NEW YORK (AP) — Juan Cranford Jr. scored 17 of his 20 points after intermission and sealed the victory with a free throw with one second left as St. Francis (PA) defeated LIU 71-68 on Saturday in a Northeast Conference Tournament semifinal game.
St. Francis advances to the NEC title game to face the winner between top-seeded Central Connecticut and fourth-seeded Farleigh Dickinson on Tuesday.
Cranford shot 6 for 11 (2 for 5 from 3-point range) and 6 of 6 from the free-throw line for the third-seeded Red Flash (15-17). Chris Moncrief shot 5 of 8 from the field and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line to add 15 points. Riley Parker had 13 points and went 4 of 8 from the field (3 for 6 from 3-point range).
Jamal Fuller scored 21 points and Blake Lander 13 for LIU (17-16).
Parker scored 11 points in the first half and Saint Francis trailed 38-23 at halftime. Cranford scored a team-high 17 points for Saint Francis in the second half, including their game-winning shot in the final minute.
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