HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team fell to Lafayette 80-76 at the Rothman Center on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Leopards (2-3) used a hot-shooting second half to overcome a seven-point halftime deficit and overtake the Knights (3-2).
 
Four Knights scored in double figures led by sophomore guard Xzavier Malone-Key, who finished with 19 points for the second straight outing and added three rebounds and three assists. Senior guard Darnell Edge scored 17 points and made 3-of-5 from behind the arc, while senior forward Mike Holloway Jr. tallied a season-high 15 points to go along with four rebounds in the loss.
 
Sophomore guard Alex Petrie came off the bench to lead the Leopards with 26 points on 9-of-15 from the field and added four rebounds and four assists.
 
The Leopards followed a 1-for-11 (9.1%) first-half shooting performance from three-point range with a 7-for-12 (58.3%) effort in the second half as they took the lead and did not relinquish it.
 
For the second straight game, the Knights made 12 3-pointers but unlike the win over Princeton, struggled at the free throw line where they made just 6-of-12. Both teams were efficient overall with Lafayette connecting on 54.2 percent and the Knights 46.8 percent from the field.
 
"When push came to shove, Lafayette made more plays that win games than we did," said head coach Greg Herenda following the loss. "People talk about offensive flow all the time but tonight we never got into a defensive rhythm against a very good offensive team. When you make 12 threes and shoot close to 50 percent at home you have a very good chance of winning. Again, we had four players in double figures, we took care of the ball but just didn't finish around the basket well enough to extend our leads tonight."

The Knights started fast and a 17-2 run, which included a pair of 3-pointers by Malone-Key, gave them a 21-10 lead with under 12 minutes to play in the first half. After hitting five, second-half 3-pointers in the Knights' win over Princeton, Malone-Key connected on three of his first four from distance. The Philadelphia product finished 5-of-10 from downtown.
 
The Knights made 7-of-14 from three-point land in the first half and carried a 40-33 lead into the break. Malone-Key led all scorers at intermission with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting, while Holloway Jr. added nine points and four boards.
 
The Leopards shot 50 percent from the floor in the opening stanza with Petrie's 12 points leading the way. Despite their hot-shooting overall, the Leopards struggled from deep, making just 1-of-11 from three-point range in the half.
 
After the break, the Leopards found the touch from behind the arc and knocked down six of their first eight 3-pointers to spur a 15-0 run and eventually take a 67-62 edge with just under seven minutes to go.

Holloway Jr. stopped the bleeding for the Knights with a tough bucket inside, which snapped the game-changing run. However, the momentum continued for the Leopards, who never led by more than six points but remained on top until the final horn.
 
The Knights would get within two in the final minutes after a dunk by Holloway and a 3-pointer by Jenkins but the Leopards took care of business at the free throw line to seal the victory.
 
Jahlil Jenkins finished with 11 points and four assists for the Knights, who out-rebounded the Leopards 34-31 but only forced eight turnovers in the contest.
 
The Knights return to action next Tuesday, November 27 when they visit Providence College. The game, which will air on FOX Sports 1, is set to tip at 8:30 p.m.