RINDGE, N.H. – Senior Hakeem Williams (Spring Valley, N.Y.) scored 15 points and classmate Jack Keough (Owego, N.Y.) recorded his 12th career double-double, but the Saint Anselm College men's basketball team dropped a 77-52 decision to Franklin Pierce University on Sunday evening at the Franklin Pierce Fieldhouse.
The Hawks fall to 2-6 on the season, including 0-5 in Northeast-10 play, while the Ravens improve to 8-1, 4-1.
Williams netted 15 for the second consecutive game on 5 of 7 shooting from the field, including 3 of 4 from behind the arc, and a perfect 2 of 2 from the line. Williams also filled the box score with two steals, an assist, a rebound and a block in 24 minutes. Keough posted his first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 boards. Keough was 6 of 10 from the floor and tallied two assists, a block and a steal.
Franklin Pierce jumped out to a 12-4 lead in the first 5:43 of the contest and led by five, 22-17, with 8:23 remaining in the opening half when it crafted a 13-1 run to grab a 35-18 advantage with 3:52 left.
A three-point play by Keough cut it to 14, but baskets by Adedamola Abu and Curtis Christian quickly ran the lead to 18 – Franklin Pierce's largest of the first half. Sophomore Allen Harris (Roslindale, Mass.) knocked down a pair of free throws with 1:44 remaining to close the first-half scoring with the Ravens leading, 39-23.
Saint Anselm whittled the Franklin Pierce lead to 13 at 43-30 just 3:12 into the second half, but the Ravens responded by scoring 11 straight points as part of a 20-4 run that spanned 6:17 and finished with the score 63-34 midway through the half.
With the gap still 29 at 72-43 later in the stanza, Ryen Vilmont converted a layup and then made one of two at the line under a minute later to give the Ravens their largest lead of the night at 75-43 with 4:25 on the clock. The Hawks would answer by scoring nine of the game's final 11 points, including seven from Williams, but it was too little, too late.
Freshman Roy Mabrey (Belmar, N.J.) chipped in with eight points, six boards and two steals.
Franklin Pierce outshot Saint Anselm, 56.1 percent (32-57) to 31.5 percent (17-54), won the battle on the glass, 40-29, and owned a 32-22 advantage in the paint.
Abu led the Ravens with a game-high 19 points.
The Hawks return to action Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. when they travel south to take on the University of Massachusetts Lowell. The next home game for the Hawks is not until Tuesday, Jan. 3 at 7:30 p.m. when they play host to the College of Saint Rose.
