Box Score NEW BRITAIN, Conn. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team secured the #2 seed in the 2016 Northeast Conference Tournament with an 81-75 victory over Central Connecticut on Saturday afternoon at Detrick Gymnasium. The Knights finish the regular season with a 15-14 record overall and an 11-7 mark in NEC play.
With FDU leading, 78-75 with 21 seconds remaining, sophomore
Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John's College ) connected on a long three-pointer to give the Knights a two-possession lead and seal the victory. Anderson finished with 16 points and was instrumental in the Knights' strong finish to the first half.
CCSU (4-25, 3-15 NEC) held a 22-13 lead with just over 11 minutes left in the first half, Anderson came to life and connected on a three-pointer to start FDU's comeback. Anderson scored 11 of the Knights' next 19 points, including a layup with 4:18 left in the period that gave FDU its first lead of the game.
"That was a bittersweet victory. On one hand it was a very emotional day for Howie (Dickenman), but it was a great win for our program," head coach
Greg Herenda said on Saturday. "We went 7-2 in the NEC on the road this year. That speaks volumes about the character and constitution of our team."
"These past four days have been crazy. The win at Mount was crucial and then to travel up here and win on such an emotional day is huge. We are a two-seed and that's great, but we just need to go home and get some rest and start preparing for Wednesday."
Sophomore
Marques Townes (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph (Metuchen)) also had a strong first half for the Knights with 13 points. Freshman
Malik Miller (Troy, N.Y./Catholic Central ) contributed seven points and three rebounds off the bench, including the Knights first bucket of the half on a dunk.
Freshman
Mike Holloway (Pittsgrove, N.J./Arthur P. Schalick ) hit three free throws in the final minute of the period to give the Knights a 41-39 lead at the half.
The teams would continue to trade the lead in the second half before the Knights took the lead for good on a three-pointer by freshman
Ghassan Nehme (Colorado Springs, Colo./Cheyenne Mountain) with 8:52 left in the game.
The Knights would lead by as many as nine points in the second half and both times it was sophomore
Earl Potts Jr. (Severn, Md./Archbishop Spalding ) who scored to give FDU the nine-point lead.
Potts finished with a team-high 17 points and also added six rebounds.
Joining Potts (17) and Anderson (16) in double figures were Townes (15) and Nehme (11).
The Knights shot 46.2% (30-of-65) from the floor and 44% (11-of-25) from behind the arc. CCSU shot 42.9% (27-of-63) from the field and 45.5% (10-of-22) from long range.
The Knights held a 36-26 advantage on points in the paint. The Knights also committed a season-low five turnovers and matched a season-high with 11 made three-pointers.
The 15 wins are the most in a year for FDU since the 2005-06 season. The 11 NEC victories are also the most in a year since 2005-06. The 2005-06 season was also the last time that the Knights hosted a home playoff game, which they will do on Wednesday night.
After the game Herenda and the Knights presented retiring CCSU coach Howie Dickenman with a signed banner with the word "Respect" printed on it.
The Knights will return to action on Wednesday, March 2 at Stratis Arena. FDU will host an NEC Quarterfinal matchup with Saint Francis U. The tip-off time of that game is still to be determined.
"It was a great day for Fairleigh Dickinson University," Herenda added. "We had incredible support from our fan bus, our families, our alums and our provost. It felt like a home game for most of the night. It is now time for the Rothman Center to truly become this team's home court on Wednesday."
