RINDGE, N.H. – Rodney Sanders (Linden, N.J.) and Elijah Bonsignore (Felton, Del.) each finished with 15 points as Southern New Hampshire University held off Franklin Pierce University for a 74-72 Northeast-10 men's basketball victory Wednesday night at the Fieldhouse.  The Penmen upped their record to 4-2 and 3-1 in the NE-10, while the Ravens suffered their first loss to a Division II opponent this season and are now 5-3 and 2-1 in the league.  Franklin Pierce's two losses came to St. John's and Minnesota in the preseason NIT.

Bonsignore was 6-11 from the floor and posted his second double-double of the season by grabbing 11 rebounds.  He also blocked three shots, while Sanders grabbed six rebounds.  Devin Gilligan (Amherst, N.H.) went 8-9 from the free throw line and tallied 14 points off the bench, while Adrian Oliveira (Pawtucket, R.I.) finished with nine points.  BJ Cardarelli (Manchester, Conn.) knocked down both of his three-point attempts and notched eight points, while Aleksandar Dobrovic (Podgorica, Montenegro) recorded eight points, five rebounds and four assists.

Tyler Iacuone led four Ravens in double figures with 17 points, while Paul Becklens went 8-16 from the floor and finished with 16 points and five assists.

Southern New Hampshire, which led by as many as 21 in the first half and 44-29 at intermission, saw its lead cut to five, 72-67, with a minute left on a Jaleel Bell layup.  Gilligan sank a pair at the line to make it 74-67, but following an Iacuone three, the Penmen turned it over, and a Becklens layup with 39 seconds to go made it 74-72.  Bonsignore would miss with 30 seconds to go, and the Ravens would corral the rebound.  Becklens would take a look at a three with five seconds left, but his attempt was off the mark, and SNHU got the rebound.  Franklin Pierce was unable to foul before time expired.

The Penmen held a 63-50 lead with just over seven minutes to go following a Sanders basket, but a  9-1 run capped by a Iacuone three with 4:15 left made it a 64-59 game.  The guests gradually built the lead back up to nine with 1:33 left, but a Bell three with 1:26 to go kept FPU within striking distance.

The two teams traded the lead four times in the opening minutes before an Oliveira basket 2:41 into the first half put the Penmen on top for good at 7-6.  SNHU used a 17-2 run capped by a Dobrovic layup to take a 31-13 lead with just over eight minutes remaining before halftime, and took its largest lead, 40-19, with just under four minutes to play.  Southern New Hampshire took a 44-29 lead into the locker room as the Ravens closed on a 10-4 spurt.

Southern New Hampshire took 10 more trips to the free throw line, going 22-28, while the Ravens went just 12-18 at the stripe.  The Penmen shot 41.1% and FPU 41.5%, but the hosts went just 6-25 behind the arc, while SNHU was 6-12 from long range.  Southern New Hampshire also held a 41-33 rebounding advantage.

SNHU returns to action Saturday afternoon when it hosts Stonehill College in a 3:30 Northeast-10 contest at the SNHU Fieldhouse.  That game can be seen live on NESNplus.

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