RINDGE, N.H. – The Thomas Jefferson University men's basketball team (1-1) suffered its first loss of the season on Sunday, falling at Franklin Pierce (1-1) by an 81-60 score.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
There were four ties in the opening eight minutes with the last coming at eight apiece. The Ravens went in front, 14-8, with a pair of three-pointers. The Rams answered with seven straight points for a 15-14 advantage at the 7:50 mark. Ahmed Barba-Bey drilled a three and Antonin Kemkeng followed with a pair of layups.
 
After two Franklin Pierce free throws, Hakim Byrd sank a three for an 18-16 Jefferson lead with 7:22 to go. The Ravens then went on a 7-0 run to go ahead 23-18 with 4:23 left. The Rams fought back with seven of the next nine points to even the score at 25. The teams were tied at 27 when Erik Timko put Jefferson in front with a three-pointer at 1:43. However, FPU tallied the last four points of the period for a 31-30 advantage at halftime.
 
The two squads went back and forth to start the second half and the Ravens had a two-point edge (41-39) with 15:25 on the clock. Franklin Pierce then created separation with a 9-0 surge to up the margin to 11 (50-39) with 13:07 left. The Rams responded with nine of the next 11 to cut the deficit to four (52-48). Barba-Bey scored five in the run and Timko added four.
 
It was still a four-point game (59-55) with 8:56 to play. The Ravens then pulled away again, this time with a 19-5 stretch that spanned over seven minutes, and led by 18 (78-60) with 1:24 remaining. Franklin Pierce hit three shots from beyond the arc during the surge. The Ravens held Jefferson scoreless in the final 1:38 of the contest.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Erik Timko: 14 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal
Antonin Kemkeng: 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 steal
Hakim Byrd: 10 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists
Ahmed Barba-Bey: 10 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 3 steals
Bismark Nsiah: 8 points on 3-of-6 shooting, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 steal
 
JEFFERSON AS A TEAM
FG: 21-of-58 (36.2%)
3PT: 5-of-25 (20.0%)
FT: 13-of-22 (59.1%)
 
NOTES
- The Rams were dealt their first loss by Franklin Pierce for the second straight year.
- It was Jefferson's largest margin of defeat since a 73-51 setback against Holy Family on December 3, 2014.
 
UP NEXT
The Rams visit Kutztown on Wednesday, November 16^th for a 7 p.m. game.