2012 NCAA DIVISION II MEN'S BASKETBALL BRACKET

PHILADELPHIA-FRANKLIN PIERCE BOXSCORE

WORCESTER, Mass. (March 10, 2012) – No. 8 seed Philadelphia University came up just short of an upset of No. 1 seed Franklin Pierce University as it dropped a 59-58 decision in the 2012 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Quarterfinals on Saturday evening at Laska Gym on the campus of Assumption College.

Philadelphia led 58-57 with 2:08 remaining, but a steal and layup by Northeast-10 Player of the Year Eric Jean-Guillaume with 43 seconds remaining in regulation gave the Ravens the lead for good.

The Rams had one last chance with 2.4 seconds left in regulation but a 3-point attempt at the buzzer by All-CACC first team member Jim Connolly was off the mark.

The game was tightly contested throughout as it featured 10 ties and 12 lead changes.

Philadelphia (19-10) has made 32 NCAA Tournament appearances, the second-most in Division II men's basketball history and own an overall mark of 33-36 in those contests.

Franklin Pierce (22-7) ran out to an early lead as it opened up a 10-3 advantage out of the gate off a pair of 3-point field goals in the first 3:07.

The Ravens held onto the lead until the 7:58 mark when Connolly hit a pair of free throws to give the Rams their first lead of the night at 26-24.  Philadelphia led by as many as three points at 30-27 before Franklin Pierce put together an 8-2 run to close the half and claim a 35-32 edge heading into halftime.

Connolly led a trio of Philadelphia players that finished with double-figure points with 19.  Freshman Nick Schlitzer finished with 17, while shooting 5-of-9 from the field.  Temi Adebayo tallied 14 points and 11 rebounds, his third double-double of the season and his second in as many games.

Ellis Cooper paced Franklin Pierce in the win with a team-best 13 points.  Abu Adedamola added 11 in the victory.