FAIRFIELD, Conn. - The Sacred Heart men's basketball team shot over 50 percent from the floor Thursday night in an 80-65 win over the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers at Coach Bike Court at the Pitt Center.

Quincy McKnight led the Pioneers with 25 points and added six rebounds. Mario Matasovic had a season-high 19 points with eight rebounds and three steals. Matej Buovac made three three-pointers on his way to 11 points off the bench. SHU shot a season-high 58.8% from the three-point arc, and held St. Francis Brooklyn to 24.1%.

FIRST HALF

- St. Francis Brooklyn (4-22, 2-11 NEC) opened the game on a 7-2 run, with Yunus Hopkinson scoring five straight points.

- Sacred Heart (11-15, 6-7 NEC) responded with an 8-2 run to take 10-9 lead at the 15:52 mark. Back-to-back threes by Sean Hoehn and Buovac gave the Pioneers their first lead of the game. 

- Trailing 15-12, SHU went on 9-0 run over 3:25 to take a 21-15 lead with 8:17 remaining. Matasovic punctuated the run with a dunk and a three on consecutive possessions.

- The Terriers closed to within one, 21-20, on a Keon Williams three-point play at the 7:41 mark. 

- Sparked by back-to-back layups from Barnett and McKnight, SHU went on a 13-4 run to take a 34-24 lead with 2:33 to go. The Pioneers forced four St. Francis Brooklyn turnovers over 5:08 and held the Terriers to 1-for-7 from the field.

SECOND HALF

- SHU made four of its first six three-point attempts in the second half, jumping out to a 52-38 lead at the 15:20 mark. McKnight, Hoehn, Matasovic, and Buovac each made one to start the half. 

- Hopkinson and Rasheem Dunn went on a 7-2 run to get St. Francis Brooklyn within nine, 54-45, with 13:31 to play.

- The Pioneers took their largest lead of the game with 8:24 remaining on a De'von Barnett layup, going up 15 63-48. St. Francis Brooklyn then scored six unanswered points to cut the deficit to nine, 63-54, at the 6:20 mark.

- SHU shot 54.2% from the field in the second half. 

The Pioneers shot 50.9% from the field Thursday night, holding the Terriers to 38.3%. Sacred Heart had 17 assists on 27 made baskets, while only committing 13 turnovers. The Pioneers also turned 18 St. Francis Brooklyn turnovers into 17 points. Hopkinson scored a game-high 34 points. Dunn added 13 points and nine rebounds.

Sacred Heart hosts rival Central Connecticut on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 3:30 p.m. for Senior Day. Prior to the game, the Pioneers will honor seniors Matej Buovac and Cole Walton.