Despite a hard-fought second half, the Fairleigh Dickinson University men's basketball team was edged by host University of North Carolina- Charlotte, 65-59, on Sunday evening at Halton Arena in Charlotte, NC. The Knights fall to 4-6 on the season, while the 49ers improve to 8-4 on the season, including a 7-0 mark at home.
Senior Manny Ubilla (Freehold, NJ/Freehold) led the Knights with 18 points, shooting 6-of-12 from the floor. Sophomore Sean Baptiste (North Brunswick, NJ/St. Josephs of Metuchen) netted 13 points and senior Eric Hazard (Long Branch, NJ/St. Benedict's) added 11. Freshman John Galvin (Weston, CT/Weston) led FDU on the boards, grabbing nine.
The Knights took an early 7-4 lead on a lay-in from Hazard, but the 49ers scored six unanswered points to grab a 10-7 edge six minutes into the game.
A three from Murray put the Knights within five, 18-13, but the 49ers were able to stretch their lead on the strength of an 11-4 run, as they jumped out to a 29-17 advantage.
The Knights battled, as Ubilla's third trey of the first half made it a 31-23 game. Ubilla connected on a pair from the line to make it a 33-25 game, but a bucket from Leemire Goldwire with 12 seconds on the clock gave UNCC a 10-point leading entering the half.
Ubilla entered the half leading all scorers with 13 points, shooting 4-for-8 in the first period. Charlotte held an advantage on the boards, 29-19, while earning 18 points in the paint against the Knights' six.
The Knights opened the second half strong, staging an offensive spurt with a 14-7 run to make it a three-point game, 42-39. Ubilla connected on his first three of the second half two minutes in, and Murray took a steal down to the other end of the court for a lay-up. Baptiste connected on the first of two free throws, and Hazard put the rebound of the second shot back in for three.
The 49ers responded with a 12-1 run over the next six minutes, including points five from Ian Andersen, as Charlotte took a 54-40 lead with just over 10 minutes left to play.
The 49ers connected on 5-of-6 from the line to keep the 14-point lead, 57-43, with eight minutes remaining. But the Knights put themselves back in the game, as they sprinted into offensive control, outscoring Charlotte, 12-2. Baptiste poured in five of the 12 points to make it a four-point game, 59-55, with 3:53 on the clock.
An'Juan Wilderness and Dijuan Harris each sank a pair from the line and Gaby Ngoundjo connected on one more free throw to put the 49ers ahead, 64-56. Ubilla fed Baptiste behind the arc to make it a five-point game with six seconds left, but Lamont Mack hit one last free throw to make the final 65-59.
“It was a hard-fought game on both sides,” said Head Coach Tom Green. “Neither team shot very well. Our biggest problem was giving up rebounds, especially on the offensive end.”
The Knights were out-rebounded, 53-43. After shooting 28 percent in the first half, FDU shot 31 in the second and 42 percent from three-point range.
The Niners swatted nine shots, with six blocks coming from Ngoundjo. Charlie Coley finished with 11 rebounds and Wilderness led the team with 17 points. Charlotte received 23 points from its bench.
In the first half, Charlotte put up 13 fast break points, while holding the Knights to two. In the second frame, the Knights recorded 10 points off of fast break situations, holding the 49ers to two.
The Knights return to action when they play at URI on January 2 at 7:00 p.m.
