Patriots fall to 5th-ranked Jaguars 77-60
FLORENCE, SC - Three starters scored 17 points and fifth-ranked Augusta State University held Francis Marion University to 29.6 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes to claim a 77-60 Peach Belt Conference win, Saturday afternoon (Feb. 20) in men's basketball action.
The loss disappointed a Homecoming crowd of 2,150, the largest on-campus home crowd to watch the Patriots play in 31 seasons. Francis Marion drops to 18-7 overall and 10-6 in the Peach Belt.
Senior forward Kaylan Anderson led FMU with 16 points, but he was only 2-of-9 from the field. He did connect on 12-of-14 free throws. Junior forward Simel Boyd added 10 points, as did junior reserve forward Robert Faulkner.
The Patriots will end their regular season with two road contests: at Flagler College on Wednesday and at Armstrong Atlantic State University on Feb. 27.
ASU (24-2, 16-1) was led by Alex Smith, Fred Brathwaite, and Ben Madgen, all with 17 points. Brathwaite also hauled down a game-high nine rebounds and blocked two shots.
The Jaguars, aided by a pre-game technical foul on FMU, scored the opening 10 points and never trailed. The margin swelled to 15 points (27-12) following a fast-break layup by ASU's Howard Brown.
Francis Marion gradually chipped away at the deficit and when Mike Candelaria drained a long three-pointer with 1:09 left before halftime, the Patriots trailed by only one at 35-34. The Jaguars scored the half's final three points at the foul line and carried a 38-34 advantage into the locker room.
On the opening possession of the second stanza, Faulkner scored on a strong post move and the margin was down to two points (38-36). ASU answered with a 13-2 spurt that pushed the lead to 13 points at 51-38. Brathwaite capped the run with a fast-break dunk. The margin would remain in double digits for the remainder of the game.
The Jaguars held Francis Marion to 8-of-27 shooting in the second half, including 0-of-9 from three point range. Meanwhile at the offensive end, ASU hit 11-of-20 field goal attempts (55.0%) and 16-of-24 free throw over the final 20 minutes.
ASU held a 39-26 rebounding edge and limited Francis Marion to a single second-chance point.
Francis Marion forced 22 ASU turnovers and 21-13 in points-off-turnovers.
2-20-10 3:45 p.m. at Florence, SC (Smith University Center)
#5 AUGUSTA STATE 77, FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY 60
AUGUSTA STATE (#5 24-2 , 16-1)
Smith, Alex 6-9 5-7 17; Madgen, Ben 4-9 7-8 17; Brathwaite, Fred
4-5 8-10
17; Morra, Dominic 1-2 3-6 6; Hire, Greg 0-1 5-9 5; Dixon, Daniel
2-5 0-0 5;
Keels, Travis 2-3 0-1 4; Brown, Howard 1-1 1-2 3; Ndongo, Franck
1-3 0-0 2;
Brown, Caleb 0-3 1-2 1; Beal, Tye 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 21-43 30-45
77.
FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY (18-7 , 10-6 PBC)
Anderson, Kaylan 2-9 12-14 16; Faulkner, Robert 4-5 0-0 10; Boyd,
Simel 3-6
3-4 10; Mains, Herman 4-8 0-0 8; Gullatte, Edward 3-3 0-0 6;
Candelaria,
Mike 1-3 0-0 3; Julious, Bryant 1-5 1-2 3; Petreikis, Mindaugas
0-0 2-2 2;
Smith, Andrew 1-8 0-0 2; Peterson, Andy 0-1 0-0 0; Robinson,
Kendrick 0-4
0-0 0; Turner, David 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 19-54 18-22 60.
Halftime: Augusta State 38 Francis Marion 34
3-point goals--Augusta State 5-16 (Madgen, Ben 2-6; Morra, Dominic
1-2;
Brathwaite, Fred 1-1; Dixon, Daniel 1-4; Ndongo, Franck 0-1; Beal,
Tye 0-2),
Francis Marion University 4-18 (Faulkner, Robert 2-2; Candelaria,
Mike 1-3;
Boyd, Simel 1-3; Julious, Bryant 0-2; Robinson, Kendrick 0-1;
Turner, David
0-2; Mains, Herman 0-1; Anderson, Kaylan 0-4). Fouled
out--Augusta
State-None, Francis Marion University-Faulkner, Robert.
Rebounds--Augusta
State 39 (Brathwaite, Fred 9), Francis Marion University 26 (Boyd,
Simel 5).
Assists--Augusta State 13 (Ndongo, Franck 2; Brathwaite, Fred 2;
Smith, Alex
2; Madgen, Ben 2; Dixon, Daniel 2), Francis Marion University
11
(Candelaria, Mike 4). Total fouls--Augusta State 18, Francis
Marion
University 29. Technical fouls--Gullatte, Turner. A-2150
