HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson women's basketball team played tough defense against one of the better shooting teams in the Northeast Conference but suffered a 64-53 loss in the Rothman Center.
 
The Knights (5-13, 2-5 NEC) held a team that is averaging a .417 mark from beyond the arc to just 3-of-17 (.176) from three and .403 from the field, also below their season average of .440. FDU started the game 8-of-18 from the field (.444) but then suffered a cold-shooting second period as the Terriers (11-8, 5-2 NEC) went ahead by double-digits and held that lead through the second half.
 
Junior Lauren Francillon recorded her second straight double-double, leading the Knights with 16 points and 10 rebounds and finishing 8-of-19 from the floor. She also led the team with four blocks.
 
"They're the highest scoring team in the league and we held them to about 10 points below their average," head coach Peter Cinella said after the game. "We defended the three-point line very well and basically made the same amount of field goals as them. What they did is outscore us from the line 11-3, and that hurt us a bit. We had a rough quarter where we didn't play the tempo and make the shots that we needed. The other three quarters we basically played them even. We got to find a way to play all four quarters."
 
Sophomore Madison Stanley added eight points and two blocks, and freshman Makayla Thompson finished with seven points and two assists. Senior Natalie Zamora contributed four points, six rebounds and three steals, while senior Peniel M'Bikata grabbed seven rebounds to go with four points and two assists. Senior Madelynn Comly also scored eight points along with five rebounds and three steals.
 
Francillon started with four points and Zamora contributed a layup to help FDU start the game with a 6-4 advantage. A Terrier jumper tied it and another gave the visitors their first lead a few minutes later, but M'Bikata drove for a layup to knot the score back even.
 
Junior Jenna Clark sank a three-pointer from the wing to provide FDU the advantage again at 13-12, but St. Francis Brooklyn ended the period on a 9-2 run to take a 22-17 lead.
 
Both teams struggled to score to start the second quarter, with two Terriers baskets representing the only points through the first 6:30 of the period before Thompson ended the drought with a jumper. St. Francis Brooklyn increased its lead to 14 at the halftime break, 35-21.
 
The Knights matched St. Francis Brooklyn with 15 points in the third quarter, ending the period with eight points in the last three minute. A Comly layup in the final seconds made it 50-36.
 
Thompson started the fourth quarter with a driving layup to cut the deficit down to 12, but the Terriers answered with seven straight points. A Stanley jumper with 3:41 remaining started a run for the Knights that was followed by back-to-back layups from Francillon. Thompson sank a free throw to drop the deficit down to 10, but the Terriers worked the clock down to prevent a possible FDU comeback bid.
 
FDU won the turnover battle, forcing 14 Terrier turnovers while committing only 12, but the Terriers had the slight edge on the boards, 43-40. The Knights finished with eight blocks for the second game in a row and recorded 10 steals but shot only .343 (24-of-70) from the floor and were limited to just six free throw attempts, making three.
 
The Knights have a quick turnaround before their next game, hosting Bryant Monday night in the Rothman Center at 7 p.m., and continuing their home stand with their third straight home game.