LORETTO, Pa. – The LIU Brooklyn men's basketball team snapped Saint Francis U.'s eight game winning streak Saturday afternoon, toppling the league-leading Red Flash, 69-66. With the win, LIU moves to 13-15 on the season, and 7-9 in Northeast Conference action. They also become just the third team this season to beat SFU in DeGol Arena.
 
The win was a total team effort for LIU, as all eight players that went in the game scored at least four points, and five different Blackbirds had two assists or more in the win. Senior Raiquan Clark led LIU with 18 points, while sophomore Ty Flowers had 17 points and 12 rebounds.
 
The Blackbirds took an early lead on the Red Flash, but the home team would rally to tie it up and take the lead back almost right away. The two teams were locked in for most of the first half. At the 13-minute mark, LIU put together a small run, using back-to-back baskets from Clark to spark a 9-3 spree that would give the Blackbirds an 18-12 advantage with 10:36 left in the first half. SFU would rally back to tie it up, but Flowers would hit a three at 5:23 that put LIU on top, 26-23. From there, senior Raul Frias added a trey that would widen the gap to 29-25, and Clark added a layup 90 seconds later that would give the Blackbirds a 31-25 lead with 2:56 to play.
 
SFU's Keith Braxon would score five straight points to bring his team back within one, 31-30, but LIU would end the half on a 7-2 run. Sophomore Ty Flowers would cap that run with a three pointer as the half ended, giving the Blackbirds a 38-32 advantage at the break.
 
In the second half, LIU maintained momentum, hitting a big shot every time SFU would make a run. The home team would rally back to tie it up, 48-48 just before the 12-minute mark, but then Flowers hit a three that put LIU back on top. From there, junior Julius van Sauers and Flowers made back-to-back three point shots, and van Sauers threw down a dunk that would give the Blackbirds the 59-52 advantage with 6:18 to play. Just 45 seconds left, Frias would add another three point shot that made it 62-53 for LIU.
 
Over the next 90 seconds, the Red Flash would score six unanswered points that would cut LIU's lead to 62-59, but the Blackbirds held on to the lead. In the final four minutes of the game, LIU would go 5-for-6 from the free throw line, and Clark would add a crucial layup at the three-minute mark. Flowers would give LIU a cushion in the final 11 seconds with his made free throw, and the Blackbirds forced an SFU turnover on the final possession of the game to take the win, 69-66.
 
NOTES FROM THE NEST

• Senior Raiquan Clark led LIU with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting, along with five rebounds.
• Sophomore Ty Flowers had his seventh double double of the season, with 17 points and 12 rebounds. He went 6-for-9 from the field, including four three pointers, and also had three blocks and three assists.
• Senior Raul Frias, and juniors Jashaun Agosto and Julius van Sauers all added eight points for the Blackbirds in the win.
• All eight players that went in the game scored at least four points each for LIU. The Blackbirds shot 47.2 percent from the field as a team, and had 10 made threes to SFU's three.
• The Blackbirds also had five different players with at least two assists in the win.
• Jamaal King led Saint Francis U., with 23 points, four steals and three assists. Mark Flagg added 11 points, while Keith Braxton was held to just 10 points, as the only other player in double digits.
• Up next, the Blackbirds host CCSU, Thursday, February 28 in the Steinberg Wellness Center at 7 p.m.