HACKENSACK, N.J. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball sets out for its first win of 2019 on Saturday night at Saint Francis U.

Game 14
Fairleigh Dickinson (5-8, 0-1 NEC)
at Saint Francis U (5-7, 1-0 NEC)
Date: Saturday, January 5
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: DeGol Arena (Loretto, Pa.)
Coverage: NEC Front Row | Live Stats 

The Series
All-Time Series...46-45
at Saint Francis U...15-32
Last Five..3-2
Last Meeting...FDU 84, SFU 75 (2/28/18 - NEC QF at SFU)
Led by the clutch shooting of guards Jahlil Jenkins and Darnell Edge along with Kaleb Bishop's career-high 21 points, the sixth-seeded Knights topped SFU and advanced to the NEC Semifinals. Trailing 72-69 with three minutes to go, the Knights closed the game on a 15-3 run to complete the victory. Edge hit the game-tying 3-pointer, which sparked the run and then freshman forward Noah Morgan dropped in a layup for the go-ahead basket. In the win, Bishop made 9-of-11 shots to go along with five rebounds and Jenkins scored 16 with six assists and five boards.

Opening Tip

• The Knights continue their NEC-opening road trip on Saturday at Saint Francis U.
• Saint Francis U (first) and the Knights (second) were selected as the top two teams in the NEC according to the preseason coaches' poll
• Four of the Knights' first five games are away from home.
• The Red Flash are unbeaten with a 5-0 record at DeGol Arena this season.
• Four players are averaging double figures in points for FDU this season: Darnell Edge, Xzavier Malone-Key, Jahlil Jenkins and Mike Holloway Jr.
• Holloway Jr. will square off with his cousin, SFU junior guard Keith Braxton for the sixth time in their careers. Braxton's Red Flash hold a 3-2 lead in the series.
• The key to the Knights' defense this season has been their 8.9 steals per game average, which leads the NEC and ranks 22^nd in the nation. They also are 87^th in the country in turnover margin (+2.2).
• Bishop was named an NEC Prime Performer last week after scoring 13 points with eight rebounds and three blocked shots at South Florida.
• Head Coach Greg Herenda dropped to 5-1 in NEC Openers with the loss at Robert Morris on Thursday.

The Coaches

• 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, including a 2016 NEC Championship when the team earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament featuring the third-youngest team in the nation.
• Rob Krimmel is in his seventh season as head coach of the Red Flash and his his 18th season on the Red Flash bench following a successful playing career at Saint Francis. Krimmel amassed 79 wins in his first six seasons, ranking fourth in program history. In NEC play, Krimmel is 54-53 and has guided the Red Flash to five straight NEC Tournament appearances. Krimmel received his Bachelor of Arts in Secondary  Education and History with a Pre-Law Concentration from Saint Francis in 2000. He then earned his Masters of Education-Leadership from SFU in 2003.

Scouting Saint Francis U
The Red Flash (5-7, 1-0 NEC), who were picked first in the NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll, opened their conference slate on Thursday with an 80-69 home win over Mount St. Mary's (3-11, 0-1 NEC). Senior guard Jamaal King scored 25 points and junior forward Keith Braxton added 17 points and 17 rebounds in the victory. Saint Francis played the toughest non-conference schedule in the NEC according to the KenPom adjusted strength of schedule  and the 11^th toughest schedule in the country. Braxton leads the NEC and ranks 13^th nationally in rebounds per game (10.5) and 1st nationally among all guards.The Red Flash are 5-0 at DeGol Arena this season.

Knights Last Time Out
The Knights dropped their Northeast Conference opener 69-62 at Robert Morris on Thursday night. True to form, the Knights, who entered the game ranked inside the nation's top-30 in steals, forced 24 turnovers but uncharacteristically turned the ball over 22 times themselves in the loss.

Senior forward Mike Holloway Jr. scored a team-high 18 points for the Knights (5-8, 0-1 NEC), while sophomore guard Jahlil Jenkins added 17 points with three assists, two rebounds and two steals. The loss marks the first in an NEC opener for Fairleigh Dickinson head coach Greg Herenda, who entered the night with a 5-0 record.

The Colonials (6-8, 1-0 NEC) logged four players in double figures, led by Matty McConnell and Charles Bain, who scored 15 apiece and combined to hit 9-of-11 from the field. The home team also shot 55.8 percent overall in the contest and outrebounded the Knights 27-24.

Trailing 59-50 with 5:21 to go, the Knights mounted a comeback by scoring seven straight points. Jenkins capped the run with a smooth layup off of a feed from classmate Tyler Jones. With the Knights playing without starting guard, Xzavier Malone-Key, Jones logged a career-high 21 minutes and finished with a team-best four takeaways. Jenkins' bucket fell with 3:58 to play but the Knights were only able to muster five more points over the remainder of the contest as the Colonials secured the conference-opening win.

Coach Herenda's Thoughts
"It was a difficult night for us on both ends of the floor and Robert Morris was just a little more solid team tonight for the entire 40 minutes," said Herenda after the loss. "Other than turning them over, we did not do a good job protecting our paint and ultimately that is what beat us. Conference road wins are very hard to come by and you cannot turn the ball over. We just never took care of it all night."

Next Up
The Knights welcome Central Connecticut State to the Rothman Center for their conference home opener on Thursday, January 10 at 7:00 p.m.