Box Score

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team earned an 88-85 Northeast Conference victory over LIU Brooklyn on Saturday afternoon at the Steinberg Wellness Center. Sophomore Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John's College ) sank a jumper with 17 seconds remaining that gave the Knights (11-10, 7-3 NEC) an 86-85 lead over the Blackbirds (10-11, 4-6 NEC) and it proved to be the game-winner.

Trailing 85-84, the Knights inbounded from the corner with 26 seconds remaining, Anderson cut inside from the wing and pulled up for the go-ahead jumper.

The FDU defense delivered a stop on the ensuing possession with redshirt junior Tyrone O'Garro (Newark, N.J./Saint Peter's Prep) securing the rebound after LIU's missed shot.  A pair of missed free throws by the Knights would give LIU a final chance with two seconds remaining, but pressure from Earl Potts Jr. (Severn, Md./Archbishop Spalding ) prevented the Blackbirds from inbounding the ball.

After the LIU turnover, freshman Ghassan Nehme (Colorado Springs, Colo./Cheyenne Mountain) stepped to the line and hit two free throws to put the game away.

The victory, paired with Wagner's win over Mount St. Mary's, pushes the Knights into a three-way tie for first place in the Northeast Conference.  FDU, Wagner and Mount are all 7-3 in NEC play.

"That was a next man up road win. Every player stepped up and did their job, but Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John's College ) is evolving  into a big time  closer," head coach Greg Herenda said following the game.  "When this team gets down we are never out. We got down five late and our huddle was very matter of fact - these kids really, really, believe in themselves."

The Knights led by as many as 10 points in the first half, including a 29-19 advantage with 5:18 left in the period.  LIU erased FDU's lead with a 10-0 run over the ensuing 89 seconds, tying the game at 29-29 with 3:49 left in the half.

Over the final 3:49 of the period the teams went back-and-forth with back-to-back layups by sophomore Marques Townes (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph (Metuchen)) giving FDU a 43-42 lead at the half.  Townes' second layup was assisted by freshman DaRon Curry (Deptford, N.J./Phelps School) who stole the ball and passed ahead to Townes.

The FDU freshmen came on strong in the second half with Mike Holloway (Pittsgrove, N.J./Arthur P. Schalick ), Darnell Edge (Saugerties, N.Y./Saugerties) and Nehme combining for 16 points over a nearly four minute stretch that started with a layup by Holloway.  Nehme followed with back-to-back three-pointers and Edge closed it out with a layup and three.  The strong play by the trio helped the Knights keep pace with LIU early in the period.

A late surge by LIU produced a 10-0 run that gave the Blackbirds an 83-78 lead with two minutes left in the game.  The Knights countered by hitting four straight free throws to cut the deficit to one point.  LIU's Tevin Woods pushed his teams lead back to three with a pair of free throws, but Townes hit a jumper to once again cut the deficit to a single point.

Anderson recorded a steal on the next LIU possession to setup his go-ahead basket.

Nehme scored 13 of his career-high 16 points in the second half.   Holloway finished with 12 points and Edge had seven.

"Ghassan and Darnell were huge in Steph's (Jiggetts) absence," according to Herenda, "They are no longer freshmen - they are players."
 
Anderson scored 21 points to lead FDU.  He shared the game-high with LIU's Matrin Hermannsson.

Anderson also dished out seven assists.  Townes finished the game with 18 points, six assists and five rebounds.

The Knights shot 52.5% (31-of-59) from the field and were 45.5% (10-of-22) from beyond the arc.  LIU was 9-of-18 from long range and shot 44.6% (25-of-56) from the floor.  Both teams excelled at the free throw line with the Knights connecting on 16-of-21 attempts and LIU hitting 26-of-32.

The victory pushes the Knights overall record over .500 at 11-10.  The last time FDU was above .500 after 21 games was during the 2006-07.  The 11 wins are also the most in a season for FDU since 2009-10.

"After these last two games these guys need some rest and so do I," Herenda concluded.

FDU returns to action on Thursday, February 4 at Wagner.  The Knights and Seahawks will tip-off in a battle of first place teams at 7 p.m. on Staten Island.