ERIE, Pa. – A crucial two and half minute stretch made the difference in the Baron's 72-54 loss to conference leader Penn St. - Behrend. FUS was down by only five with 150 seconds left in the first half but a 10-0 Lion run to close the half put Franciscan in a fifteen point hole that they never recovered from.

"That was the most crucial part in the game. We talked about it. We're still learning how to win," head coach John Lamanna said. "That's an area we still need to improve on."

Outside of those final minutes heading into the locker room, the Barons stuck with the 10-2 Lions including a 32-29 second half deficit. While Lamanna said he was happy with how hard his team played, he stressed that consistency, particularly at the end of halves needs to improve.

"Basketball is a game of spurts and if you have that spurt going into halftime you have the momentum," Lamanna said. "Now, coming out of halftime you can have another spurt and change the dynamic of the game."

The young Barons weren't able to make those spurts go their way, something Lamanna attributed to his team's inexperience. Also working against Franciscan was a second half injury to starting forward Joe Rhine, an inside presence who ranks ninth in the nation in blocked shots.

Helping to keep the Barons in the game was a solid shooting performance from sophomore guard Timmy Schenk whose 14 points off of 4-7 shooting from behind the arch led FUS in scoring.

The rest of the scoring was even throughout the roster with six Baron players scoring more than five points. The game marks the second consecutive game where the FUS offense showcased an even balance.

"It shows that we're starting to execute better and we don't have to rely on just one person," Lamanna said. "But it comes down to what we're doing defensively."

Franciscan will have to tighten up that defense in their next game as travel to Pitt - Bradford, the third highest scoring team in the conference, on Sunday, January 12 at 1 pm.

The season's trends do point to a good day for Franciscan whose two wins have come on Sunday.