Franciscan 100, Penn St. New Kensington 82

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

Penn St. New Kensington Starters 
Feaster, Means, Cunningham, Dusabe, Barney

How It Happened 
    The Barons pressure and fast-paced play was off to a slow start. The Lions were able to dribble-drive penetrate and get rebounds from the weak side. The Lions' Cunningham had 4 offensive rebounds and 8pts in the first half. The Barons had their own answers with a handful of three's from; Justin Mack, Nicholas Allienello, Colton Hage, and Aidan Hickey. The real offensive pressure came from Josh Zimmerman. Zimmerman had multiple plays rising to the top of the key, ripping and driving to the basket. Zimmerman was able to rise up above the athletic defenders and find some easy buckets for the Barons. He would finish the first half with 8pts. Colton Hage continues to be a force off the bench for the Barons. He was first off the bench in today's contest. Hage registered 7 minutes of playing time in the first half, but amassed 7pts of 3-5 shooting and a steal. This gave the bump the Barons needed to go into the half leading by 3, 44-41.
    The Barons adjustment at halftime was to get to their roots. Nothing fancy needs to change. Get back to what is simple, high pressure and fast tempo. The teams went back and forth for a few minutes, while the Lions tried to keep up with the Barons. Colton Hage came off the bench once again and gave the Barons the jump they needed. Hage was fouled on a midrange jump shot and hit 1-2 free throws. The next two plays, Hage completed to layups in fast break. At the end of the Colton Hage 5-0 run, the Barons were leading by eight. Josh Zimmerman went back to work driving the lane. In just a handful of minutes, Zimmerman scored 6 points, had a rebound, and a steal. This effort helped spring the Barons out of reach of the Lions. With five minutes left the Barons were leading by 22pts there largest lead of the night. 

Inside the Numbers 
-Justin Mack had 22pts bringing his season average to 20.8ppg
-The Barons shot 54.5% from 3pt on the evening, including 70% in the second half
-Josh Zimmerman was just shy of a double-double with 17pts and 9 rebs.
-The Barons are currently 7th in the nation in turnover margin
-The Barons are currently 11th in the nation in scoring

Up Next
The Barons were supposed to return home to take on La Roche on Saturday after Thanksgiving, but that game has been postponed. Franciscan will resume play at home on December 1st against PAC rival Bethany. The Barons have beat the Bison in both of their two previous matchups while in the PAC. Last season, Franciscan defeated the Bison 100-88 in the regular season opener, and then beat them in the PAC playoffs in a close one at 104-98. Sean Hickey led Franciscan in both games, as he is averaging 29.5 ppg over his career against the Bison. 

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