PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team dropped its season opener 90-55 to Rutgers at the Rutgers Athletic Center on Friday night.
 
Senior guard Darnell Edge paced the Knights (0-1) in the loss with 17 points, six rebounds and a pair of steals, while second-year guard Xzavier Malone-Key scored 10 points with six boards in his FDU debut.
 
Six Scarlet Knights (1-0) scored in double figures led by Peter Kiss, who tallied 17 on 7-of-9 shooting to go along with four assists. Freshman wing Ron Harper Jr. scored 15 points in 16 minutes of action and converted 7-of-8 from the field in the win.
 
Rutgers used its size and length to block 12 shots and limit the Knights to a 36.5 percent field goal clip including 4-of-16 (25 percent) from behind the arc. In addition, the home team converted 12-of-20 from three-point range in the victory.

"It truly was a tale of two halves," said head coach Greg Herenda following the loss. "I loved how we came out and ran offense, guarded and competed. Xzavier and Darnell got us off to a great start but we could not sustain it for 40 minutes." 

Herenda continued, "Rutgers came out in the second half and made things very difficult for us. They guarded incredibly well and turned our turnovers into quick scores. We will learn from tonight and move on. These games are difficult to swallow at the moment but in the long run these experiences in high-level arenas only help us grow."
 
The Knights scored the first five points of the contest when Mike Holloway Jr. got inside for a bucket then a steal set up a 3-pointer for Malone-Key.
 
Malone-Key's FDU career began with a flurry as the Philadelphia native knocked down 3-of-4 for eight points and helped the Knights capture a 16-11 lead prior to the second media timeout.
 
The Knights led 21-18 after a high-flying slam by sophomore forward Elyjah Williams but the Scarlet Knights would heat up from downtown. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Kiss and Geo Baker led RU on a 12-2 spurt and helped build a 38-27 lead with under four to go in the half.
 
After Rutgers established their first double-digit lead, a pair of steals by Edge and Williams resulted in four straight points for the Knights.
 
The home team netted the final basket of the half, a layup by Harper Jr., and carried a 43-33 advantage into the locker room. The difference in the opening stanza was three-point accuracy. Rutgers knocked down 7-of-13 from downtown, while limiting the Knights to just 1-of-8 from distance.
 
Edge and Malone-Key scored in double-figures with 12 and 10 points, respectively in the half. For Rutgers, Eugene Omoruyi led the way with nine points across the first 20 minutes of play and finished with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double.
 
Rutgers scored the first seven points of the second half before Jahlil Jenkins drove baseline and finished a nifty reverse layup.
 
A 3-pointer by senior forward Nadi Beciri and an Edge layup cut the deficit down to 11, 53-42, with 12:38 to play but Rutgers answered with a pair of treys from Kiss and Issa Thaim to rebuild their cushion. The lead grew to 29 points with 7:07 to go after Montez Mathis converted a three-point play.
 
Rutgers continued to force difficult shots and held the Knights without a field goal for nearly 10 minutes in the second half before freshman Brandon Powell splashed a 3-pointer -- on in his first career shot attempt -- with 2:09 to go.
 
The Knights return home for their next two contests. First up is the 2018-19 home opener against Queens College next Wednesday, November 14 at 7:00 p.m.