The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team (4-17, 2-8 NEC) looks to snap a five-game losing streak as they hit the road for the first of three-straight NEC road games when they travel to Staten Island, NY to take on the Seahawks of Wagner at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 3, at 7:00 p.m. in the Spiro Sports Center. The game will be broadcast on the radio on WFDU 89.1 FM and on www.fduknights.com.
FDU is coming off a tough two-point non-conference home loss Tuesday night to NJIT in overtime, 64-62, at Stratis Arena. The Knights rallied from 11 points down in the second half of regulation to tie the game at 56 with 2:10 to go. FDU also held the Highlanders to only four points over the final 10:41 of regulation. In overtime, NJIT took the lead for good with 1:39 remaining. After the lead was extended to three, the Knights cut the lead on a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left. The Knights then had one last opportunity to tie or win the game after NJIT went 1-of-2 from the line, but senior Terence Grier (Cranford, NJ/St. Thomas More Prep)'s desperation three from 25 feet out missed to the right. Grier came off the bench to lead the Knights in scoring as he scored a career-best 25 points on 10-of-24 shooting from the field. The 10 made field goals also tied a career high. Senior Mike Scott (Philadelphia, PA/Texas Christian) added 13 points and seven rebounds, while senior Kamil Svrdlik (Prerov, Czech Republic/Gymnazium Zlin) chipped in 10 points and six rebounds. Senior John Galvin (Weston, CT/Weston) pulled down a team-high nine rebounds.
The Seahawks are 10-11 (6-4 NEC) on the season. They have been a surprise in the NEC this year after being picked to finish last in the preseason poll. Wagner nearly erased a 24-point second half deficit before falling to Central Connecticut State, 75-71, last Saturday in New Britain, CT. Orlando Parker matched his career-high with 15 points, on 7-of-10 shooting, with 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the year. The Seahawks are 5-3 at home, including 3-1 in conference play.
After playing Wagner, the Knights will have a quick turnaround and travel to Emmitsburg, MD to take on Mount St. Mary's on Saturday, Feb. 5. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
The Series Versus Wagner: The Knights are meeting the Seahawks for the 90th time, holding a 49-40 lead in the series. The Seahawks and Knights played once in the regular season last year in Hackensack, as the Knights pulled out a 70-65 victory. FDU has won two straight in the series and is 21-21 all-time in games played at Wagner.
