Shelton leads Merrimack against Sacred Heart after 21-point outing

By Canadian Press on January 31, 2026.

Sacred Heart Pioneers (10-13, 6-6 MAAC) at Merrimack Warriors (13-9, 9-2 MAAC)

North Andover, Massachusetts; Sunday, 1 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Merrimack hosts Sacred Heart after Ernest Shelton scored 21 points in Merrimack’s 67-59 victory against the Saint Peter’s Peacocks.

The Warriors are 7-0 in home games. Merrimack allows 69.1 points and has been outscored by 2.1 points per game.

The Pioneers are 6-6 in MAAC play. Sacred Heart is 2-2 in games decided by less than 4 points.

Merrimack is shooting 41.0% from the field this season, 5.5 percentage points lower than the 46.5% Sacred Heart allows to opponents. Sacred Heart averages 7.3 more points per game (76.4) than Merrimack gives up to opponents (69.1).

The Warriors and Pioneers meet Sunday for the first time in MAAC play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Shelton is shooting 36.6% from beyond the arc with 2.9 made 3-pointers per game for the Warriors, while averaging 16 points. Kevair Kennedy is averaging 19.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.6 steals over the last 10 games.

Nyle Ralph-Beyer is shooting 45.3% from beyond the arc with 3.0 made 3-pointers per game for the Pioneers, while averaging 14 points. Dashon Gittens is averaging 15.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Warriors: 7-3, averaging 69.1 points, 25.9 rebounds, 11.8 assists, 8.1 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 44.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 65.0 points per game.

Pioneers: 5-5, averaging 77.2 points, 31.8 rebounds, 16.4 assists, 5.0 steals and 2.4 blocks per game while shooting 45.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 76.4 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press

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