Franciscan 62, Allegheny 74

Franciscan Starters
Josh Zimmerman, Sawyer Butler, Karl Yonkeu, Joseph Ciola, Alan Wood 

How It Happened 
    In the earlier matchup this season, the Barons were at home and their defense smothered the Gators. That defense led to easy point opportunities on the offensive end. In that game, the Barons converted those chances and handed the Gators a decided victory. Saturday in Meadeville was a similar story, except for one crucial detail. The easy opportunities weren't converted. The defense played incredibly, but they were always on their heels having to makeup or overcome a poor offensive possession. Offense and defense are not separate possessions, but a continuation of each other. A good defensive possession leads to an easier offensive possession and vice versa. The lack of good offensive possessions stressed the Baron defense all game. Out of the gate, everything seemed fine. The Barons had a six point lead and it looked as if they were going to have another grinding defensive matchup. A couple players in foul trouble was the crack in the armor. The Gators found some success and their shooters ran with that confidence. Once Zimmerman and Yonkeu came back in the game, the Gator confidence was unwavering and the Barons just couldn't seem to get control of the game again.    

Inside the Numbers 
-Midway through the second half the Barons were 0-13 from 3pt
-Butler led all scorers with 22 and added 3 more steals
-Zimmerman was blanked from the field, but scored all 10 of his points from the FT line
-The Barons had one of their better games possessing the ball with only 10 turnovers

Up Next 
Franciscan will return home to take on Waynesburg on Wednesday night. The game has been bumped back thirty minutes from its' originally scheduled time to an 8:00 p.m. tip. These two teams played each other in January, as the Yellow Jackets would come out on top by a score of 76-61. Franciscan held a seven-point lead at the half, but a massive second half led by Antone Baker's 25 points gave the Yellow Jackets the win. 

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