| Saint Francis Probable Starters |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| G |
0 |
Chris Moncrief |
6-6 |
190 |
Sr. |
9.1 |
2.6 |
48.4 |
Season-high 22 points at Mercyhurst/span> |
| G |
F |
Skylar Wicks |
6-6 |
190 |
R-Sr. |
17.8 |
7.2 |
40.2 |
Scored season-high 27 points at Le Moyne |
| G |
15 |
Victor Payne |
6-4 |
190 |
So. |
7.0 |
3.5 |
45.2 |
Tied season-high with 15 points at Le Moyne |
| F |
21 |
Gestin Liberis |
6-9 |
225 |
R-Jr. |
5.9 |
4.6 |
54.1 |
Scored career-high 17 points at Chicago State |
| G |
55 |
Ahmad Harrison |
6-1 |
190 |
Sr. |
9.3 |
2.1 |
39.2 |
Tallied season-high 18 points at Chicago State |
| Top Players Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| G |
1 |
KJ Swain, Jr. |
6-1 |
165 |
R-Sr. |
1.9 |
0.8 |
27.6 |
Saw action for first time in 12 games at Chicago State |
| G |
2 |
Zion Russell |
6-2 |
185 |
R-Sr. |
12.7 |
4.1 |
42.1 |
Matched career-high with 23 points at Chicago State |
| G |
3 |
Brandon Russell |
6-5 |
185 |
Fr. |
2.5 |
1.3 |
24.4 |
Dished out three assists twice in NEC play |
| G/F |
4 |
Ralph Martino, Jr. |
6-6 |
180 |
So. |
6.7 |
2.4 |
55.4 |
Has not played in last five games |
| G |
7 |
Paris Papadatos |
6-4 |
185 |
Fr. |
4.7 |
1.1 |
38.6 |
Buzzer beater vs FDU was No. 9 on #SCTop10 |
| F |
20 |
Cam Tweedy |
6-6 |
240 |
R-Sr. |
4.0 |
2.7 |
46.4 |
First career double-double with 11 points, 11 rebounds at Chicago State |
SELECT GAME NOTES VS. FDU (FULL GAME NOTES PDF)
FRANKIES TIDBITS IN A FLASH
• Thursday's game between Saint Francis and FDU marks the 108th meeting in the all-time series dating back to the 1954-55 season (Maurice Stokes final season in a Red Flash uniform).
• Thanks to freshman
Paris Papadatos' buzzer-beater for an 85-82 win in Loretto on January 4, the Red Flash grabbed a 54-53 edge in the all-time series.
• Eighteen times, a team has swept the two games in the regular season, including the last two years. The Knights took both games in 2023-24 before the Red Flash won both tilts last season, and has a chance to make it three in a row. The Frankies have swept a season series with FDU six times, with five of times coming in the last 15 years.
• FDU is the only team Saint Francis has played over 100 times. Robert Morris (94), St. Francis Brooklyn (91), LIU (91), and Mount St. Mary's (90) are the only teams the Red Flash has played 90 or more times .
• While FDU is the most played rival, it is not the oldest rivalry with the teams the Red Flash are currently playing. That distinction goes to Mount St. Mary's, which began in 1921-22, which was 12 years before Stokes was born and 42 years before Stokes and the Frankies would play FDU for the first time.
• Saint Francis has scored at least 75 points in its last three games and has lost despite averaging 82.7 points per game. The last time the Red Flash came up on the wrong end of three straight games and scored more than 70 points in three-consecutive games was during the 1984-85 season, when the team scored 79, 77, and 72 during a four-game losing streak. During the 1964-65 and 1972-73 seasons, the Frankies lost four straight games despite scoring at least 78 points per game, and in the 1963-64 season, the team went four consecutive games without a win and scored at least 70 points.
• It is the first time the Red Flash has scored 75+ in three-straight games against three NCAA Division I opponents since the final three games of the 2024-25 regular season, but those were three wins that helped catapult the team into its postseason run. The squad finished last year's regular season, scoring 74 points in six of the final seven.
• Saint Francis has recorded a four-game losing streak or more in NEC play for the 27th time in team history, and the first since it won the last five games of the 2022-23 season.
• The Red Flash does have some history at FDU when it comes to four-game losing streaks ending. Brad McCabe had a breakout game and scored a career-high 21 points in a 78-65 win in Hackensack to halt a four-game losing streak on February 10, 2022.
• Saint Francis head coach
Luke McConnell's father, Tom, also had a four-game NEC losing streak in his first season. After that losing streak, the Red Flash won six of its last 11 games in 1993-94.
• Being three games under .500 in the NEC might be right where Saint Francis wants to be if it can come up with some of that 2024-25 magic. The Red Flash was 3-6 and 5-8 last year, but won five of its last seven and its final three regular-season games on its way to a six-game winning streak and winning the NEC Tournament title for the first time since 1991.
• When Saint Francis returns to Loretto on February 14, it will be the celebration of the 35th Anniversary of the 1991 NEC Championship team and the jersey retirement of Joe Anderson and Mike Iuzzolino, two of the players who led the Red Flash in that title run. The celebration will be one day after the 35th Anniversary of Iuzzolino scoring 41 points against Robert Morris.
AN SFU WIN WOULD
• Be the fourth-straight win against FDU
• End the road trip with a victory
• End a four-game losing streak
• Improve to 2-1 in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area
• Be the first win in the month of February
• Be the first road win on this date since a 72-56 win at Robert Morris at the Sewall Center in 1994
• Head home to celebrate the legacy if the 1991 NEC title with a win
• Be the 1,194th win in NCAA team history
ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
• FDU comes into the contest 9-16 overall and 6-6 in NEC play after defeating Mercyhurst 55-52 on Saturday.
• Taeshaud Jackson paced the Knights with 16 points and 10 rebounds. against the Lakers Cyril Martynov also had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
• Eric Parnell leads the team in scoring with 12.1 points per game. Joey Niesman is second with 11.9 points per game, while Jackson fuels the team in rebounding (8.5 rpg) and is third in scoring (10.3 ppg)
LAST TIME WE MET
• Paris Papadatos hit a 3-pointer as time expired to hand Saint Francis a dramatic 85-82 win against FDU on January 4. Papadatos' shot was the No. 9 play on SportsCenter Top-10.
• Skylar Wicks paced the Red Flash with 24 points, while Chris Moncrief (14 points) and Ahmad Harrison (12 points) also had double figures.
• Joey Neisman powered the Knights with 23 points. Taeshaud Jackson (16 points), Raysean Johnson (11 points), and Eric Parnell (10 points) also reached double figures for FDU.
• It was the first dramatic win in the waning seconds of a game since February 6, 2020, at Sacred Heart, but not the last after Harrison hit the game-winner 13 days later against Stonehill at the buzzer in a 63-61 win. Harrison had the assist on Papadatos' decider.
LAST TIME OUT
• There is a lot of resiliency in this Saint Francis men's basketball team, and that was on display on Monday afternoon. A 28-9 run gave the Red Flash a chance to tie the game with 10 seconds left before falling 80-75 to Chicago State.
• Zion Russell fueled the Red Flash, tying his career-high 23 points. Gestin Liberis added a career-best 17 points, while Cam Tweedy registered his first double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
• Ahmad Harrison chipped in a season-high 18 points.
TRENDING UP
• Redshirt senior Cam Tweedy returns to the Bogata Saving Bank Arena for the first time in an opposing jersey after spending the previous three years in Hackensack as a member of the Knights men's basketball team. Tweedy is coming off one of the best games of his career and his first double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds against Chicago State on February 9. It was the second time he reached double figures this season after a career-high 14 points at TCU on November 6. He has eight 10+ point games in his career, but is looking for his first back-to-back performance in double figures.
• Tweedy was a member of the 2023 NCAA Tournament team that upset Purdue. He had 10 points and six rebounds against the Boilermakers on March 17, 2023, and had 13 points and nine rebounds against Merrimack in the NEC Championship Game on March 7, 2023, which were both career highs and the closest he was to a double-double before this season. His best game in Hackensack was his first game, with 12 points against Mercy on November 9, 2022.
• Redshirt senior Zion Russell matched his career high with 23 points at Chicago State. He also had that total against Mount St. Mary's in his DeGol Arena debut on November 11. He has registered his second streak of five games in double figures in the last 11 games, and the streak was snapped with a nine-point performance against Stonehill on January 19. After averaging 13.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game in this first five-gamer, he is averaging 16.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game in his current run.
• Senior Gestin Liberis registered a career-high 17 points on Monday on a play that describes his season. He grabbed an offensive rebound and a putback with 32 seconds left to cut the margin to two points. The Red Flash would not have won the game against Stonehill on a buzzer beater on January 17 without Liberis's offensive rebound and kick out to senior Ahmad Harrison, and he stood tall playing defense in the final play at Wagner to preserve the win on January 8. Liberis has scored 10+ points in back-to-back twice, but is looking to turn the trick for the first time since at Merrimack and at Stonehill on February 22 and 24, 2024.
• Harrison registered a season-high 18 points against the Cougars on Monday after he had two games with 17 points this season. The senior has registered 10+ points in consecutive games for the fourth time this season, but is looking to score double figures for the third consecutive game for the first time since reaching the mark in the final 12 games at Notre Dame University of Maryland in 2024-25.
• Redshirt senior Skylar Wicks registered the third-highest point total of his career with his 27 points against Le Moyne on February 7. It was the most points he has scored in a Red Flash uniform and the sixth time in his career that he has scored more than 25 points in his career. The previous five times occurred with Wicks playing at Incarnate Word in 2023-24, including a career-high 29 points against Schreiner on November 14. After scoring over 25 points, Wicks is averaging 14.2 points per game, with a 20-point performance and three games with 15 points. The redshirt senior is averaging 17.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in his last seven tilts, with four games with at least 19 points.
• The Red Flash has had a player score 20 points in three straight games. Senior Chris Moncrief started the run with 22 points against Mercyhurst on February 5, Wicks had 27 points at Le Moyne, and Russell posted 23 points against Chicago State. All three were season highs for each player.
LEAGUE LEADERS
• Redshirt senior Skylar Wicks ranks second in scoring (17.8 ppg), third in defensive rebounds (5.62 rpg), fourth in rebounding (7.2 rpg), fourth in 3-pointers made (2.33 pg), sixth in minutes played (32.95 mpg), and sixth in steals (1.57 spg). The redshirt senior is second in 3-pointers made (2.40 pg) in NEC games.
• Wicks is 72nd in defensive rebounds in NCAA Division I.
• Redshirt senior Zion Russell ranks fifth in steals (1.60 spg), eighth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3), ninth in assists (3.00 apg), and 14th in scoring (12.7 ppg). Russell leads in steals (2.3 spg) in league games.
• Senior Ahmad Harrison is eighth in steals (1.43 spg).
• Saint Francis ranks second in 3-pointers made (8.20 pg), third in steals (7.71 spg), fourth in assists (14.17 apg), fifth in 3-point field goal percentage (34.4), third in turnover margin (+0.33), third in assist to turnover ratio (1.09), and fifth in scoring offense (71.6 ppg). In NEC games, the Red Flash leads the league in scoring (75.3 ppg), 3-point field goal percentage (37.6), steals (7.55 spg), and 3-pointers made (9.10 pg), and is second in assists (14.91 apg).
ON THE ROAD
• Saint Francis will spend 14 of the 28 days in February on the road and will play seven of its final 10 NEC games, starting with a four-game road trip in eight days that began at Mercyhurst.
• The Red Flash is 1-13 away from Loretto, including 1-11 on the road, 0-2 on a neutral site and on the road, and 1-3 in NEC play. Saint Francis picked up its first road win of the season at Wagner on January 8. The squad is averaging 68.0 points per game on the road and allowing 88.2 points per game, compared to scoring 76.7 points per game and allowing 72.2 points per game at home.
• Saint Francis spent 22 of the first 46 days of the season on the road, but has only been on the road for four of the 43 days since returning from Florida on December 18, before this current eight-day stretch.
• Redshirt senior Skylar Wicks powers the team with 19.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game on the road. Wicks has registered double figures in 12 of the 13 road games this season, including seven 20-point performances and a double-double. The redshirt senior had a season-high and the third-highest total of his career at Le Moyne on February 7. He is averaging 22.3 points per game in his last three road games, with all three games over 19 points.
• Redshirt senior Zion Russell is also averaging double figures away from Loretto with 12.2 points per game. Russell has nine double-figure point games, including tying his career high with 23 points at Chicago State on February 9.
• Senior Ahmad Harrison has five 10+ point games away from DeGol Arena, including a season-high 18 points at Chicago State. Sophomore Victor Payne has four 10+ point games on the road, with a career-high 15 points against Troy on November 22 and at Le Moyne.
• Senior Chris Moncrief has two 10+ point games away to the Lo', including a season-high 22 points at Mercyhurst.
• Sophomore Ralph Martino, Jr. has two 10+ point games in his last two road games, including a career-high 15 points at LIU. Redshirt senior Cam Tweedy and redshirt junior Gestin Liberis each registered their second 10+ game of the season at Chicago State with 11 points and 11 rebounds, and 17 points, respectively. The 17 points were a career-high for Liberis.
• Freshman Paris Papadatos has one double-figure point game.
ON THIS DATE
• Saint Francis is 10-9 overall, 1-5 on the road, and 7-5 in NEC play on this date. This will be the first time the Red Flash will be on the road on this date since 2004, while it will be the third time the Frankies will square off with FDU, but the first time in Hackensack. The series is tied at one on this date after the Knights defeated Saint Francis 86-79 in 1987, and the Red Flash earned a 76-75 win in 2005 in Loretto.
• Darshan Luckey registered 27 points to lift Saint Francis past FDU 76-75 in the last meeting on this date in 2005. Jason Osbourne (16 points), Rodney Gibson (11 points), and Rashaan Benton (10 points) also scored double figures. Gordon Klaiber and Damien Trent each had 22 points. The Knights won the NEC Tournament title that season.
FUN FACTS...
• Maurice Stokes scored 26 points in an 85-69 win against Temple on this date in 1955. This was the second meeting in the series against the Owls, who returned to schedule for the first time since 1970-71 in 2025-26. The win in 1955 was the third in a nine-game streak that led the Frankies to the National Invitation Tournament semifinals.
