Christian leads way with 15

MANCHESTER, N.H. (November 12, 2010) – Sophomore guard Curtis Christian (Harlem, N.Y.) led all players with 15 points on Saturday evening, as the Franklin Pierce University men's basketball team posted a 92-46 victory over Mercy in non-conference play at the SNHU Tournament. Junior forward Joseph Pope led Mercy with 13 points in defeat.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 2-0 (0-0 Northeast-10), while Mercy falls to 0-2 (0-0 East Coast).

Franklin Pierce took control of the contest early, scoring the first 12 points of the game, opening with a 15-1 run over the first 6:39 and never looking back. The Ravens dialed long distance repeatedly early in the first half, as 12 of their first 15 points came via the three-point shot. Freshman forward Ryen Vilmont (Philadelphia, Pa.) opened the scoring from behind the arc, and sophomore forward Matt Barboza (East Providence, R.I.) later capped the opening run with back-to-back three-pointers.

In all, Franklin Pierce would outscore Mercy 41-19 in the first half, as well as 51-27 in the second after finishing the game on a 16-4 run over the final 6:43. Christian netted eight of his 15 points in the finishing run on a pair of three-pointers and a layup.

For Franklin Pierce, Christian's 15 points led the way, while Vilmont, junior guard Eric Jean-Guillaume (Stamford, Conn.) and sophomore forward Igor Lebov (Toronto, Canada) added 11 points each. Barboza led the way on the glass with six rebounds, while Christian dished out three assists. As a team, the Ravens shot better from three-point range (14-for-27, 51.9%) than they did from the floor as a whole (30-for-66, 45.5%).

For Mercy, junior guard Colin Senior (10 points) was the only other Maverick to join Pope in double figures. Pope, Senior and sophomore forward Kirk Bailey each grabbed six rebounds to tie for the team lead, and sophomore guard Romaine Wall handed out three assists. The Mavericks were held to 36.7% shooting (18-for-49) from the floor.

The Ravens return to the court on Wednesday, Nov. 16, when they travel to Merrimack for their Northeast-10 Conference opener. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Volpe Gymnasium in North Andover, Mass. Franklin Pierce's first home game is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 22 at 7:30 p.m. against Stonehill.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics).