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Hackensack, N.J. - The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team makes the short drive to intrastate rival Rutgers on Wednesday, December 23.  The Knights (4-6) and Scarlet Knights (4-7) are scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip at the RAC in Piscataway, New Jersey.
 
GAME DETAILS
FDU (4-6) at Rutgers (4-7)
Where: The RAC – Hackensack, N.J.
When: Wednesday, December 21, 2015 – 7 p.m.
Series History: Rutgers leads 10-2
First Meeting: 11/27/81 – Rutgers L, 74-72
Last Meeting: 11/19/14 – Rutgers L, 61-44
Last FDU Win: 11/26/13 – FDU W, 73-72
 
Series History:  This is the 13^th all-time meeting between these schools with Rutgers holding a 10-2 advantage in the series.  This is also the third straight year that the teams will meet at the RAC.  In November of 2013, head coach Greg Herenda's first season at FDU, the Knights earned a 73-72 victory over the Scarlet Knights in a game that was a part of the NIT Season Tip-off Tournament.  The victory was also Herenda's first over a Division I opponent as FDU's head coach.  Last season, Rutgers avenged that loss with a 61-44 victory.
 
Last Season vs. Rutgers:  FDU outscored the Scarlet Knights in the second half, 28-24, but it was not enough to overcome Rutgers' 37-16 halftime lead.  Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John's College ) scored seven points, grabbed five rebounds and made three steals in last year's game.
 
Strong Non-Conference Schedule:  The Knights have played a challenging non-conference schedule so far in 2015.  FDU's six losses have come against opponents with a combined record of 39-19 as of Dec. 21.
 
Coming Up:  Wednesday's game completes FDU's non-conference schedule and also the 2015 calendar year for the Knights.  The team will resume play with its Northeast Conference opener against St. Francis Brooklyn on January 2.  The Knights will follow that by hosting Bryant on Jan. 4, visiting Sacred Heart on Jan. 7 and hosting CCSU on Jan. 9.
 
O'Garro on the Glass:  The Knights have rebounded well in each of their four victories this season and one of the main players in that role has been redshirt junior Tyrone O'Garro (Newark, N.J./Saint Peter's Prep).  In FDU's three victories over Division I programs, O'Garro has grabbed 27 rebounds for a 9.0 per game average.  The Newark native, grabbed 10 boards against Saint Peter's than posted seven in the overtime victory at Lafayatte and grabbed 10 more in the Knights' win against Towson.
 
FDU on the Boards:  The Knights have won all three games this season in which they have out-rebounded their opponents.  FDU was +15 on the boards against FDU Florham, +9 against Saint Peter's and +4 at Lafayette.  In their win over Towson, the Knights were also very close in rebounding margin, being edged out by Towson, 38-36 on the glass.
 
Where the Points Come From:  Of the Knights' 752 points this season 700  have come from sophomores or freshmen, which is 93% of FDU's scoring this season.  The underclassmen are also responsible for 91% (1,836 minutes) of the teams 2,025 minutes this season.
 
Turning Point in Delaware:  Despite losing to Delaware on November 24, that game remains a turning point in the Knights season.  Since the one-point loss to the Blue Hens, the Knights have played five times and posted a 3-2 record with their losses coming to Princeton (6-3) and Temple (5-5).  Over the last five games, FDU is shooting 40% from three and 70% at the free throw line.  Both numbers are significant improvements over their first five games when they shot 29% from distance and 60% from the stripe.
 
Closing in on 150 Wins:  Greg Herenda is in his 10^th season as a collegiate head coach and to date he has amassed 147 career victories across all levels from junior college to NCAA Division I.  He has 18 wins at the junior college level, 12 at Division III and 95 from his five seasons at UMass Lowell when the school was Division II.  He has totaled 22 wins so far in his time as a Division I head coach at Fairleigh Dickinson.  His career record is 147-129 (.535 winning percentage). 
 
League Leaders (as of 12/21): The Knights rank near the top of the Northeast Conference in several statistical categories, particularly on offense.  FDU is first in the NEC in field goal percentage (43.5%) and assist to turnover ratio (1.06).  The Knights are also second in scoring at 75.2 points per game just behind LIU Brooklyn's league leading 75.3 PPG and second in three-point field goal percentage (34.1%).  Defensively, the Knights lead the NEC in total steals (93) and steals per game (9.3).
 
Individually, sophomores Earl Potts Jr. (Severn, Md./Archbishop Spalding ) (15.6) and Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John's College ) (14.3) both rank among the top-10 NEC players in scoring.  Freshman Mike Holloway (Pittsgrove, N.J./Arthur P. Schalick ) is third in the league in field goal percentage (60.0%) and Anderson ranks sixth in assists per game (3.90).  Anderson is also currently first in the NEC in steals with 2.6 per game and sophomore Marques Townes (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph (Metuchen)) is fourth at 1.9 per game.
 
Last Time Out:  Sophomore Marques Townes (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph (Metuchen)) cut to the basket and banked in a layup with 5.5 seconds remaining to give the Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team a 69-68 victory over Towson on Friday night (Dec. 18) at Stratis Arena.  The Knights improve to 4-6 on the season, while Towson falls to 7-4.

The Knights trailed 67-61 with 2:21 left to play, but erased the six point deficit with an 8-1 run to close the game.

A jumper by freshman Mike Holloway (Pittsgrove, N.J./Arthur P. Schalick ) was answered with a Towson free throw that made it a 68-63 game with 1:44 left to play.  Townes hit two free throws with 1:32 left to cut the deficit to three and a layup by sophomore Stephan Jiggetts 54 seconds remaining  made it a one point game.  Sophomore Earl Potts Jr. (Severn, Md./Archbishop Spalding ) recorded a steal on the ensuing Towson possession to setup the Knights' final possession.  On the final possession, after two perimeter passes, Townes cut down the lane and laid the ball in off the glass for the winning score.
 
Five players finished in double figures for the Knights including a team-high 12 points for freshman Malik Miller.  Sophomore Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John's College ) finished with 11 points and Jiggetts, Potts and Holloway each had 10.
 
Coach G on the Towson Game:  "That was a quality win, over a quality opponent.  We had so much respect for Towson going into this game, but we just do not give up.  All three of our freshmen really kept us in the game. Malik Miller, Mike Holloway (Pittsgrove, N.J./Arthur P. Schalick ) and Darnell Edge all stepped up and made their bones tonight.  That is a great sign for the future of this program. I am surrounded by freshmen and sophomores and I love it." - Head Coach Greg Herenda after the Towson victory
 
Strong Showing From Malik Miller (Troy, N.Y./Catholic Central ):  In the December 18 victory over Towson, the 6-9 freshman center came off the bench to play 16 minutes and record a team-high 12 points.  He also grabbed five rebounds and chipped in a block and a steal.  Miller connected on a pair of three point attempts and also hit both free throws that he attempted in the game.  The performance was similar to what he put up, while coming off the bench against Fordham.  In 19 minutes against the Rams on Nov. 21, he registered nine points and five rebounds.