Franciscan 69, Bethany 57

Franciscan Starters
Josh Zimmerman, Travis Lien, Malachi Rose-Burton, Aidan Hickey, Nicholas Allienello

Bethany Starters 
Dailey, Wells, Hixson, Hiles, Wright

How It Happened 
    The Barons came into last night's contest 0-6 in conference play needing a win to begin climbing from the bottom of the standings. The Bison's two man show of Dailey and Wells were no match for the Baron defense. They allowed a season low 57 points by holding the Bison to 39% shooting and +17 on the boards. The Baron offense looked sharp early, but a few missed easy ones coupled with the Bison hitting tough shots kep the game close. The Barons were down 16-17 with 10 minutes remaining in the first half. Josh Zimmerman took an outlet pass and beat multiple Bison down the floor. As the Bison collapsed on his pressure, Zimmerman pivoted and found Travis Lien on the perimeter. Lien knocked down the 3pt shot to put the Barons up 2. This was the beginning of a Lien-Bethany 7-0 run. That run set the tone for the rest of the game. The Barons held that lead for the remainder of the game. 
    Coming out of the half break the Barons were leading by 15 with a score of 44-29. The defense stayed consistent for the second half allowing 1 point less than they did the first half. Josh Zimmerman grabbed 7 steals on the game to tie his own program single game record. Travis Lien had a career high 13 rebounds 10 of them on the defensive end. Even though the defense stayed tough, the offense struggled to produce. The movement and quality of looks went down, the Barons racked up 9 second half turnovers, and shot the ball and abysmal 27%. The great news is a good defense can put you in positions to win any games, and the Barons had that defensive consistency deep into their bench with 9 players seeing double digit minutes. There's an energy on the court that hasn't been felt all season. As scorer's like Bellissimo, Derrow, and Silveira get more comfortable finding their shots in the new offense the sky becomes the limit. This Baron team has the physical attributes to handle any PAC opponent. With two crucial games coming up this week, it will be important to if the focus and energy stay at a high level.

Inside the Numbers 
-Travis Lien recorded his third double-double of the season with a game-high 28 points and 14 rebounds
-Josh Zimmerman's 7 steals brings him to 36 on the year
-Yann Yonkeu had a hyper-efficient night with 15 mins of play going 3-4 from the field, 6 rebounds, and 6 points
-Three Barons were in double-digit scoring; Travis Lien, Aidan Hickey, and Josh Zimmerman
-The Barons had 20 fast break points and 42 points in the paint

Up Next 
    Franciscan will continue their three-game week on Thursday at home when Waynesburg comes to Steubenville. These two teams split in their two matchups last season with the home team winning each. This season they are both currently in the bottom half of the conference. The winner of this game hopes to jump up into the playoff picture. 

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