EVANSTON, Ill. – The Fairleigh Dickinson University men's basketball team fell to Northwestern University, 80-53, Sunday, Nov. 18 at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill.  The Knights fall to 0-2 on the season, while the Wildcats improve to 3-0.

After trailing 41-14 at halftime, the Knights responded with a 39-39 second half to lead to a final score of 80-53.  Junior Mathias Seilund (Dragoer, Denmark/Falkonergaardens Gymnasium) led the team with a career-high 16 points.  Seilund went 7-for-10 form the floor including 2-of-3 from three-point range.

Northwestern won the tipoff and took hold of the advantage immediately with a three-pointer from Reggie Hearn.  FDU Freshman Kyle Pearson (Woodbridge, N.J./Woodbridge) scored the Knights' first points of the game to keep them in it early on.

The Wildcats held the Knights scoreless for several periods of time, enabling them to increase the deficit.

In the final minutes of the half, Northwestern outscored FDU, 9-2, and went into the break with a 41-14 advantage.

The Wildcats used perfect free-throw shooting (6-for-6) and the benefit of rebounding to hold the lead.  The Knights went 1-for-6 from the charity stripe and trailed in rebounds, 24-18.

The Knights doubled their point total from the first half in the first 10 minutes of the second half.  Sparked by a three-point shot from Dylan Moody (Philadelphia, Pa./Abington Friends), the Knights saw points from Lonnie Robinson (Deerfield Beach, Fla./Deerfield Beach), Melquan Bolding (Mt. Vernon, N.Y./Bishop Stepinac), Seilund and Yves Jules (Brooklyn, N.Y./Canarsie).

Seilund's lights-out shooting helped the Knights battle back from a 36-point deficit in the final minutes of the game.

In the last five minutes of the contest, the Knights outscored Northwestern, 15-8, to finish with a final score of 80-53.

Overall, the Knights shot 37.1 percent from the floor, compared to the Wildcats' 47.1 percent.  Northwestern out-rebounded FDU, 50-34, and turned the ball over eight times to the Knights' 10.

Freshman Sekou Harris (Plainfield, N.J./Plainfield High School) dished out eight assists in the second half of his collegiate debut to pace the FDU offense.

Bolding added 13 points, while Robinson had seven points and 11 rebounds for the Knights.

FDU will take on Illinois State on Tuesday, Nov. 20 in the second game of the South Padre Invitational before traveling to Texas for the third and fourth games of the tournament.