Andre Blackwood chips in with 10 points for the Ravens

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (November 16, 2011) -- The Franklin Pierce University men's basketball team dropped its Northeast-10 Conference opener on Wednesday night with an 85-75 setback at Merrimack in North Andover, Mass. The Ravens fell to 2-1 overall and 0-1 in the Northeast-10, while the Warriors improved to 3-0 and 1-0 in league play.

Junior guard Eric Jean-Guillaume (Stamford, Conn.) dropped in a team-high 22 points for the Ravens, including knocking down five three-pointers. Sophomore guard Andre Blackwood (Paterson, N.J.) added 10 points as 10 of the 11 Ravens that played in the game scored at least three points. 

Sophomore guard Curtis Christian (Harlem, N.Y.) followed with eight points for Franklin Pierce, while senior Adedamola Abu (Mattapan, Mass.) and sophomores Ellis Cooper (Northampton, Mass.) and Igor Lebov (Toronto, Canada) chipped in seven points apiece.

Despite the balanced scoring, Franklin Pierce struggled shooting consistently as the Ravens managed just 38 percent (27-of-70) from the field. Merrimack, however, had a strong offensive game and shot 56 percent (33-of-59) from the floor.

Four Warriors scored in double-figures, including Wayne Mack's 22 points. Mike Clifford and Roland Davis chipped in with 19 and 18 points, respectively, while Aaron Strothers added 10. Mack added eight rebounds, four assists and two steals to go along with his game-high tying point total.

Franklin Pierce shook off a slow start, and after trailing 8-2 just minutes into the game, fought back and took a 24-23 lead with 10:02 left following a Christian layup.

Merrimack responded with a 7-0 surge, kick-started by a Wilfredo Pagan three-pointer, to go back on top 30-24. The teams traded baskets over the next several minutes before Jean-Guillaume knocked down a trey with 7:09 remaining to pull Franklin Pierce to within 32-30.

The Warriors, though, scored the game's next seven points as they built a 45-35 lead entering halftime. Clifford had 16 points to pace Merrimack, while Jean-Guillaume netted 11 for the Ravens.

Franklin Pierce tried to claw back into the game early in the second half, but Davis scored eight-consecutive points for Merrimack to push its lead out to 59-41 with 13:27 to go.

The Ravens would not threaten the rest of the way as Merrimack cruised on for the victory.

Franklin Pierce returns to action next Tuesday when the Ravens play host to Stonehill in the home opener at 7:30 p.m. in The Fieldhouse in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce men's basketball, please visit the team's page at 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/FranklinPierceAthletics).