Men's Basketball Falls on the Road at Saint Francis U

The Central Connecticut men's basketball team dropped to 3-23 overall and 1-12 in Northeast Conference with a 74-63 loss on the road at St. Francis U on Thursday night.  The Blue Devils will continue their Western PA road trip with a 12 p.m. game at Robert Morris on Saturday afternoon.

With the win the Red Flash move to 14-10 overall and 8-5 in league play.

Junior Brandon Peel posted his sixth double-double of the season with 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.  Sophomore Matt Mobley had 18 while senior Faronte Drakeford added 15.  Sophomore Khalen Cumberlander had 15 points and a team-high six assists.

The Red Flash controlled the game from the opening tip, making their first five three-point attempts and taking a quick 23-3 advantage less than eight minutes into the game.  The Blue Devils made just 1-of-9 to start the game and trailed by as many as 25 in the first half.  The Red Flash led 40-17 at the break.

SFU shot just 42 percent from the field in the first half, but made 7-of-14 threes including three each from Malik Harmon and Ollie Jackson.  They assisted on eight of their 14 first half baskets and turned the ball over just twice.

Central, on the other hand, shot only 6-of-22 from the field and 1-of-7 from before halftime.  They made a small run to cut a 23-3 lead to 23-9 but would struggle offensively for most of the half.  Following a Mobley bucket at the 7:50 mark that cut the lead to 28-15, they managed just two points for the rest of the half.  The Red Flash ended the frame on a 12-2 run.

The lead reached as many as 35 in the second half before the Blue Devils made a run and got as close as 11 in the final seconds.

The Blue Devils scored 46 second half points after managing just 17 in the first half.  They were 16-of-30 from the field and 3-of-7 from three in the second half.  They also finished the game 15-of-19 from the free-throw line and after having just one assist in the first half they had nine on 16 baskets in the second.

Peel's 12 points and 13 boards were good for his sixth double-double of the season.  He added a career-high five steals and was 5-of-8 from the field.  The Blue Devils finished the game with a 37-33 edge on the boards.

The Blue Devils are back in action on Saturday at Robert Morris beginning at 12 p.m.