Hunt's season-high 34 points lead Ravens and snap season-long five game slide

RINDGE, N.H. (January 24, 2004) - Franklin Pierce put an end to a season-long five game losing streak with a 92-78 victory over University of Massachusetts Lowell, ranked No. 16 in this week's Division II Bulletin poll, and finish off the season series sweep in Northeast-10 Conference action at the Franklin Pierce Fieldhouse this afternoon.

Senior preseason All-AmericanJimmie Hunt (Utica, N.Y./Mount Ararat (Maine)) posted his fourth double-double of the season (sixth career) to lead Franklin Pierce as he finished with a season-high 34 points (one shy of his career-best) and ten rebounds (five offensive) to go with three assists. Hunt hit 11-of-15 shots from the field, including 6-8 from three-point range, and canned 6-6 at the line.

Hunt paced a Franklin Pierce offense that shot 52.7-percent (29-55) from the field, including 50% (13-26) from three-point range. The Ravens held a nine-point (48-39) lead at the break as they shot 61.5% (16-26) over the opening 20 minutes from the field, including 8-12 (66.7%) from long-distance. 

SeniorDerek Rodgerson (Newburgh, Maine/Hampden Academy) finished with 15 points, six assists and two steals for the Ravens. FreshmanNazim Senaldi (Istanbul, Turkey) came off the bench and matched his season-high with 11 points, aided by a 3-5 effort from three-point range, in 17 minutes. SophomoreJustin Powell (Brookline, Mass./Brookline) added 11 points, four boards and two steals.

Senior All-AmericanElad Inbar (Kiryat Haim, Israel) led UMass Lowell with 27 points and 12 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. He hit 9-17 from the floor, but was limited to 1-4 from three-point range, and canned 8-9 at the line. SophomoreStacey Moragne (Evanston, Ill./Evanston) added 16 points, four boards, four assists and two steals, while juniorJames Whyte (Vancouver, British Columbia/MCI) chipped in 13 points, aided by 3-5 shooting from three-point range, three rebounds and two blocks.

UMass Lowell could not match the shooting effort of Franklin Pierce as it finished shooting 44.6% (25-56) from the field, but just 26.3% (5-19) from three-point distance. The River Hawks shot just 41.9% (13-31) in the second half, including a mere 2-12 (16.7%) from long range.        

UMass Lowell led by a point (20-19) midway through the first half, but Franklin Pierce used a 16-4 run to open an 11-point lead with 6:18 left in the half. Rodgerson, Hunt, Senaldi and freshmanDarryl Minifield (Brookline, Mass./Brookline) all canned three's during the stretch.

The Ravens settled for a nine-point halftime edge, but quickly regained a double-digit lead 3:20 into the second half after a 9-2 run extended a five-point margin to 12 points (57-45). Hunt scored three-straight baskets during that stretch, including a three, and Powell added a lay-up.

UML cut the Franklin Pierce lead down to a point (57-56) by scoring the next 11 points. Whyte netted five points, including a three-pointer, to lead the run.

The Franklin Pierce lead was five points (78-73) with 3:06 to play, but a Rodgerson three sparked a 12-0 run open a 17-point edge (90-73) with just 35-seconds to play. The Ravens canned 9-10 free-throw attempts down the stretch to seal the victory.

Franklin Pierce (8-10, 5-9 NE-10) returns to action on Wednesday night when it rounds out its three-game home stand against Granite State rivals Southern New Hampshire University at 7:30 p.m. UMass Lowell (15-4, 10-4 NE-10) is off until next Saturday when it visits Southern New Hampshire at 3:30 p.m.

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