WEST HAVEN, Conn. — New Haven (13-16, 8-8 NEC) fell to Saint Francis (7-22, 5-11 NEC) 73-67 in a closely contested matchup at The Hazell Center. The Chargers faced a nine-point deficit at halftime and, despite a resilient second-half effort that featured seven steals, they were unable to erase the early gap. New Haven outscored Saint Francis 35-32 in the latter half but could not overcome the first-half shortfall.

The game commenced with New Haven's Kheni Briggs (Kennapolis, N.C./The Burlington School) scoring a layup just 15 seconds in, but Saint Francis quickly answered with a jumper by Chris Moncrief, facilitated by Zion Russell at 19:13. The early exchanges saw the Chargers momentarily take the lead with a series of three-pointers, including one by Stefano Faloppa (Portogruaro, Italy/Holy Cross Prep) at 18:00, assisted by Jabri Fitzpatrick (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick). Fitzpatrick, who has scored at least 22 points in three consecutive games, helped spur this brief lead. However, Saint Francis capitalized on their prowess in the paint, with Gestin Liberis delivering a key dunk at 6:22, assisted by Skylar Wicks, to take a 41-32 lead into halftime.

In the second half, Jabri Fitzpatrick (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick) led New Haven's offense with a three-pointer at 18:59 and several layups to keep the Chargers within reach. Despite Fitzpatrick's efforts, Saint Francis' Russell maintained their advantage with crucial plays, including a fastbreak dunk at 5:07. Liberis sealed the win for Saint Francis with a decisive dunk in the final 20 seconds, concluding the game at 73-67.

New Haven Top Performers

Jabri Fitzpatrick (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick)  
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- 22 points  
- 9-of-15 field goals  
- 2 steals  

Teshaun Steele (Worcester, Mass./Darrow School)  
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- 8 rebounds  
- 1 block  
- 2 steals  

Andre Pasha (Syracuse, N.Y./Syracuse Academy of Science)  
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- 5 rebounds  
- 5 assists  
- 2 steals  

Najimi George (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral)  
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- 9 points  
- 5-of-8 free throws  
- 1 block  

Kyle Kearson (West Haven, Conn./West Haven)  
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- 9 points  
- 3-of-4 three-pointers 

Game Notes
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- Jabri Fitzpatrick (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick) has scored at least 22 points in three consecutive games.
- Najimi George (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) has scored at least 9 points in four consecutive games.
- Kyle Kearson (West Haven, Conn./West Haven) recorded a season-high 9 points in this game. 

Up Next

The Blue & Gold will travel to Staten Island, N.Y., to face Wagner College on Thursday, Feb. 26. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.