Hilbert 101 , Franciscan 94  

Franciscan Starters 
Justin Mack, Tristan McDannell, Sean Hickey, Nicholas Allienello, Josh Zimmerman 

Hilbert Starters 
Demery, Gashi, Jackson, Powell, Pollard

How It Happened 

    The Barons had an atypical slow start to their game. Traditionally the Barons get out and push the tempo with lots of quick baskets, turnovers, constant pressing. However, the Hilbert Hawks were able to get past the initial pressure easily and walk into the half court to run their game plan. The Hawks were able to play inside-out basketball. Their back court was able to find their big post players. The size of the post players and the speed of the forwards and guards, were a difficult combination for the Barons today. The Hawks would kick the ball out then drive past a scrambling Baron defense, leading to post dump-offs, layups, and drawing fouls. The Barons went to their bench looking for some energy and a spark. Robert Case and Colton Hage were that spark needed. A steal from each of them, and a midrange pull-up jumper from Hage gave the Barons a small run and the lead. For the next seven minutes teams traded baskets. In the remaining minutes of the first half, the Hawks went on a small run. Three point shots from Justin Mack, Sean Hickey, Nicholas Allienello, along with a block from Yann Yonkeu gave the Barons enough to keep them in striking distance. At halftime the score was 54-48 Hilbert.
    In the second half the Barons found their stride and looked like the team that could compete with Saint Francis and beat Grove City. Steals from Tristan McDannell, Josh Zimmerman, and Sean Hickey led to quick transition layups. A three-pointer from Justin Mack put the Barons up one, their first lead since the third minute of the first half. A couple more steals from the press and better three point shooting, found the Barons leading by 11 with eight minutes remaining. The size of the Hawks started to become a problem, as the Barons racked up fouls, and sent the Hawks to the free-throw line. This coupled with poor free-throw shooting from the Barons, saw their lead slowly dwindle over the next seven minutes. With 1:30 remaining in the game the Hawks grabbed a defensive rebound and pushed the ball for a quick transition layup. This gave them the lead back. The Barons followed this play up with 2 turnovers and 2 fouls, which led to a Hawks 6 point lead. The Barons tried to save clock by fouling, but the Hilbert free-throw shooters finished the game on-point. Justin Mack led the Barons in the remaining minutes, and gave a valiant effort to force turnovers and get good looks, but they were unable to convert any attempts in the final seconds. 

Inside the Numbers 
-The Barons shot 56.5% from the free throw line
-Justin Mack had a career high 26 points
-The Barons shot 46% from the field, including 9-25 from 3pt
-Nicholas Allienello added 6 rebounds today, bringing him to a team-leading 7.6 RPG

Up Next 
The Barons will head on the road for their first true away game of the season on Tuesday at Penn State New Kensington. The Barons are 1-1 all-time against them, but they have not played each other since 2018. They will be the third and last  Penn State branch campus that Franciscan is scheduled to play this season. 

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