Ravens Ousted in NE10 Quarterfinals 93-80

ALBANY (February 26, 2017) – The no. 3 seeded Franklin Pierce University men's basketball teams 2016-17 season concluded on Sunday afternoon with a 93-80 setback to the no. 2 seeded College of Saint Rose Golden Knights in the 2017 Northeast-10 Conference Men's Basketball Championship Quarterfinals at the Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium.

The loss ends the Crimson and Grey's season at 15-13 and the victory moves Saint Rose to 24-6 and to the NE10 Semifinals on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. against Southern New Hampshire University.

Junior forward Mike McDevitt (Cumberland, Maine) led all FPU players with 19 points on 6-of-11 (54.5%) shooting and a 7-of-9 (77.8%) performance from the free throw line. McDevitt grabbed four rebounds, blocked two shots and handed out one assist as well. Teammate Matt Banton (Brooklyn, N.Y.) joined McDevitt in double figures with 18 points on 6-of-11 (54.5%) shooting while coming down with four boards. Jordan Lackey (South Plainfield, N.J.) added 13 points, Donte Gittens (Harford, Conn.) compiled seven points, five rebounds, four assists, two blocks and Marvilio Berroa (Bronx, N.Y.) came off the bench and produced nine points, six boards and one theft.

Leading the charge for the Golden Knights was Julian Lipinski who tallied a game-high 24 points to go along with five caroms, two assists and two steals. Mical-Ryan Boyd chipped in 20 markers and Chris Dorgler racked up 17 points, four rebounds, four helpers and two steals.

The duel saw both teams shoot a high percentage from the hardwood as the Golden Knights knocked down 58.2% (32-of-55) of their shot attempts and the Ravens converted 54.0% (27-of-50) of their own. The Ravens won the rebounding battle by a 32-21 margin, but turned the rock over 17 times compared to the guests four as Saint Rose scored 29 points off the 17 FPU miscues.

The Ravens led by a game-high five points at the 17:51 mark as Banton started off the game 13 seconds in with a three-pointer to spark a 9-4 opening run that was capped off by a Gittens lay-in. Six straight for the guests put them up briefly as the Ravens slowly chipped away at the one possession Golden Knight lead.

Following a Dorgler jumper, FPU stormed back out to a five point cushion using an 8-0 scoring run as Lackey threw in a layup, Oladoyin Fadojutimi (Temple Hills, Md.) rained in a jumper and a fast break score that was caused by a huge Gittens stuff and a McDevitt underneath lay-in that pushed Pierce out in front 28-23.

Saint Rose responded to the Raven run as they strung together six in a row which regained the lead to their side. With 1:12 to go, Jack Jones manufactured a jumper to move the Golden Knights ahead 44-38, but Gittens and Banton combined for three points to close the half off a tip-in and one free throw to make the score 44-41 at the intermission.

Both team's shot 60.0% from the floor in the opening stanza while the Ravens dished out 11 assists on 15 field goal conversions.

Over the opening three minutes of the second half, the Golden Knights surged ahead using a 26-5 run that turned a three point halftime lead to a 24 point, 75-51 advantage with 8:28 to play. Franklin Pierce eventually cut the deficit to 12, 85-73 at the 2:29 mark after Banton converted a fast break layup, Berroa notched two freebies, and Lackey buried a three-ball. The hosts would hold the Ravens to just two field goals over the final minutes to hang on for the double digit win.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce men's basketball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).