FAIRFIELD, Conn.-- Junior Nico Galette scored 21 points to lead Sacred Heart men's basketball to a 78-71 victory over Hartford on Saturday afternoon at the Pitt Center for the Pioneers third consecutive win. Sacred Heart had four players score in double figures in the final non-conference game of the season.  

Records:
Sacred Heart: 9-9, 2-1 NEC
Hartford: 4-13

Top Performers:
Nico Galette: 21 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks
Tanner Thomas: 13 points, 6 rebounds  
Raheem Solomon: 10 points, 3 steals
Joey Reilly: 10 points


Of Note:
The Hawks came within one with 2:38 left in the game 67-66, but Thomas and Bryce Johnson scored the next four points for the Pioneers to hold a 71-66 advantage with 1:39 left in the game. Galette scored six of the next seven points for the Sacred Heart to hold on for the 78-71 final.

The Pioneers held its largest lead of the game at 6:15 in the second half, as Mike Sixsmith made a layup as SHU led 61-53, before the Hawks starting to crawl their way back. 

Hartford led by as many as seven points through the opening six minutes of play, but after being down 16-9 at 14:05 in the first half, Sacred Heart answered with an 8-2 run to pull within one, 18-17. Solomon made a three-pointer at 8:41 that gave the Pioneers a 22-20 advantage, for the first SHU lead of the game. Neither team led by more than two points until Thomas knocked down a three with 1:52 left in the opening half, which gave Sacred Heart a 38-35 lead. A jumper by Brendan McGuire with 1:32 left in the half would solidify a 40-36 halftime lead for Sacred Heart.

Thomas scored in double figures for the second consecutive game. The three straight wins for the Pioneers is the longest win streak of the season.

Up Next:
Sacred Heart will jump back into Northeast Conference action next Saturday, January 14th on the road at St. Francis Brooklyn at 1:00 PM.