HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson women's basketball team hosts defending Northeast Conference champion Saint Francis U in the Rothman Center Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.
 
The game will be streamed live for free on NEC Front Row, and live stats will be available at fduknights.com.
 
ENTERING THE KNIGHT
The Knights dropped an 18-point fourth-quarter deficit down to as little as three points with under two minutes left at Sacred Heart Monday night, but the Knights could not quite close the gap in a 68-62 loss. FDU began the game shooting 5-of-10 from three-point range and finished the game shooting 43.6 percent from the field and 8-of-21 from beyond the arc. FDU rallied in the fourth period by going on a 17-4 run in the fourth period to close the gap to 62-59 on a Natalie Zamora three-pointer, but Sacred Heart scored eight of the last 11 points from there to hold on for the win. Four Knights scored in double figures, led by Lauren Francillon with 13 points and seven rebounds. Senior Madelynn Comly netted 12 points and three assists, and senior Peniel M'Bikata contributed 11 points to go with five rebounds and three assists. Sophomore Madison Stanley added 10 points off the bench and grabbed four rebounds.
 
LAUREN'S CONFERENCE
Junior Lauren Francillon has averaged 13.0 points per game and 8.3 rebounds per game while shooting 47.1 percent from the floor and making 24-of-28 free throws (85.7 percent) to go with 17 blocks in conference games this season. Francillon has recorded all three of her double-doubles this season in conference play, and has scored in double figures in seven of 11 NEC games. Francillon ranks fourth in the NEC in blocks per game (1.2), 10th in rebounding (6.4) and 14th in scoring (10.7) this season. She is one block shy of becoming the seventh player in program history with 100 career blocks, and she also needs five rebounds to reach 500 career rebounds.
 
SHOOTING COMLY
Senior Madelynn Comly has scored in double figures in each of her last three games, making 17-of-26 field goals (65.4 percent) over that stretch. Comly has averaged 10.5 points per game in NEC games this season while shooting a team-best 51.7 percent from the floor, including a season-high 19-point effort on 8-of-12 shooting against St. Francis Brooklyn last Saturday. The senior also passed 900 career points in that game, and is on pace to reach 1,000 career points in the Knights' final regular season game of the season vs. LIU Brooklyn on Thursday, March 7.
 
DEFENSIVE MINDSET
The Knights have proven to be one of the better defensive teams in the NEC this season, ranking second in the league in three-point field goal defense (30.5), steals per game (8.9) and blocks per game (4.0) and are third in the league in turnover margin (+0.6) and points allowed (65.0). Senior Natalie Zamora is second in the NEC in steals per game (2.3) and senior Peniel M'Bikata is sixth in the league in steals per game (1.8). Along with Francillon, sophomore Madison Stanley also ranks in the top 10 in the conference in blocks per game (1.0, eighth).

SERIES SCORE
Saint Francis leads the all-time series with FDU, 43-22, and has won each of the last six meetings against FDU. The Red Flash won the meeting earlier this season in Loretto, 75-64, despite the Knights outscoring the Red Flash in the second half. Three Knights scored in double figures, led by Comly with 14 points. Freshman Rachael Niles (12 points) and sophomore Madison Stanley (11 points) were the other two players in double figures. The Knights are 13-18 against the Red Flash at home all-time but have not beaten the Red Flash in the Rothman Center since 2016's 73-72 win.
 
SCOUTING SAINT FRANCIS U
The Red Flash (11-12, 8-3 NEC) are tied for second place in the NEC standings with Sacred Heart and have won five straight games after starting 3-3 in NEC play. SFU most recently defeated FDU's next opponent, Bryant, at home by a score of 78-66, with senior Jess Kovatch scoring a game-high 28 points to lead the Red Flash. Kovatch is the NEC's leading scorer, averaging 22.7 points per game, and she is shooting 46.8 percent from the field (42.6 percent from three) in NEC games this season. Senior Courtney Zezza is the NEC's leading shot blocker with 2.9 rejections per game.
 
AROUND THE NEC
Robert Morris is still unbeaten through 11 NEC games, with Saint Francis U and Sacred Heart each three games back at 8-3. St. Francis Brooklyn (7-4), Wagner (6-5), Bryant (4-7) and Mount St. Mary's (4-7) round out the teams in the top seven in the standings. FDU currently occupies the eighth spot, owning a tiebreaker over CCSU due to the Knights' 74-67 victory over the Blue Devils earlier this season. Other matchups around the league on Saturday include a battle of Brooklyn between LIU and St. Francis Brooklyn, CCSU at Wagner, Robert Morris at Mount St. Mary's, and Sacred Heart at Bryant.