HACKENSACK, N.J. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team begins its three-game homestand when Army West Point comes to the Rothman Center on Wednesday night.

Wednesday is also Military Appreciation Night and all former and current military personnel receive free admission to the contest.

Game 8
Fairleigh Dickinson (3-4, 0-0 NEC)
vs Army West Point (5-6, 0-0 Patriot)
Date: Wednesday, December 12
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Stratis Arena (Rothman Center)
Coverage: NEC Front Row | Live Stats
Talent: Dan Long and Darryl Jacobs
 
The Series
All-Time Series...4-7
at FDU...2-2
Knights Streak...L4
Last Meeting..Army 97, FDU 78 (11/30/16 at Army)
In the victory, Army shot 60.3 percent from the floor and thrived from long range, hitting 12-of-23 (52.2%) on 3-pointers. The home team also outrebounded FDU 39-27 in the contest and received 44 bench points. FDU finished the game 28-for-61 (45.9%) from the field but struggled to find the touch from distance and finished just 6-of-21 (28.6%) from three-point land.
Darian Anderson paced the Knights with 22 points and seven rebounds, while Stephan Jiggetts joined him in double-digits with 15 points in the loss. Five Black Knights scored in double figures led by Jordan Fox and Matt Wilson, who tallied 16 and 15 points, respectively.
 
Opening Tip

• The Knights enter Wednesday's contest fresh off of an 11-day break since their last outing, an 18-point loss at Holy Cross.
• The Burgundy and Blue are 2-1 at home this season and 0-2 overall against Patriot League opponents (Lafayette and Holy Cross)
• Allowing 68.1 points per game this season, the Knights currently lead the NEC in scoring defense. The 68.1 points per game are the fewest allowed by the team since the 1999-00 season (63.6).
• Spearheading the defensive effort this season is an NEC-best 8.3 steals per game rate for FDU. Jahlil Jenkins, Xzavier Malone-Key and Elyjah Williams are each averaging 1.5 thefts per contest.
• Up next for FDU is a home date with NJIT this Saturday. The Highlanders defeated Army 77-72 on December 4.
• Senior guard Darnell Edge is just 36 points away from 1,000 for his career.
• Junior forward Kaleb Bishop ranks 30th nationally and second in the NEC with 3.0 offensive rebounds per game.

 The Coaches

• Head Coach Greg Herenda is in his sixth season at the helm of the Knights. Last season, the Knights enjoyed their third consecutive .500 or better season in NEC play as Herenda led the team to a 9-9 conference mark. Under Herenda, the Knights have qualified for the NEC Tournament in four of his five seasons.

• Jimmy Allen is in his third season at the helm for Army and holds a 31-42 overall record. Allen, who spent the previous six seasons on Zach Spiker's coaching staff, was promoted to associate head coach prior to the 2015-16 season before being elevated to head coach in 2016-17. A four-year starter at point guard for Emory & Henry ('93), Allen holds the program's record with 117 consecutive games played and ranks second on the school's all-time assist ledger. He was inducted into the Emory & Henry Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.

Scouting Army
The Black Knights arrive in Hackensack following a 66-61, come-from-behind victory at Air Force last time out. Tommy Funk and Lonnie Grayson led the charge as the team overcame a 17-point halftime deficit to earn the road win. Funk finished as Army's top scorer with 14 points and Grayson tallied 11 in the win. The team is 5-6 on the season and has won three of its last four including a pair of home wins over Binghamton and Fairfield. Prior to the victory at Air Force, Army dropped a road test at the Knights' next opponent NJIT 77-72.
 
Junior forward Matt Wilson has been the focal point of the Black Knights attack this season, averaging 14.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest, while playing just 24.7 minutes per game. Wilson has also converted 63.3 percent of his field goal tries this season.
 
Knights Last Time Out
A cold-shooting second half resulted in a 67-49 setback for Knights at Holy Cross on Saturday, December 1.
 
After carrying a one-point lead into the locker room, the Knights were held to 22.6 percent (7-of-31) from the field in the latter stanza and saw the Crusaders pull away with the win.
 
Sophomore forward Elyjah Williams scored 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting to top the Knights' statsheet and second-year guard Jahlil Jenkins finished with 10 points and five rebounds in the loss. Senior guard Darnell Edge finished with 10 points and added four rebounds to his ledger, while classmate Mike Holloway Jr. totaled eight points and a season-high 13 rebounds.
 
Holy Cross featured four players in double figures led by Austin Butler and Connor Niego, who scored 13 apiece. Senior forward Jehyve Floyd filled up the box score for the host Crusaders with 12 points, 13 rebounds, six blocks and four assists.
 
The Knights, who were playing short-handed with just eight active players, lost the turnover battle 19-12 but out-rebounded the Crusaders 42-36 in the loss. The Crusaders logged 29 points off of the 19 FDU miscues and overcame a 2-for-18 (11.1%) performance from three-point range by amassing 42 points in the paint.
 
The 49 points are the fewest scored by the Knights since a 2014 loss at Columbia.
 
Coach Herenda's Thoughts
"I loved our composure and execution after the first few minutes of the game today. We opened the lead to seven points but the key was only going into the half up one. We had a chance to extend the lead but we never did. All I can say about the second half is that we just completely ran out of gas on both ends of the floor. We had five players out today and they have been out for practice for almost the last 10 days. The wear and tear on our top six took its toll."
 
"Now we have 11 days to rest, heal and prepare for a three-game homestand. I like this group alot but we have to get our key reserves back and have a complete team again."
 
Next Up
The Knights welcome in-state foe NJIT to the Rothman Center this Saturday, December 15 for a 7:00 p.m. tip.