PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Senior guard
Shelton Mickell (Queens, NY/Cardozo / Central Connecticut State) turned in the best offensive performance of his career as a Setter on Tuesday, registering a career-high 35 points in the Pace University men's basketball's team's 88-75 loss to Franklin Pierce University (FPU) in Northeast-10 Conference action at the Goldstein Fitness Center. The Setters hang on to fourth-place in the Southwest Division with an NE-10 record of 5-8 and overall mark of 8-13, while Franklin Pierce keeps hold of the No. 5 spot in the Northeast Division at 7-6 in conference play and 10-8 on the season.
Mickell tallied 20 of his 35 points in the second half of Tuesday evening's contest as the Setters tried to rally themselves back from a halftime deficit. He went 12-of-20 from the field for a personal-best 60 percent shooting mark, including 4-of-5 from three-point range. He has now scored 20-or-more points in five of the past six games, and has taken the team lead with 14.6 points per game on the year.
The Setters and Ravens matched up well early on in the game, as the two NE-10 opponents traded the lead four different times throughout the first 10 minutes. A 6-0 in the first few minutes put Pace up, 10-4, but back-to-back threes for the Ravens quickly tied the game. Mickell responded with a long ball of his own to take the lead back, but FPU scored the next seven to take a 17-13 advantage.
Now trailing by three, freshman forward
Ryan Peterson (Wethersfield, CT/St. Thomas More) tied the game once again with a trey. FPU's Matt Banton then converted a layup, but sophomore guard
Bryan Rivers (West Windsor, NJ/Peddie School) came back with his own to tie it again. At the 10:19 mark, Rivers finished a tough layup to put Pace up, 24-22. After a timeout, Franklin Pierce took control with a 20-0 run to go up by 18, eventually heading into halftime with a 49-30 edge.
The Raven's lead stretched out to as many as 20 points in the second frame, but the Setters made a push to get back into it in the final 10 minutes. An 11-2 stretch for Pace made it an 11 point game at 67-56 with 5:53 to play. FPU pushed it back out to 15, but Mickell sank a long three to get back within 12. The two teams scored back-and-forth the rest of the way, resulting in the 13-point win for the Ravens.
Junior forward
Austin Mofunanya (Englewood, NJ/Dwight Morrow / Lincoln College of NE) also had his strongest game as a Setter on Tuesday, tallying a season-high 18 points to go with nine rebounds. Peterson added 13 points and five boards. Rivers picked up nine and dished out a game-high six assists.
Franklin Pierce was led by Tyler Iacuone's 22 points. Mike McDevitt added 20 points and nine rebounds, while Donte Gittens scored 16 and handed out a team-best four helpers.
The Setters will look to bounce back as they take a trip up to Manchester, N.H. for another conference matchup at Southern New Hampshire University on Saturday, Jan. 30. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m.
For all information regarding Pace University men's basketball log on to
www.PaceUAthletics.com and follow Pace men's basketball on Twitter (
@PaceMBB).
