2017–18 Saint Francis Red Flash men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Saint Francis Red Flash men's basketball team represented Saint Francis University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Red Flash, led by sixth-year head coach Rob Krimmel, played their home games at the DeGol Arena in Loretto, Pennsylvania as members of the Northeast Conference. They finished the season 18–13, 12–6 in NEC play to finish in a tie for second place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the NEC tournament to Fairleigh Dickinson. They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they lost in the first round to UIC.

2017–18 Saint Francis Red Flash men's basketball
CIT, First round
Conference	Northeast Conference
Record	18–13 (12–6 NEC)
Head coach	Rob Krimmel (6th season)
Associate head coach	Andrew Helton
Assistant coaches	Eric Taylor Umar Shannon
Home arena	DeGol Arena
Seasons ← 2016–17 2018–19 →

2017–18 Northeast Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Wagner	14	–	4		.778			23	–	10		.697
Saint Francis (PA)	12	–	6		.667			18	–	13		.581
Mount St. Mary's	12	–	6		.667			18	–	14		.563
LIU Brooklyn †	10	–	8		.556			18	–	17		.514
St. Francis Brooklyn	10	–	8		.556			13	–	18		.419
Robert Morris	9	–	9		.500			16	–	17		.485
Fairleigh Dickinson	9	–	9		.500			13	–	18		.419
Central Connecticut	7	–	11		.389			14	–	18		.438
Sacred Heart	5	–	13		.278			10	–	21		.323
Bryant	2	–	16		.111			3	–	28		.097
† 2018 NEC tournament winner

Previous season

The Red Flash finished the 2016–17 season at 17–17, 11–7 in NEC play to finish in a tie for third place. They defeated Bryant and Wagner to advance to the championship game of the NEC tournament where they lost to Mount St. Mary's. They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they defeated Jacksonville in the first round to win the Hugh Durham Classic. However, they lost in the second round of the CIT to UMBC.

Preseason

In a poll of league coaches at the NEC media day, the Red Flash were picked to win the NEC, receiving nine of 10 first place votes.^[1] Senior guard Isaiah Blackmon and sophomore Keith Braxton were named the preseason All-NEC team.^[2]

Roster

2017–18 Saint Francis Red Flash men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Markus Vallien 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr St. Pius X HS Houston, TX G 1 Malik Harmon 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 194 lb (88 kg) RS Sr Christ the King HS Queens, NY G 2 Scott Meredith 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Hargrave Military Academy Pilot Mountain, NC G 3 Jamaal King 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr Bishop O'Connell HS Salisbury, MD G 4 Randall Gaskins Jr. 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Bishop O'Connell HS Woodbridge, VA F/C 5 Daniel Wallace 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Nansemond River HS Suffolk, VA G 11 Isaiah Blackmon   6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr West Charlotte HS Charlotte, NC G 13 Keith Braxton 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 208 lb (94 kg) So Lawrenceville School Glassboro, NJ G 14 Andre Wolford 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr Saint Ignatius HS North Olmsted, OH G 15 Deon Baker 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr CC of Beaver County Pittsburgh, PA G 20 Dan Henry 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Hamburg HS Hamburg, NY G 22 Michael Klebon 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr Southern Columbia Area HS Paxinos, PA G 24 Jordan Forehand 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr IMG Academy Bridgewater, NJ F/C 30 Deivydas Kuzavas 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So St. Mary's Ryken HS Kretinga, Lithuania F/C 33 Luidgy Laporal 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Jr Harcum College Petit-Bourg, France F 42 Mark Flagg 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Pennsbury HS Fairless Hills, PA	Head coach Rob Krimmel (Saint Francis (PA)) Assistant coach(es) Andrew Helton (Miami (OH)) Eric Taylor (Saint Francis (PA)) Umar Shannon (Saint Francis (PA)) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 11, 2017* 8:00 pm		at No. 22 Saint Mary's	L 68–85	0–1	McKeon Pavilion (3,276) Moraga, CA
November 13, 2017* 10:00 pm		at San Francisco	L 63–75	0–2	War Memorial Gymnasium (1,018) San Francisco, CA
November 18, 2017* 3:00 pm		at Longwood	W 83–56	1–2	Willett Hall (1,317) Farmville, VA
November 21, 2017* 7:00 pm		Franciscan	W 96–54	2–2	DeGol Arena (676) Loretto, PA
November 24, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra		at No. 19 Louisville	L 72–84	2–3	KFC Yum! Center (17,524) Louisville, KY
November 29, 2017* 7:00 pm		American	W 100–89	3–3	DeGol Arena (1,013) Loretto, PA
December 2, 2017* 7:00 pm		at Stony Brook	L 83–85	3–4	Island Federal Credit Union Arena (2,123) Stony Brook, NY
December 5, 2017* 9:00 pm, ESPNU		at No. 1 Duke	L 67–124	3–5	Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC
December 10, 2017* 2:00 pm, LCTV		at Niagara	W 93–87 OT	4–5	Gallagher Center  Lewiston, NY
December 18, 2017* 7:00 pm		Bethany	W 113–77	5–5	DeGol Arena (424) Loretto, PA
December 21, 2017* 7:00 pm		Lehigh	W 84–70	6–5	DeGol Arena (672) Loretto, PA
NEC regular season
December 29, 2017 7:30 pm		at Central Connecticut	L 68–72	6–6 (0–1)	William H. Detrick Gymnasium (1,219) New Britain, CT
December 31, 2017 3:00 pm		at Bryant	W 86–82 OT	7–6 (1–1)	Chace Athletic Center (416) Smithfield, RI
January 4, 2018 7:00 pm		LIU Brooklyn	W 85–68	8–6 (2–1)	DeGol Arena (409) Loretto, PA
January 6, 2018 4:00 pm		St. Francis Brooklyn	W 91–87	9–6 (3–1)	DeGol Arena (712) Loretto, PA
January 11, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Robert Morris	W 89–80	10–6 (4–1)	PPG Paints Arena (718) Pittsburgh, PA
January 13, 2018 2:00 pm		Mount St. Mary's	L 80–81 OT	10–7 (4–2)	DeGol Arena (954) Loretto, PA
January 18, 2018 7:00 pm		at Wagner	L 64–73	10–8 (4–3)	Spiro Sports Center (1,541) Staten Island, NY
January 20, 2018 3:30 pm		at Sacred Heart	W 73–60	11–8 (5–3)	William H. Pitt Center (293) Fairfield, CT
January 26, 2018 5:00 pm, ESPNU		Wagner	L 61–91	11–9 (5–4)	DeGol Arena (1,408) Loretto, PA
January 28, 2018 2:00 pm		Sacred Heart	W 72–71	12–9 (6–4)	DeGol Arena (739) Loretto, PA
February 1, 2018 6:00 pm, CBSSN		Fairleigh Dickinson	W 74–60	13–9 (7–4)	DeGol Arena (742) Loretto, PA
February 3, 2018 4:00 pm		at Mount St. Mary's	L 56–69	13–10 (7–5)	Knott Arena (3,045) Emmitsburg, MD
February 8, 2018 7:00 pm		at LIU Brooklyn	L 67–83	13–11 (7–6)	Steinberg Wellness Center (723) Brooklyn, NY
February 10, 2018 4:00 pm		at St. Francis Brooklyn	W 90–65	14–11 (8–6)	Generoso Pope Athletic Complex (405) Brooklyn, NY
February 15, 2018 7:00 pm		Central Connecticut	W 77–71 OT	15–11 (9–6)	DeGol Arena (1,012) Loretto, PA
February 17, 2018 3:00 pm		Bryant	W 89–56	16–11 (10–6)	DeGol Arena (1,610) Loretto, PA
February 22, 2018 6:00 pm		at Fairleigh Dickinson	W 90–82	17–11 (11–6)	Rothman Center (416) Hackensack, NJ
February 24, 2018 2:00 pm		Robert Morris	W 80-60	18–11 (12–6)	DeGol Arena (416) Loretto, PA
NEC tournament
February 28, 2018 7:00 pm	(3)	(6) Fairleigh Dickinson Quarterfinals	L 75–84	18–12	DeGol Arena (1,051) Loretto, PA
CIT
March 14, 2018* 8:00 pm		at UIC First round	L 61–84	18–13	UIC Pavilion (1,137) Chicago, IL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. Source[3].

References

1. "Northeast Conference - Spread The Red! Saint Francis U is the Unanimous Pick To Win the #NECMBB Title". www.northeastconference.org. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
2. "Northeast Conference - Saint Francis U Lands Two Players On Preseason All-NEC Men's Basketball Team". northeastconference.org. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
3. "St. Francis (PA) Red Flash Basketball 2017-18 Schedule - Red Flash Home and Away". ESPN. Retrieved October 12, 2017.