BRYANT LOOKS TO ERASE LOSS, GET BACK TO EVEN IN NEC AGAINST RED FLASH SATURDAY (3 P.M.)

Game Notes Home

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- The Bryant University men's basketball team looks to move back to .500 in league play and tie the program's Division I record for wins over Northeast Conference opponents with a victory over Saint Francis (PA) on the road Saturday in Loretto, Pa. (3:00 p.m.).

THE SERIES
Saturday's tilt will mark just the third meeting all-time between the two programs, with each team recording a victory. Bryant took the first ever head-to-head matchup, 65-60, on Jan. 31, 2009 in Loretto, Pa., while Saint Francis (PA) came to Smithfield, R.I. last season and edged the Bulldogs, 60-34, on Feb. 11, 2010 to level the series at 1-1.

SCOUTING THE RED FLASH
Saint Francis (PA) enters Saturday's the game tied with Bryant and St. Francis (NY) for seventh in the NEC standings with a 5-6 mark in league play and a 7-15 overall record. The Red Flash are coming off an 86-79 loss to Central Connecticut at home Thursday night, and the team has lost its last two outings after putting together a season-best five-game winning streak. Sophomore guard Umar Shannon paces the Red Flash with 15.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per outing this season. Sophomore forward Will Felder is the only other Red Flash member averaging double-digit outings, as the Cleveland native is putting up 11.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per night and leads the team with an impressive 29 blocks so far this year. Chris Johnson's 88 assists are a team best, as are his 35 steals. The Red Flash are 6-2 at home this season and 4-1 in conference action at DeGol Arena, suffering their first in-league home loss Thursday night.

BRYANT vs. THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE
The Bulldogs enter Saturday's contest looking for its sixth NEC victory of the season, a win that would even Bryant's league mark and would tie the Black and Gold with the 2008-09 team for most wins against NEC opponents in a season. Since joining the Division I ranks, Bryant has gone 12-31 against current Northeast Conference members, with six of those wins coming in the program's inaugural DI season in 2008-09. All-time against current NEC members, the Bulldog basketball program is 40-85, having most frequently faced off against former Northeast-10 Conference (DII) member Quinnipiac (17-39).

COMMON DENOMINATOR
Outside Northeast Conference competition, Bryant and Saint Francis (PA) have faced off against just one common opponent, Lehigh University. The Bulldogs dropped a Nov. 28 game to the Lehigh, 68-88, despite 16 points and nine rebounds from freshman Alex Francis. The Red Flash also fell to the Hawks, by a margin of 79-61 on Dec. 13. Both squads have five conference wins, but neither team has defeated Wagner. 

COUNTRY ROADS... TAKE ME HOME
Bryant is now 2-9 on the road this season after dropping a 91-38 decision to Robert Morris Thursday night in Moon Township, Pa. The Bulldogs have posted a 2-3 road record in conference play and haven't collected a W away from home since January 15 during the team's season-best four-game winning streak. But despite the .182 winning percentage on the road, the Bulldogs are 4-6 at home this season and have won four of their last seven contests at the Chace Athletic Center.

BLACK AND GOLD, BLACK AND BLUE?
Despite winning five of their last eight outings, the Bulldogs suffered their worst loss of the season against Robert Morris, 91-38, Thursday night on the road. Bryant shot a season-low 22.7 percent from the floor while making only 48.3 percent of its free throws and 17.4 percent of its shots beyond the arc. The Bulldogs also posted one of their worst performances of the year on defense, allowing the Colonials to shoot 66.7 percent from 3-point land and 57.1 percent from the floor. Only Cecil Gresham managed to hit double digits in the scoring column (13), and Bryant had 14 turnovers compared to the Colonial's 10. The loss marked the first time all season the Bulldogs scored less than 40 points in a game and was the first time only one player recorded double-figure points in a contest.

NOT ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA
After Thursday night's loss to Robert Morris, the Bulldogs moved to 1-4 all-time against teams in the Northeast Conference from Pennsylvania. The Black and Gold are currently 1-1 against Saint Francis (PA) and are 0-3 against the Colonials. Bryant will look to change the tide on this trend Saturday afternoon at DeGol Arena, where the Bulldogs defeated the Red Flash, 65-60, on Jan. 31, 2009 for their only win against the two programs.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs get ready for NEC Rivalry Week and will have less rest than usual because of it, traveling to New Britain, Conn. Wednesday night for a 7 p.m. matchup against second-place Central Connecticut. The Blue Devils will make the return trip to Rhode Island Saturday afternoon to start the Bulldogs' final homestand of the 2010-11 season.