Game 26
Fairleigh Dickinson (10-15, 7-7 NEC) at Mount St. Mary's (15-12, 9-5 NEC)
Date: Thursday, February 15, 2018
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Knott Arena - Emmitsburg, Md.
Coverage: NEC Front Row

The Knights, who are in the midst of a three-game winning streak and have four wins in their last five outings, travel out to Emmitsburg, Maryland to square off with the second-place team in the NEC, Mount St. Mary's on Thursday night.

The Series...FDU leads the series 29-28
at Mount...FDU 12, Mount 18
Last Five...FDU 3, Mount 2
Streak... W1
Last Meeting...FDU 73, Mount 72 (1/20/18 at FDU)

Opening Tip:
<> The Knights, who have won four of five and currently feature the longest winning streak in the NEC, are coming off of a seven-point win over first-place Wagner last time out, which snapped the Seahawks seven-game win streak.
<> Mike Holloway Jr. garnered College Sports Madness NEC Player of the Week honors, while Darnell Edge was named NJHoops.com's D1 Player of the Week.
<> Edge enters Thursday's game as the nation's top free throw shooter at 95.5% on the season and has yet to miss in conference play (40-40). The team is third in the NEC at 71.4% on the season.
<> The Knights hold opponents to 43.4% from the field, which is third best in the conference and are second in both steals (7.5) and blocked shots (3.5).
<> Featuring the conference's top scorer Junior Robinson (22.3 ppg), the Mountaineers enter Thursday's game second in the NEC standings.
<> The Mount is coming off of a 79-77 loss at Bryant but had won five straight games prior.
<> The team ranks second in the NEC in field goal percentage (45.8%), 3-Pt Field goal percentage (37%), and free throw percentage (72.9%)
<> Freshman guard Jonah Antonio connected five times from behind the arc in the first meeting between these teams and ranks third in the NEC with 2.93 treys made per game. Robinson is fifth at 2.56 and Greg Alexander is sixth at 2.30. The Mount hoisted 39 3-pointers in the first meeting, the most by an FDU opponent this season.

Last Five Meetings
1/20/18: FDU 73, MSM 72 (at FDU)
2/18/17: FDU 74, MSM 79 (at FDU)
1/12/17: FDU 70, MSM 77 (at MSM)
3/5/16: FDU 80, MSM 75 (at FDU)
2/25/16: FDU 67, MSM 54 (at MSM)

Last Meeting Recap:
After trailing by three at the half, the Knights took the lead and weathered a pair of runs by the Mountaineers in the second stanza to come away with the victory. It was a total team effort by the Knights, who registered four players in double figures on the afternoon, led by  Edge's 18-point performance. Edge nabbed five rebounds and five steals in the win, while Jahlil Jenkins scored 16 points for the third time this season and dished out five assists. The Mount was propelled by the three-point shooting of freshman guard Jonah Antonio. Antonio buried five of the team's 13 3-pointers on the afternoon and finished with 17 points. Guard Junior Robinson led the team in scoring with 19 points and seven assists including a 4-of-11 performance from downtown.  Senior forward Chris Wray was 5-for-5 from the floor and logged a full statline of 12 points, 13 boards, five steals, three blocks and three assists in the loss.

Knights Last Time Out:
In front of a raucous Rothman Center crowd, the Knights delivered for its home fans by defeating first-place Wagner 76-69 on Sunday afternoon.

The Knights, who led from the 16:35 point on, snapped the Seahawks' (18-7, 11-3 NEC) seven-game win streak, while extending their own streak to three straight victories. Forward Mike Holloway Jr. tallied 23 points and seven boards on 10-of-16 shooting to top the Knights scoresheet. Junior guard Darnell Edge played a key role by scoring 20 of his 22 points in the second stanza and helped stave off several Wagner runs by draining four 3-pointers.

A relentless first-half defensive effort saw the Knights hold the Seahawks to just 18 first-half points on seven made baskets. The 18 points permitted are the fewest in a half this season by FDU. At halftime, the Knights retired hall of famer Rich Conrad's No. 40 jersey to the rafters – just the second number to be retired in program history.  Romone Saunders led the Seahawks with 25 points, six rebounds and four assists on 9-of-22 shooting in the loss.

Herenda Postgame:
"That game was 100 percent for Richie Conrad and his family, his teammates and the Burgundy & Blue. Our crowd was awesome and we needed it to beat a very good Wagner team."
"Mike Holloway was our leader in the first half. His presence alone was crucial and then he got it going offensively. I also cannot say enough about our three-guard offense (Jahlil, Darnell and Noah). They are gelling on both sides of the floor. They are a lot of fun to coach and I think the fans are starting to fall in love with them as well."
"Again, we just need to continue to improve each and every day. That is the only way we know how to do it here."

Next Up: The Knights visit St. Francis Brooklyn this Saturday, February 17 for a 4:00 p.m. start on ESPN3.