#21 Saint Anselm Cruises Past Franklin Pierce, 77-54
Cahill nets 23 of his game-high 32 points after halftime, including 19 in first ten minutes of second half
RINDGE, N.H. (February 13, 2006) - Saint Anselm College, ranked No. 21 in the most recent NABC Division II poll and second in the Northeast Region, led by 14 at the break and never looked back in posting a 77-54 victory over Franklin Pierce in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball action at the Fieldhouse tonight.
Senior swingman Matt Cahill (Bridgewater, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) scored 23 of his game-high 32 points after halftime, netting 19 points in the first ten minutes of the second half, to lead Saint Anselm. He hit 11-of-17 shots from the field (8-10 second half), including 6-11 from three-point range (5-7 second half), for the night and also grabbed a game-high ten rebounds to go with three assists and three blocks.
Senior Jim Moore (Worcester, Mass.) added 18 points (12 second half), aided by a perfect 10-of-10 shooting effort at the free-throw line, six rebounds and four assists. Senior Darlington Okerulu (Jersey City, N.J./Hudson Catholic) registered seven points, eight rebounds and two assists.
Freshman Timothy Munch (Blauvelt, N.Y./Storm King Prep) led Franklin Pierce with 14 points, hitting 4-of-7 from three-point range, three rebounds and a block. Senior Justin Powell (Brookline, Mass./Brookline) added 12 points, four rebounds and three assists. Senior Pierre Sully (Jamaica Plain, Mass./North Cambridge Catholic) and junior Darryl Minnifield (Boston, Mass./Brookline) led the Ravens rebounding effort with nine and seven, respectively.
Saint Anselm hit 44.6-percent (25-of-56) of its shots from the field, including 46.2% (12-26) after halftime. The Hawks rebounded from a 1-13 shooting performance beyond the arc in the opening half and buried 5-11 (45.5%) in the second. Franklin Pierce shot just 33.8% (22-65) from the field overall after hitting at 29% (9-31) in the first half. The Ravens hit just 1-of-6 three's (16.7%) in the opening stanza, compared to 5-9 (55.6%) in the second.
Franklin Pierce netted the first nine points over the opening three minutes of the contest, but Saint Anselm rebounded with a 27-6 run over a span of 15-minutes to open a 12-point gap (27-15) of its own with 2:45 to go in the half.
Sophomore Junior Mitchell (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian) hit a jumper to give the Hawks a 14-point lead at the break (33-19). The teams traded baskets in the early part of the second half before Franklin Pierce drew within seven (41-34) after a Munch three with 15:03 to play, capping a 7-2 run.
Saint Anselm then took control behind the shooting of Cahill to post a 17-5 run and open a 20-point lead (61-41) after two Moore free-throws with 8:05 to go. Cahill canned three-straight three's and finished with four overall during the game-deciding stretch.
Franklin Pierce (13-11, 10-9 NE-10) is back in action Wednesday for a key NE-10 battle at Merrimack College at 7:30 p.m. Saint Anselm (18-6, 13-6 NE-10) visits Assumption College on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.