Franciscan 78, Waynesburg 61

Franciscan Starters
Sawyer Butler, Josh Zimmerman, Yann Yonkeu, Derrick Derrow, Nicholas Allienello 

How It Happened 
    The Barons clinched the 6th in the PAC with their win last Saturday and get to finish the regular season with back-to-back home games. The first of that pair was last night against the Waynesburg Yellow Jackets. Waynesburg has already been eliminated from playoff contention, but the Barons are in a tight battle for 5th with Geneva. A win last night was required to stay in position to grab 5th place this Saturday. The boys showed up in a big way grinding the Yellow Jackets down and defeating them by 17 points.
    The path to the dominant win didn't come smoothly. Both coaches are known for a physical defensive-minded style. This matchup is regularly a heated contest and low scoring. Early on, the Barons took care of the ball only committing one turnover in the first half, but the tight and physical Waynesburg defense held the Barons to 25% shooting and a 5 point deficit for the first half. It took every ounce of Butler's shooting ability to keep the Barons in the game for the first half. Traditionally, the entire coaching staff gathers at half to look at stats and discuss strategy change for the half. Last night, no strategy was required. Coach barreled down to the locker room to spend every bit of the halftime break lighting a fire in the boys and get them refocused for the second half. 
   Josh Zimmerman and Butler were already having a decent night. Butler had 15 at the half and Zimmerman had five assists. Fueled by the energy increase from the rest of the team, those two took control of the floor. Butler went on to score a career-high 35 points, and Zimmerman grabbed the second triple-double of his career off 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 14 assists. Those 14 assists also became the program single-game assist record. Having your best players peaking at the end of the year is a great sign for post-season play. That kind of performance, this late in the year, and against one of the toughest defensive teams in the conference is something to be very excited about. 
    With Geneva defeating Grove City last night, everything will come down to this Saturday. The Barons are playing for the 5 seed, and Geneva faces a situation of win and possibly move to 4th or lose and fall to 6th. As the 6th seed, the Barons will go on the road to either St. Vincent, or most than likely, W&J. If they climb back into the 5th seed, they will go on the road to face Grove City for the PAC quarterfinals. Since joining the PAC, the Barons have only defeated Geneva once: the road game earlier this year. A big finish for an already remarkable season. 

Inside the Numbers 
-(a stat not officially recorded or tracked) Thomas Kristian broke the rebounds/possession record grabbing 4 rebounds in 2 possessions.
-Travis Zimmerman 3 offensive rebounds helps him hold in the top 50 in the country in offensive rebounds/game.
-Butler was perfect from the FT line. He is 2nd in the PAC in FT made and 4th in FT%

Up Next 
Franciscan will conclude the regular season with Senior Day in Steubenville on Saturday. They will take on Geneva who is already into the PAC Championship Tournament, like the Barons, but their final seeding is yet to be determined. The Barons beat the Golden Tornadoes 75-66 on January 18th at their place. Sawyer Butler led the way with 21 points, and Aidan Townsend added 16 points off the bench. 

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