Adrianos Vourliotakis Perdikaris with a team-high tying 17 points

RINDGE, N.H. (December 10, 2013) – Four Ravens scored in double-figures and two more tossed in nine points apiece, as the No. 24 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University men’s basketball team closed out its first half of the season Tuesday night with an important 93-84 win over Bentley at The Fieldhouse in Rindge.

The Ravens won for the sixth time in a row to improve to 11-1 and 6-1 in the Northeast-10. The win gave the Ravens a two-game lead over Bentley (7-3, 4-3 NE-10), as the Falcons came into Tuesday night’s contest a game back in second place in the league standings of the Northeast Division.

Sophomore guard Tyler Iacuone (Mahopac, N.Y.) and senior forward Adrianos Vourliotakis Perdikaris (Cholargos, Athens) each pumped in a team-high 17 points to pace the Ravens, while forwards Ryen Vilmont (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Ellis Cooper (Northampton, Mass.) netted 16 apiece.

If that wasn’t enough a pair of reserves came off the pine to contribute offensively as senior guards Scotty Tavares-Taylor (Roxbury, Mass.) and Curtis Christian (Harlem, N.Y.) had nine points each.

Franklin Pierce shot 51 percent from the field, but the Ravens weren’t the only team on the court lighting it as the Falcons shot 50 percent themselves and had five register double-digit scoring outputs.

Tyler McFarland was an impressive 11-of-14 from the floor with a game-high 24 points, while Jasper Grassa followed with 18. Shaq Phelps and Andrew Shaw each logged 13 points, while Alex Furness chipped in 10. McFarland’s 24 points went along with 11 rebounds for a double-double.

Franklin Pierce’s balanced scoring was evident throughout the latter stages of the game, as seven different Ravens scored to keep them ahead the remainder of the way after Bentley had pulled to within five at 60-55 with 13:21 left.

Tavares-Taylor and Vourliotakis rained in back-to-back three’s to quickly extend Franklin Pierce’s lead to 11 at 66-55, and minutes later Vourliotakis laid in a bucket to stake the Ravens to a 14-point advantage.

Bentley tried to keep things interesting by cutting the deficit to 80-72 with 5:27 to go, but senior guard Andre Blackwood (Paterson, N.J.) bombed in a triple for another double-figure margin for the Ravens.

The Falcons, though, came right back by cutting Franklin Pierce’s lead to 85-80 following three free throws from Grassa. Christian stemmed it with a free throw, and Blackwood hit four-straight foul shots after that to make it a comfortable 90-80 advantage with just :34 left.

Eight of the nine Ravens that played in the game scored, including Blackwood with seven and freshman Ben Mead (Ipswich, Suffolk, England) with two.

The first half went back and forth between both sides. Cooper hit a layup with 8:24 left until halftime to make it 27-18 Franklin Pierce, but the Falcons countered and eventually took a 33-32 lead minutes later after a layup from Phelps.

The teams traded baskets and McFarland’s three with 3:05 to go made it 37-34 Bentley, but Franklin Pierce answered late and a jumper from Iacuone helped the Ravens take a narrow 43-41 lead into the break.

For more information on Franklin Pierce men’s basketball, please visit the team’s page at http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu. To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce men’s basketball apparel can do so on the athletic department’s online store at http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store(.)