Men's Basketball Gets Offensive in 105-86 Win at UDC

Ryen Vilmont drops in 22 to lead six Ravens in double-figures

WASHINGTON, D.C. (November 10, 2013) – Six Ravens scored in double-figures including all five starters, and the Franklin Pierce University men’s basketball team won for the second time in as many days on Sunday via a 105-86 shootout over the University of the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C. The Ravens improved to 2-0.

Junior forward Ryen Vilmont (Philadelphia, Pa.) and senior frontcourt-mate Ellis Cooper (Northampton, Mass.) each went for over 20 points, as Vilmont pumped in 22 and Cooper netted 20 on 7-of-10 shooting.

The Ravens shot a solid 52.2 percent from the floor (35-of-67), and a blistering 92 percent from the foul line (22-of-24).

Cooper logged a double-double for the second-consecutive game as he ripped down 10 rebounds. Vilmont had an all-around outstanding game with six points, four assists, two steals and a pair of blocks.

The duo combined to score 12 of Franklin Pierce’s 19 points during a stretch early in the first half to stake the Ravens to a 25-14 lead.

Other Ravens got into the scoring act as the half went on and the lead continued to grow. Freshman guard Donte Gittens (Hartford, Conn.), who just the day before beat the buzzer with a game-winning three-pointer at Mansfield, threw down a dunk and laid in a basket on back-to-back possessions to stake the Ravens to a commanding 46-24 advantage. Gittens finished the game with 11 points, marking the first double-figure scoring game of his young collegiate career.

Senior guard Curtis Christian (Harlem, N.Y.) was not about to be outdone, and pumped in the next seven points for Franklin Pierce to keep the margin above 20. Christian tossed in a career-high tying 17 points in a reserve role, as it was the third time in as many games dating back to last season that he reached double-digits in the scoring column.

Franklin Pierce eventually took a 57-37 lead into halftime, and never let UDC threaten in the second half, leading by as many as 25 at one point.

Senior guard Andre Blackwood (Paterson, N.J.) was hot shooting from behind the arc, as he knocked down three of his four attempts, and added 15 points to the attack.

Freshman forward Ben Mead (Ipswich, Suffolk, England) got his first collegiate start in place of an injured Adrianos Vourliotakis Perdikaris (Cholargos, Athens), and provided steady play with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting. Ten (10) Ravens in all scored at least one point.

Franklin Pierce held a 42-39 rebounding edge, and limited UDC to just slightly over 40 percent shooting from the field. Quasim Jones pumped in a game-high 28 points for UDC, while Lenjo Kilo followed with 18.

Franklin Pierce returns to action Wednesday night when the Ravens play host to Lesley at 7 p.m. in The Fieldhouse in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce men’s basketball, please visit the team’s page at http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu. To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce men’s basketball apparel can do so on the athletic department’s online store at http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store(.)