Huggins nets 22 second-half
points as Yellow Jackets halt Ravens win streak
RINDGE, N.H. (February 4,
2006) - Franklin Pierce stumbled to just its fourth loss
in 14 games since Christmas, suffering a 72-67 setback to American
International College in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball
action at the Fieldhouse this afternoon.
Franklin Pierce, which saw its
first five-game winning streak since midway through the 1999-2000
season come to an end, finished shooting just 36.2-percent (25-69)
from the field despite draining 9-of-17 (52.9%) from three-point
range. The Ravens led by three at the break (37-34) after shooting
46.7% (14-30) from the field (7-10 three's) in the opening 20
minutes, but were 11-39 (28.2%) from the floor in the second half.
Senior John Huggins
(Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) led AIC's
comeback, scoring 22 of his game-high 26 points after the
intermission, adding two steals. Junior Jenar Harrison
(Queens, N.Y./Broward CC) notched a double-double
with 15 points, hitting 6-of-10 from the field, ten rebounds (four
offensive), five blocks and two steals. Senior Dexter
Gregory (Paterson, N.J./Cheyney) added nine points, a
game-high 13 rebounds, four blocks and two steals, while classmate
Alonzo Brown (New York, N.Y./Frederick Douglass
Academy) chipped in ten
points.
Junior Sean Mayo (Saco,
Maine/Thornton Academy) led Franklin Pierce with 14
points, hitting 4-of-8 from the field (2-2 three's) and converting
4-5 free throws, to go with five rebounds and two blocks before
fouling out. Senior Pierre Sully (Jamaica Plain,
Mass./North Cambridge Catholic) added 12 points, five
rebounds and two steals, while junior Darryl Minnifield
(Boston, Mass./Brookline) scored ten first half
points and grabbed a team-best six rebounds (three offensive).
The second half featured seven ties
and seven lead changes after Franklin Pierce held a five point lead
(42-37) after a pair of Mayo free-throws 3:04 into the second.
Gregory forced the first tie of the stanza and gave the Yellow
Jackets their first lead (43-42) with a pair at the stripe with
1:15 to play.
The lead seesawed over the next ten
minutes before Huggins scored back-to-back lay-ups to put AIC up
four (62-58) with 2:47 to play. The Yellow Jackets extended their
lead to seven (67-60) after another Gregory free throw with
58-seconds to go and AIC hit 5-of-6 free-throws (four from Huggins)
over the final 34-seconds to ice its second-straight win.
Franklin Pierce (13-8, 10-6 NE-10)
is on the road Tuesday when it faces Bentley College in a key
Conference battle at 7:30 p.m. American International (11-11, 7-10
NE-10) hosts No. 23 Saint Anselm College on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
BOXSCORE
