RINDGE, N.H. - Seven players scored at least nine points, including six in double figures, and the 24th-ranked Saint Michael's College men's basketball team fended off Franklin Pierce University for a wild 107-96 win at the Franklin Pierce Fieldhouse during Northeast-10 Conference play on Wednesday evening. The first-place Purple Knights were 24th in this week's D2CSC national poll while sitting second in the regional rankings.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (14-4, 10-2 NE10), Franklin Pierce (4-14, 2-10 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Senior Romar Reid (Mount Vernon, N.Y./Woodstock Academy/Manhattan), 29 points, 3 assists, 11-for-18 field goals, 5-for-5 free throws
• Sophomore Alan Brzezinski (Örebro, Sweden/Western Reserve Academy), 17 points, 4 rebounds, 5-for-6 three-pointers
• Junior CJ Crews (Tampa, Fla./Bayshore Christian School), 16 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, 6-for-14 field goals, 4-for-8 three-pointers
• Sophomore Darrel Yepdo (Dracut, Mass./Brooks School), 12 points, 10 assists, 3 steals
• Sophomore Nolan Marold (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Brewster Academy/Loyola Chicago), 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3-for-6 field goals, 6-for-8 free throws
• First-year TJ Henaghen (Hampden, Maine/Williston Northampton School), 12 points, 4 rebounds, 4-for-7 field goals
• Junior Jacob Duniver (Fredericksburg, Va./Woodstock Academy), 9 points, 12 rebounds, 2 steals, 3-for-7 three-pointers

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Junior Sean Trumper, 26 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 11-for-18 field goals
• Sophomore Ugo Nwachukwu, 21 points, 8-for-14 field goals
• Sophomore Andrew Politi, 13 points, 3-for-5 three-pointers
• Junior Dwayne Robinson O'Hagen, 11 points

GAME FACTS

• The teams combined to shoot 26-for-49 (53.1%) from three-point range, with Saint Michael's 16-for-30 and Franklin Pierce 10-for-19. The Purple and Gold was 8-for-11 from beyond the arc in the second half alone.
• Both teams shot over 50% overall, with the visitors at 53.7% and the hosts 55.9%.
• Saint Michael's held a key scoring advantage on free throws, going 19-for-25 to the Ravens' 10-for-16.
• The Purple Knights are 7-2 at home and 7-2 on the road, as they lead all NCAA East Region teams in true road victories.
• Saint Michael's won in the Franklin Pierce Fieldhouse for just the fourth time in 21 visits, earning its initial victory in Rindge since a similarly high-scoring 106-91 triumph on Feb. 6, 2014.

THE ACTION

• The Purple Knights' first three baskets all came from three-point range, and the visitors led 22-8 following Duniver's triple at 15:33 of the opening frame. Saint Michael's started 5-for-7 from deep.
• Franklin Pierce countered with a 15-4 run, led by seven points from Trumper, and the hosts made it 26-23 by 10:38.
• Marold had five points in a 9-1 stretch that pushed the Saint Michael's lead back to 38-26 at 7:25.
• After the Ravens trimmed their deficit back to two at 39-37 with 3:12 left and still trailed by only three one minute later, Duniver (2:10) and Brzezinski (1:34) knocked down back-to-back late threes en route to the Purple and Gold extending its lead back to 12. The visitors led 55-45 at halftime.
• Reid's triple made it 65-49 at 16:30 of the second half, but the hosts later scored nine straight points to create a 67-62 margin by 14:07 on Politi's hoop.
• The Ravens again cut 10-point holes down to five on a pair of occasions, but Brzezinski canned a pair of treys 20 seconds apart before Crews hit his team's third triple in 50 seconds to cap a 9-0 spurt that put Saint Michael's up 88-74 with 7:36 to go. The Purple Knights remained ahead by double figures until the final buzzer.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Saturday at Saint Anselm College, 3:30 p.m.