HACKENSACK, N.J. – The defending Northeast Conference champion Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team opened conference play with a comfortable 77-65 victory over Saint Francis University at Stratis Arena on Thursday night.
 
The Knights (3-9, 1-0 NEC) exhibited a spirited defensive effort, forcing 16 turnovers and limiting the conference's top scoring team to just 65 points.  Junior swingman Earl Potts Jr. was at the forefront with three steals to go along with seven points and a game-high nine rebounds.
 
Darian Anderson, who was honored prior to the game for eclipsing the 1,000-career point mark, led all scorers with 18 points. Sophomore forward Mike Holloway was an efficient 8-of-10 from the field and scored 16 points in his 28 minutes of action.
 
The Knights held the Red Flash (3-9, 0-1 NEC), who entered the game ranked 24^th in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage, to 33.3 percent from behind the arc and 38.7 overall.

In the win, the Knights dished out a season-high 20 assists. The assist output is the highest since the team matched the total last season in a 92-73 win over Central Connecticut State. 
 
"It feels good to play defense, to rebound and to win again -- it's been awhile which make it feel that much better," said head coach Greg Herenda following the win. "Saint Francis is a very young and talented team but once we got our sea legs under us we played some not perfect but good basketball."

Herenda continued, "That was the first time that our starting five has been together the entire year. We are still very much a work in progress but 20 assists and a 19-point run are some great signs. We still need to improve -- and we will."

A 3-for-4 start from downtown allowed the Red Flash to stake an early 15-9 lead as Jamaal King connected twice from distance, however, five forced turnovers sparked a 15-0 run for the Knights -- highlighted by a corner 3-pointer from Darnell Edge – and the defending conference champs opened up a 24-15 lead midway through the half. Over that stretch, the Knights held the Red Flash to 0-for-5 from the field.
 
After the hot start from 3-point land, the Red Flash missed their final nine shots of the half from behind the arc.
 
The Knights remained in control for the duration of the stanza and after back-to-back 3-pointers from Ghassan Nehme, the team held a 19-point lead (42-23) with 1:30 to go. Nehme finished with those six points and added five rebounds and three assists to his ledger in his return to the lineup. 
 
A three-point play by King sent the Red Flash into the break down 42-26. King led the Red Flash with 11 points in the half but the stifling Knights defense limited the team to just 34.4 percent shooting.
 
The tenacious first half defensive effort by the Knights resulted in 11 Red Flash Turnovers. Anderson and Edge tallied two steals apiece as the Knights netted seven in total. For the game, Fairleigh Dickinson netted a season-high 10 steals.
 
Anderson's eight first half points led a balanced scoring attack, which saw six Knights tally five or more points. As a team, FDU registered a 54.3 percent shooting clip from the floor.
 
With the Knights leading 50-34 early in the second half, the Red Flash chipped away and cut the deficit to single-digits with 11 minutes to go.
 
Over that span, the Red Flash tallied a 15-6 run and pulled to within seven, 56-49, aided by five points from Randall Gaskins Jr. The Knights were hurt by five turnovers during that stretch.
 
The Knights responded with an 11-2 run, which rebuilt the cushion to 67-51 with six minutes to play in regulation.
 
Over the final minutes, the Knights had an answer for every Red Flash bucket as they sealed the conference opening victory. 

In the loss, Keith Braxton led the Red Flash with 15 points and five rebounds, while King finished with 14 points and Josh Nebo chipped in 11 points to go along with a team-best eight boards.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson is back home for their next contest when they host Robert Morris this Saturday, December 31 at 3:00 p.m.