Game #26 - PAC Quarterfinal
Franciscan (20-5 | 12-4 PAC) vs. Allegheny (10-15 | 8-8 PAC) 
Tuesday, Feb. 24th | 8:00 p.m. 
David V. Wise Center | Meadville, PA  

Live Stats | Watch | 2025-26 Roster | 2025-26 Statistics

The Latest
- The Barons closed out their regular season with a hard-fought 91-88 win over PAC South rival Bethany
- They achieved the first 20-win season in the program's Division III era 
- Zach Oliver led the way with 24 points and 10 rebounds
- Sawyer Butler also had a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds
- Due to a three-way tie with Washington & Jefferson and Chatham, the Barons ended as the #3 seed in the PAC South
- They will face PAC North #2 seed Allegheny on the road on Tuesday night

The Bracket

Scouting the Gators
- Allegheny comes into this matchup 10-15, with an 8-8 PAC record
- They are 6-6 when playing at home
- The Gators are only the 10th-highest scoring team in the conference at 67.7 points per game
- Senior guard Ryan Lang is 10th in the PAC in scoring at 14.7 points per game and seventh in rebounding at 6.9 per game
- Freshman forward Pijus Latauskas also averages 13.9 points per game and 5.1 rebounds per game
- Senior forward James Sitter is fourth in the PAC in three-pointers per game 

Matchup History
- The Barons are 3-4 all-time against the Gators
- They have won two of the last three matchups
- Earlier this season, the Barons won 81-66 in Meadville
- Aiden Townsend dazzled in the win with 25 points, shooting 5-5 from three-point range

Playoff Barons
- The Barons are 2-3 all-time in the PAC playoffs
- Since becoming a Division III program, they are 2-6 overall in postseason games, including the AMCC and ECAC tournaments
- By clinching a playoff berth this season, they have made back-to-back postseason appearances for the second time 
- The #3 seed is the Barons highest playoff ranking so far

A Historic Season
- The Barons set a Division III program record for wins with 20, breaking last season's record of 15
- For the first time since joining the PAC, they led the conference in overall wins and point differential
- They ended the regular season in a four-way tie for the most conference wins, which is also the first time they have led the conference
- They are 11-1 when playing at home, which is the best in the PAC
- Sawyer Butler is the first Franciscan player since Sean Hickey in 2020-21 to lead the PAC in scoring
- With his 8.0 rebounds per game, Zach Oliver is the first Franciscan player to lead the PAC in rebounding in the regular season

Big Time Butler
- Sawyer Butler has scored 20+ points in 32 games so far in his collegiate career. He has scored 30+ points seven times.
- He has scored 550 points this season, which is the most by a Baron in a season all-time
- He sits 7th with 1,397 points on the all-time scoring ranks that go back to 1947. He trails John Hummel '66 with 1,418 for 6th.
- Butler broke the program record for most free throws made by a Baron. He sits at 414 makes while shooting 84.1% for his career.
- He is fourth all-time in field goals with 425. Matt Trent '20 is third with 427.
- His 22.0 points per game would be the highest ever single-season average by a Baron
- He leads the PAC in scoring
- With 133 made three-pointers, he has tied Keoni Sablan '18 for second all-time

WesBanco Money
- The Barons lead the PAC in three-point field goal percentage this season at 36.8%.
- This is the second time since joining the PAC that the Barons have led the conference in three-point percentage
- On their current five-game winning streak, they are shooting 41.8% from beyond the arc. 
- They are third in three-pointers per game at 9.1
- They have hit more than 10 threes in a game 13 times this season

Defense Wins Championships
- The Barons allow 70.7 ppg, which is the second-fewest among the 12 PAC schools. Grove City allows 68.1 ppg
- They hold opponents to 28.5% shooting from beyond the arc, which is a PAC best mark.
- Their turnover margin of +4.08 is second-best in the PAC.
- The Barons are also second in steals per game (9.04) and third in blocked shots per game (4.24).
- They have the highest point differential in the conference at +11.0

Freshman Duo
- Freshman guards Anthony Covetta and Zachary Pollaro have played significant roles in their first collegiate season.
- Covetta is third on the team in scoring at 9.4 points per game, and Pollaro is fourth at 8.8 points per game
- Covetta leads the Barons with 49 made three-point field goals. Pollaro holds the better percentage from deep at 39.2%
- The Barons are 11-1 when Covetta scores in double-figures this season. 
- Pollaro recently won PAC Newcomer of the Week

Stay Connected 
Be sure to follow Franciscan University on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook for the most in-depth coverage of Franciscan Athletics.