Box Score BOX SCORE (PDF)

JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Senior guard Darian Anderson poured in a season-high 21 points but the Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team suffered a 77-53 loss to Saint Peter's on Wednesday night at the Yanitelli Center.
 
The Knights (3-4), who entered the game with the 22^nd highest field goal percentage in the country (51.4 percent) were limited to just 26.8 percent by the Peacocks (3-3) – their lowest rate of the season.
 
Anderson was a perfect 7-for-7 from the line and totaled five steals and four rebounds in the loss. The Knights' senior guard now has 180 career steals, which ranks second all-time in school history. Also, with his 21-point performance, Anderson moved into 10^th all-time on the Knights' scoring list with 1,398 points passing Chad Timberlake (2003-06).
 
In addition, to the overall field goal percentage, the Knights connected on only 5-of-24 (20.8 percent) from behind the arc, while the home Peacocks knocked down 11-of-26 (42.3 percent) from behind the arc and 46.9 percent overall. The Peacocks also dominated on the glass, out-rebounding the Knights 49-31 in the contest.
 
The Knights did an excellent job of getting to the free throw line, connecting on 18-of-26 (69.2 percent) compared to just eight attempts for the home team. Defensively, FDU came up with nine steals but lost the turnover battle 16-12.
 
Saint Peter's was led by a balanced scoring effort, which saw five players reach double figures. Forward Nick Griffin topped the scoresheet for the Peacocks and filled up the box score with 19 points, six rebounds and five assists. Junior forward Samuel Idowu was a nuisance for the Knights as the big man connected on 6-of-12 shots, including 4-of-7 from three-point range, finishing with 16 points to go along with eight rebounds. 

"Give credit to Saint Peter's -- they distanced themselves from us early in the second half and we just could not dent their lead," said head coach Greg Herenda following the loss. "We just never got into an offensive rhythm tonight in this building. Darian and Jahlil [Jenkins] made a lot of things happen for us but we needed more than just two guys tonight. Also, Elyjah Williams really competed on both backboards -- but we just looked very young out there tonight. We will learn from this, move on and improve."
 
Anderson canned three consecutive three-pointers for a 9-4 Knights' lead five minutes into play. After a strong start, the Knights went cold and Saint Peter's took advantage aided by a pair of three-pointers by Idowu.
 
With the Knights' struggling to score, the Peacocks captured a double-digit lead, 28-18 with just under three minutes to go in the half. At that point, the Knights were just 6-of-22 (27.2 percent) from the field.
 
A pair of free throws by Mike Holloway Jr. with 2:34 remaining snapped a nearly six-minute scoreless stretch by the Knights.
 
Anderson led all scorers at the break with 15 points but the Knights finished with a 27.2 percent shooting performance, while Nick Griffin and Elijah Gonzales combined for 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting to lead the Peacocks to a 33-27 halftime lead.
 
The Peacocks surged out of the locker room with a 17-2 run to establish a double-digit lead 50-29. The home team connected on all four of its three-pointers by the first media timeout of the stanza.
 
With five points from Anderson, the Knights chipped away and closed to within 12, 56-44 at the under-eight media timeout, however, a pair of three-pointers by Griffin and Davauhnte Turner squashed the momentum and prevented the deficit from shrinking any further.
 
The Peacocks eventually increased their lead to as large as 25 points before the final horn sounded.
 
Freshman guard Jahlil Jenkins finished second on the Knights in scoring with nine points and tallied three assists, while Holloway Jr. and Elyjah Williams each scored five points and grabbed six rebounds in the loss.
 
The 53 points scored by the Knights are the fewest since January 15, 2015 when the team scored 51 in a loss to Mount St. Mary's.
 
The Knights return to action this Saturday, December 2 when they square off with Iona at 1:00 p.m. in New Rochelle, N.Y.