Franciscan 47, Saint Francis 104

Franciscan Starters
Sawyer Butler, Frank Bellissimo, Travis Zimmerman, Thomas Kristian, Nicholas Allienello 

How It Happened 
    For the 40th year since the inception of the Franciscan University Men's Basketball team the Barons faced the St. Francis Red Flash. St. Francis is Franciscan's sister school. Both schools were founded by the same order of friars. Last night's contest was an exhibition game for Franciscan, so the result and stats won't count against their record our season stats. 
    The Barons held their own on defense for the first 15 minutes before giving way to a large Red Flash run just before half. The Barons got into a quick six point hole right out of the gate, but for just over ten minutes kept pace with the Red Flash and only allowing them to extend their lead by six more points. The physical disparity between the Barons and the Division I scholarship athletes made getting open or even getting shots off difficult on the offensive end. 
    For the second half, both teams experimented with their lineups and personnel. Each team kept pace with the first half. The Barons put up 22 points and allowed another 54 from St. Francis. This game is a great experience for the Barons. The challenge of going up against their Division I sister school is growth opportunity. If you can score or run your offense against them, then you can do it successfully against any Division III opponent. 

Inside the Numbers 
-No Barons scored in the double-digits
-Franciscan had 13 offensive rebounds compared to St. Francis' 8
-Frank Bellissimo led the Barons in shot attempts going 3-11 from 3pt

Up Next 
Franciscan returns home to take on Penn State Shenango on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. It will be game #2 of the MBC Blue Collar Classic presented by 165 Ventures. Game #1 will be a high school tilt between Steubenville Catholic Central and Madonna with a tip time of 3:00 p.m. Twenty minutes after the conclusion of the Franciscan game, Steubenville Big Red will take on Weir High. Last season, it took triple overtime for the Barons to beat the Lions from Penn State Shenango. Frank Bellissimo had a career had with 28 points and six made three-point field goals, and Josh Zimmerman added 20 points and 12 rebounds. Franciscan won 106-103.

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