2021). The Frankies are 7-6 against the Buckeye State with McConnell on staff.
• After the game against Franciscan, Saint Francis will travel to Xavier on Monday, marking the first time the Red Flash will play back-to-back teams from the Buckeye State since the 2009-10 season after hosting Youngstown State and traveling to Akron on December 16 and 20, 2009.
• The trip to Ohio will also be the first time the squad returns to the Buckeye State since playing Alabama State in the NCAA First Four.Â
• Franciscan (41 games) and Youngstown State (39 games) are the two most common opponents Saint Francis plays from Ohio.
ON THIS DATE
• Saint Francis is 7-7 on this date including 4-4 at home.
• The last time the Red Flash played at home on this date, the Frankies defeated American 100-89. Keith Braxton paced Saint Francis with 20 points and 12 rebounds, while Andre Wofford (19 points), Jamaal King (17 points), Deivydas Kuzavas (16 points), Randall Gaskins, Jr. (15 points) and Mark Flagg (11 points) also found double figures.
FUN FACTS...
• The last Saint Francis played on this date, the Red Flash defeated Lehigh 62-61 in 2023 for former head coach Rob Krimmel's 150th career win.
• Dave Magarity won his first game as head coach of his alma on this date in 1978 with a 61-52 win against Saint Michael's (Vt.)Â
