COLCHESTER, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College men's basketball team opened Northeast-10 Conference play with a 90-76 loss to Franklin Pierce University on Wednesday evening in the Ross Sports Center. The Purple Knights remain winless through three games, while the Ravens improved to 2-1 during their NE-10 opener.

Senior Matt Bonds (Accokeek, Md./North Point) rattled off 26 points on 9-of-18 field goal shooting and an 8-of-11 free throw performance as well as 13 rebounds and five assists. Bonds is two rebounds shy of matching Todd Roberts '01 (815) for ninth in program history and passed three players to tie Bob Millikin '85 for 23rd in free throws (227) in the contest. Thanks to posting six offensive boards, he pushed his career total to 301, joining Tyler Schilling '12 (330) as the only Purple Knights with 300 since complete totals became available in 1992-93.

Sophomore Levi Holmes III (East Brunswick, N.J./Rutgers Prep) added 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, and senior Zaire Williams (Paterson, N.J./Newark Academy) dished off seven assists. Junior Colin Richey (Upton, Mass./Choate Rosemary Hall) had seven points and three helpers, sophomore Winston Jones II (Valley Stream, N.Y./Valley Stream Central) posted seven points, and senior David Sullivan (Egg Harbor Township, N.J./Saint Augustine Prep) totaled six points and six boards. Sophomore Derek Cheatom (Buffalo, N.Y./The Park School of Buffalo) also pulled six boards. The hosts committed only 12 turnovers.

Senior Donte Gittens had 27 points on 10-of-12 shooting for Franklin Pierce, adding five assists and three steals while hitting all three three-point tries. Classmate Matt Banton shot 5-of-12 from deep en route to 21 points and eight rebounds, and juniors Mike McDevitt and Asante Sandiford notched 15 points apiece. Sandiford grabbed nine boards while McDevitt had eight rebounds and three blocks.

McDevitt buried a triple 11 seconds into the game to put the Ravens up for good before Banton drained another trey 48 seconds later, but Sullivan drove the lane for a hoop and Bonds threw down a dunk to make it 6-4 at 17:38 of the opening half. However, 21 of the next 26 points came from Franklin Pierce, with Sandiford at one point turning in seven straight, and the visitors led 27-9 on senior Ben Mead's three at 11:50. Banton's three pushed the lead to 32-12 with 8:43 remaining, but back-to-back lay-ins by Bonds and Sullivan produced a 38-22 margin at 2:16.

Franklin Pierce went up 21 twice in the final minute, including as Gittens scored from half court at the buzzer to make it 47-26 at the break. Still down 21 a little more than two minutes into the second stanza, the Purple Knights put together an 8-1 run thanks to threes from Cheatom and Holmes, and Bonds' dunk kept it a 14-point game at 15:19. Saint Michael's later embarked on an 18-10 stretch to cut its deficit to single digits, with Williams scoring four points and dishing an assist, while Bonds netted six points, including converting a Richey feed that created a 65-57 game with 8:03 to go. However, Banton hit a three 18 seconds later to kick off a 10-0 run.

Saint Michael's is back in action on Saturday at Assumption College at 3 p.m.