RINDGE, N.H. (February 27, 2020) – For the fourth time over the past five seasons, the Franklin Pierce University men's basketball team has qualified for the Northeast-10 Conference Tournament. The no. 3 Northeast Division seeded and no. 9 regionally-ranked Ravens will travel to the no. 2 Southwest Division and no. 10 regionally-ranked Adelphi University for the NE10 Quarterfinals on Sunday, March 1st at 4:00 p.m.

The crimson and grey qualified for the 2019 NE10 Men's Basketball Championship for seventh time over the last nine seasons and the 15th time under the leadership of head coach David Chadbourne (307-283, 223-224 NE10). In his 21 seasons as bench boss, Coach Chadbourne's teams have reached the postseason 16 times. Last season, the Ravens suffered a 74-61 loss to Southwest Division no. 5 seed Pace University in the NE10 Tournament First Round which was their first home playoff game since the 2013-14 campaign. Overall, in the conference tourney, the Ravens are 7-14 with two trips to the conference semifinals, one trip to the championship game and one second-place finish.

This marks the fifth straight campaign that the Adelphi Panthers have made the NE10 Tournament and it is the fifth time in his six years that head coach Dave Duke's (92-79, 56-63 NE10) squad has made the conference dance. In the tournament, Duke has guided his team to a 1-4 record with their lone win a 101-91 victory against no. 5 seeded Bentley University in the NE10 First Round on February 24, 2017. During their 10 years in the league, the Panthers have gone 9-7 in the playoffs with back-to-back title game appearances (2009-10, 2010-11) and a conference championship, a 78-72 win at Bentley University on March 5, 2011.

SCOUTING THE RAVENS

Pierce earned the no. 3 seed in the Northeast Division after wrapping up the season with a 15-11, 10-9 NE10 record. Since their 34-point win at home against Adelphi back on Saturday, January 25th, the Ravens have gone 3-5 and they enter the tournament with three straight setbacks. FPU also has played better on their home court, The Fieldhouse recording a 9-2 record compared to a 5-8 mark on the road.

FPU loves three-pointers as they rank 21st out of 308 NCAA Division II programs in three-point field goals per game (11.0). They also are 24th in three-point field goal attempts (790) and 29th in three-point field goal conversions (285) while they crash the boards on the defensive end coming in at 21st in defensive rebounds per game (28.5).

A trio of double-digit point scorers carries the Ravens offensive attack. Senior guard Doyin Fadojutimi (Temple Hills, Md.) is the team leader in scoring (18.2), rebounding (6.7), steals (1.5), blocks (1.3) and free-throw shooting (75.9). Fadojutimi is one of only six players in the conference to record averages of over 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. The one-time NE10 Player of the Week has tallied nine games of 20 or more points including four contests of 30+ markers and two double-doubles. In the 85-79 win at home against Stonehill College on February 12th, Fadojutimi poured in a career-high 41 points off 14-of-19 (73.7%) shooting and a 9-of-13 (69.2%) performance from downtown, which matched the program's single-game three-pointer mark.

Classmate Falu Seck (Washington, D.C.) comes in at second on the team in scoring at 13.4 points per game he has five games of 20+ points including a season-high 24 markers in the Raven win against Adelphi where he was 8-for-15 (53.3%) from the hardwood and 7-for-13 (53.8%) from beyond the arc. Sophomore guard Isaiah Moore (Temple Hills, Md.) rounds out the Ravens' double-digit point scorers. The second-year guard has taken a leap this season increasing his shooting efficiency, scoring, passing and rebounding. The 2018-19 NE10 All-Rookie Team honoree has averaged 12.0 points, a team-best 49.0% field goal percentage and a team-leading 3.8 assists per game, which ranks ninth in the conference. Moore has elevated his play since the calendar turned to February as he's averaged 16.3 points, 3.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds while converting shots at a 54.4% clip (49-of-90) and threes at a 41.9% (13-of-31) efficiency.

Off the bench, sophomore Maxwell Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) and Sean Fasoyiro (Houston, Texas) average over 20 minutes per game. Zegarowski is the team's best three-point shooter at 41.3% (45-of-109) and ranks fourth in scoring (8.7) while Fasoyiro has earned eight starts and has manufactured 8.0 points per game and 5.2 rebounds per game, the second-highest total on the squad.

As a team, Pierce ranks second in the conference in three-point conversions (285), tied for second in defensive rebounds per game (28.5), second in blocks per game (3.8), third in steals per game (7.1), fourth in scoring offense (80.2) and fourth in assists per game (15.7). On the defensive side of the ball, FPU forces their opponents into bad shots as they allow opponents to shoot 43.2% from the floor and 33.9% from deep, the second-lowest percentage in the conference. However, teams find it easy to rebound over the Ravens as they allow 40.2 boards per game, the highest total in the league.

FRANKLIN PIERCE PROJECTED STARTING FIVE

#1 Jameson Pierrelus (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) – 4.1 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.1 APG, 33.9% FG, 19.6 3PT, 85.7% FT
#4 Isaiah Moore – 12.0 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 3.8 APG, 49.0% FG, 36.2% 3PT, 71.1% FT
#12 Sean Bresnan (Yonkers, N.Y.) – 6.6 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 0.7 APG, 53.6% FG, 44.9% 3PT, 64.7% FT
#20 Falu Seck – 13.4 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.8 APG, 42.9% FG, 35.8% 3PT, 66.7% FT
#23 Doyin Fadojutimi – 18.2 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 2.0 APG, 46.8% FG, 38.3% 3PT, 75.9% FT

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS

Adelphi earned the no. 2 seed in the Southwest Division after completing the 2019-20 season with an 18-10, 11-8 NE10 record. Like the Ravens, the Panthers enter the conference tournament on a three-game skid losing their past three contests. Since they got trashed by Pierce back near the end of January, Adelphi has gone 4-4 to end their season.

The Panthers have four double-digit scorers, but two of them average over 15 points a game. One-time NE10 Player of the Week Ronnie Silva is one of them. The 5-9 sophomore guard ranks third in the NE10 in scoring (21.8) and he is third in assists per game (5.0). Silva takes the majority of the shots for Adelphi as he ranks second out of 250 ranked Division II players in three-point attempts (280) and sixth in field goal attempts (495). Silva comes in at fourth in the nation in three-point conversions (103), and 21st in field goals made (218). Silva has scored 30+ points three times this year notching 34 each versus New Haven (1/4) and at American International (2/5) while recording a season-high 35 markers against Molloy (12/18).

Spencer Foley another one-time NE10 Player of the Week averages 15.9 points per game shooting at a high percentage from the field (49.1%) and from deep (42.7%). He had two games with 30+ points this season, a year-best 32 markers at Le Moyne (2/11). Like Fadojutimi, Austin Beech (1.2 SPG, 1.1 BPG) is one of six players in the conference that averages 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per game to go along with 10.7 points and 5.4 boards per contest.

As a team, Adelphi paces all Division II in three-pointers as they have hit 363 during the course of the season. They are second in three-ball attempts (947) and second in three-point field goals per game (13) however, they shoot 38.3% from beyond the arc, which is only the 46th best mark in Division II. In the Northeast-10 Conference, the Panthers are fourth in three-point percentage and are middle of the pack in field goal percentage (45.0%) and assists per game (15.4) while they are near the bottom in rebounding (35.1). On the defensive side, they allow the second-most points per game in the NE10 (78.0) and the second-highest rebounds per game (39.1) right behind Franklin Pierce.

ADELPHI PROJECTED STARTING FIVE

#0 Austin Beech – 10.7 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 2.7 APG, 55.7 FG%, 35.4 3PT%, 79.0 FT%
#1 Chris Coalmon – 10.7 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.5 APG, 45.5 FG%, 37.9 3PT%, 75.9 FT%
#3 Ronnie Silva – 21.6 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 5.0 APG, 44.0 FG%, 36.8 3PT%, 83.8 FT%
#14 Spencer Foley – 15.9 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 1.4 APG, 49.1 FG%, 42.7 3PT%, 80.0 FT%
#34 Tim Delaney – 4.6 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.6 APG, 41.2 FG%, 36.8 3PT%, 57.7 FT%

EARLIER THIS SEASON

Both squads met earlier this year in Rindge on Saturday, January 25th during the Suits and Sneakers game as the Ravens rolled to a 95-61 win scoring 54 points in the first half. Falu Seck was one of four Ravens in double-figures producing a game-high 24 points shooting 8-for-15 (53.3%) from the hardwood and 7-for-13 (53.8%) from three-point land. Sean Fasoyiro racked up a season-best 15 markers (6-of-7, 85.7% FG, 3-of-4, 75% 3PT) with a game-high tying eight rebounds. For Adelphi, Ronnie Silva dropped a team-best 19 points with five triples on 10 attempts (50%). Pierce connected on a season-best 21 three-pointers in 43 attempts for a 48.8% percentage while the guests were 12-for-37 (32.4%) from long range. FPU also capitalized off the Adelphi miscues scoring 24 points off their 14 turnovers.

In the all-time series, the Ravens hold an 8-6 record against their counterparts including wins in seven of their last nine contests versus the Panthers since the 2011-12 campaign. This marks the first time both teams have met in the NE10 Tournament.

HEADING TO THE GAME?

If you are planning on heading to the game here are the directions to the Center for Recreation and Sport.

You will be required to pay a small gate fee to enter the gym. The prices are…

Adults…..$10.00

Children & Seniors…..$5.00

Northeast-10 Conference Students w/Identification…..$2.00

WHERE TO WATCH

Can't make it to the game? The Northeast-10 and Adelphi have you covered with live stats and video. Click the links below to access the live stats and video.

LIVE STATS | VIDEO

You can also view the Northeast-10 Conference 2020 Men's Basketball Championship page by clicking here.

WHATS NEXT?

The winner of this contest will advance to the NE10 Semifinals and play the winner of the no. 5 seed Southern New Hampshire/no. 4 seed Pace at no. 1 seed Saint Anselm game on Wednesday, March 4th at the highest remaining seed with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://www.fpuravens.com). 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). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce men's basketball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://www.fpuravens.com/store). You can also follow the men's basketball team on Twitter (https://twitter.com/FPURavensMBB) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/fpuravensmbb/).