LORETTO, Pa. – Despite a career effort from senior Aaron Clarke, the Sacred Heart University men's basketball team ran out of steam in the second half at Saint Francis. The Pioneers were unable to hold on to their halftime lead and fell, 85-74, on Sunday evening. 
 
Records:
Sacred Heart: 7-12, 3-5
Saint Francis: 7-12, 3-5

Top Performers:
Aaron Clarke: 26 points, 8 assists
Tyler Thomas: 12 points, 3 assists
Bryce Johnson: 11 points, 5 rebounds
Nico Galette: 11 points 
 
Up Next:
Sacred Heart returns home for a midweek tilt with St. Francis Brooklyn at 7 p.m. on Thursday. 
 
Of Note:
Sacred Heart came out hot in the first half shooting 8-of-13 from distance (61.5%) and 16-for-30 (53.3%) from the field. However, the Pioneers cooled off in the second half shooting just 2-of-10 from behind the arc as they were held to just 33 second-half points.  
 
A Bryce Johnson three capped off an 11-3 run at the 8:56 mark in the first half to help the Pioneers grow to its largest lead of the game, 30-18. The double-digit lead was short-lived as the Red Flash began to find a rhythm and chip away. Saint Francis responded with a 14-2 run to even the score just before the halftime break. The Pioneers were able to hold off the Red Flash and held the advantage thanks to a layup from Clarke, 41-39, at the end of the first half. 
 
Five-straight Saint Francis' points to kick off the second half took the lead away from the Pioneers and they were unable to recover. With the score tied with 12 minutes remaining, the Red Flash took off on a 16-2 run to grab its largest lead of the night, 74-60. The Pioneers would pull within eight with 2:59 left on the clock, but Saint Francis refused to allow Sacred Heart to get any closer before reaching the final score.
 
Saint Francis dominated the glass and out rebounded Sacred Heart, 39-21, including 14 offensive boards which led to 18 second-chance points. The 21 rebounds marks the lowest rebounding total this season for the Pioneers. 
 
Clarke posted a career performance of 26 points and eight assists which matches his career-best when he dished out eight at Columbia earlier this year. Tonight's game marked the first time Clarke made 10 field goals in a single game as he also attempted a career-high of 19. 
 
Tyler Thomas shot 75% from three-point range (3-4) in his pursuit of 12 points. Both Nico Galette and Bryce Johnson added 11 points apiece.