RINDGE, N.H. (1/25/23) - The Franklin Pierce University men's basketball team claimed a solid Northeast-10 conference win, 72-66 over Assumption University for their fifth consecutive victory on Wednesday evening at The Fieldhouse. The contest was rescheduled from the original competition date on Tuesday, January 24^th.

Having now won their last five matchups, the Ravens improve to 12-7 (7-5 NE10) following the effort. Assumption drops to 8-12 (4-9 NE10) overall after the loss.

From the get-go, both teams brought a stable attack to the floor. Through the first five minutes, the Ravens held a narrow 12-11 advantage with sophomore guards Mohamad Traore (Hyde Park, Mass.) and Jarnel Snow-Guzman (Lynn, Mass.) each netting an early five points. However, throughout the majority of the opening half, Assumption would remain the frontrunner and eventually climb to the half's largest lead, 27-22 with 7:57 left. Over the remainder of the half, the Ravens returned the favor to tie the action up at 37-all after receiving a boost from 11 combined points between Brandon Kolek (Cumberland, R.I.) and Antonio Chandler (Piscataway, N.J.). Following a late free throw by the visitor Greyhounds, Pierce entered the break trailing 38-37.

The second half opened by the same token as the first, with both squads finding success at each end of the court. With Assumption holding a 50-48 lead with 13:07 remaining, the Ravens found their window of opportunity and seized the lead back with a 10-0 run, which included an energizing three-point jumper from sophomore Wol Maiwen (Auburn, Maine). As time passed, over two minutes would pass before either team would see another field goal, which would belong to Assumption following a pair of free throws on a layup to pull them back to within three points of the Ravens. However, Mohamad Traore looked to provide Pierce with some insurance with 4:42 left in the second, and converted on a high-corner three-pointer to bring the Raven lead to 63-57. Just to keep things interesting, Assumption would pull the score to within one point nearing the final minute, but would ultimately run out of time as Traore sank a late two-point jumper from the corner to set Pierce up for the 72-66 victory.

Antonio Chandler delivered his first collegiate double-double performance off the bench for Pierce, contributing 10 points with 11 rebounds through 25-minutes on the floor. Mohamad Traore and Brandon Kolek each led the points effort for the Ravens with 14 points each, with Traore additionally raking in nine defensive rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Sean Trumper (Ashford, United Kingdom) also broke the double-digit mark, and scored 13 points on the night. Collectively, the Ravens went 28-of-65 (43.1%) in field goals and claimed a 47-35 edge in total boards on the night.

The in-conference action continues for men's basketball this coming Saturday, January 28^th when they welcome the University of New Haven (13-5, 10-3 NE10) to The Fieldhouse for a 3:30 p.m. tipoff.