Saint Francis U outlasts Bulldogs, 84-75

LORETTO, Pa. – Junior Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) scored 21 points and junior SaBastian Townes (Chesapeake, Va.) added 19, but the Bryant University men's basketball team was outlasted in a back-and-forth second half by Saint Francis U, 84-75, Saturday night at DeGol Arena.

Grant passed Frankie Dobbs for third in Bryant's Division I era in career scoring with 1,176 points. The Bulldogs erased a 14-point second-half deficit before A 9-0 Red Flash run gave Saint Francis the lead for good.

GAME INFORMATION
Saint Francis U 84, Bryant 75
Records: Bryant (8-15, 5-7 NEC), Saint Francis U (12-11, 8-4 NEC)
Location: DeGol Arena (Loretto, Pa.)

KEY MOMENTS

• Bryant used runs of 7-0 and 8-0 to erase a 14-point deficit midway through the second half, tying the game at 51 before taking the lead with under eight minutes to go.
• The Bulldogs led 62-58 before the Red Flash responded with a 9-0 run to take the lead the rest of the way.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Saint Francis opened the game on an 8-0 run, prompting a Bryant timeout with 17:52 to go in the half.
• A Hawkins three brought the Bulldogs within 13-12, but a 9-2 Red Flash run put SFU ahead by eight with 8:34 to play in the half.
• Saint Francis took a 39-28 lead into the locker room on 56 percent shooting. Bryant shot 41.9 percent in the opening 20 minutes.
• Seven straight points from the Bulldogs – five from Townes and two from senior Taylor McHugh (Centreville, Va.) – got Bryant back within six at 47-41 with 15:09 to play in the game.
• An 8-0 Bryant run tied the game at 51 on a pair of Grant free throws with 10:59 remaining.
• Bryant took its first lead on a pair of free throws from freshman Joe Kasperzyk (New Haven, Conn.) to go ahead 56-55 with 7:51 remaining.
• Saint Francis scored nine straight points to go ahead 67-62 with 5:14 to go.
• Bryant cut the deficit to four at 74-70 with 1:08 remaining, but Saint Francis made 10 free throws in the final 65 seconds the close out the victory.

STATS

• Grant scored 21 points on 7-of-15 shooting and 3-of-7 from three.
• Townes added 19 points on 8-of-17 from the field with nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks.
• Junior Juan Cardenas (Medellin, Colombia) matched his career-high with 12 points and added six rebounds.
• McHugh, Kasperzyk and redshirt-senior Byron Hawkins (Fort Washington, Md.) chipped in seven points each.
• Freshman Patrick Harding (Fairfield, Conn.) grabbed six rebounds off the bench.
• Bryant shot 44.8 percent from the field, while Saint Francis was at 48.1 percent.
• The Red Flash outrebounded the Bulldogs, 34-32.

GAME NOTES

• Grant surpassed Frankie Dobbs, who scored 1,172 points in three years at Bryant (2010-13), for third on the Division I scoring list. The junior guard trails only Alex Francis (2,085) and Dyami Starks (1,691) on Bryant's D1 list.
• The 21-point performance by Grant was his sixth this season of 20 or more and 20th of his career.
• Townes passed Hunter Ware (2014-18) for 11th in Bryant's Division I era in scoring. The junior forward has scored 780 points in Black & Gold with 339 of them coming this season.
• Cardenas collected his 36th block of the year, matching Dan Garvin in 2013-14 for the fourth-most in a single season in the Bulldogs' D1 history.
• Bryant drops to 9-11 all-time against Saint Francis U.
  

UP NEXT
Bryant returns home to host Sacred Heart Thursday at the Chace Athletic Center. Tickets for the 7 p.m. tip in Smithfield are available by clicking HERE.

Tickets for home games at the Chace Athletic Center are available by clicking HERE or calling (401) 319-TIXX.

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