Men's hoops trails by single digits deep into second at NE-10 power Franklin Pierce
RINDGE, N.H. - The Saint Michael's College men's basketball team trailed Franklin Pierce University by single digits deep into the second half on Saturday before falling, 64-54, during a Northeast-10 Conference meeting in the FPU Fieldhouse. The Purple Knights are now 7-14 overall and 6-11 in the league, while the Ravens improved to 16-5 and 12-5, winning for the sixth time in seven games.
Sophomore Mike Holton Jr. (Portland, Ore./The Winchendon School) netted a game-high 25 points for the visitors, shooting 5-of-9 from three-point range and 4-of-4 on free throws. Freshman Corey Crawford (Dover, Del./The Phelps School) added 12 points, going 5-of-10 from the floor. During the contest, senior Tyler Schilling (Excelsior, Minn./Minnetonka) became just the third Purple Knight in the last 37 years to reach the 850-rebound plateau. The milestone came in Schilling's 100th game, while the last two players to accomplish the feat, Michel Bonebo '90 and Brian Monahan '08, needed 107 and 108 contests, respectively.
Sophomore Ellis Cooper (Northampton, Mass./Northampton) had 15 points and five steals for Franklin Pierce, and junior Eric Jean-Guillaume (Stamford, Conn./Trinity Catholic) notched 13 points. Each shot 5-of-10, including Jean-Guillaume going 3-of-4 from deep.
Each of the Purple Knights' first 12 points came on three-pointers, including two by Holton, as Crawford buried a triple at 14:34 of the opening half to knot the teams at 12. The Ravens twice forged ahead by five, including at 19-14, before a 10-2 run put Saint Michael's ahead by three at 7:42. Holton canned two threes in that stretch, while junior Travis Warech (Pine Brook, N.J./Montville) scored the final four points on free throws.
Schilling countered a Franklin Pierce tie with a go-ahead bucket at 2:05, making it 28-26, but the hosts scored the next 12 points in a run that bridged halftime. Holton converted a three-point play at 15:33 of the second half to draw his team within 40-34, and Schilling's jumper had the Purple Knights down just seven, 49-42, as late as the 10:38 mark, but the visitors came no closer.
The Purple Knights return home on Wednesday to take on perennial region power Bentley University at 7:30 p.m. Saint Michael's will host a Think Pink event during the evening men's and women's doubleheader, with fans encouraged to wear pink to show their support for the fight against cancer. All donations will go toward the American Cancer Society.
