NEW BRITAIN, Conn.  – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team closes out the 2018-19 regular season at Central Connecticut State on Saturday with a chance to nab the top seed in next week's Northeast Conference Tournament.

The Knights, who currently occupy the No. 2 seed, can capture their first NEC regular season crown since 2005-06 with some help on Saturday. In order to surpass first-place Saint Francis U for the top seed, the Knights will need a win, a Saint Francis loss, and wins from St. Francis Brooklyn and Wagner. 

Game 30
Fairleigh Dickinson (16-13, 11-6 NEC)
at Central Connecticut State (11-19, 5-12 NEC)
Date: Saturday, March 2
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Detrick Gymnasium (New Britain, Conn.)
Coverage: Live Stats
Video Stream: NEC Front Row 

Opening Tip

• The Knights, who currently occupy the No. 2 seed and have won 10 of their last 12 games, can capture their first NEC regular season crown since 2005-06 with some help on Saturday. In order to surpass first-place Saint Francis U for the top seed, the Knights will need a win, a Saint Francis loss, and wins from St. Francis Brooklyn and Wagner.
• With 11 NEC wins the Knights have tied their 2015-16 total. They have not won 12 since 2005-06 (14).
• The Knights lead the NEC in FG% (47.2%), 3-PT FG% (39.4%), scoring margin (2.6), Assist/Turnover ratio (1.1), Steals (7.5) and
• Turnover Margin (1.5). Their 39.4 percent clip from behind the arc is ninth in the nation. In addition, their steal total ranks 36th, and the field-goal percentage is 47th.
• Mike Holloway Jr. earned NEC Player of the Week honors on Monday after averaging 23.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game last week. Against SHU on Thursday he scored a career-high 35 points -- the most by a Knight since 2009.
• Greg Herenda picked up career win No. 200 on Saturday against Wagner. He has 75 wins at the helm of the Knights.
• Darnell Edge leads the NEC in both 3-pt FG% (46.9%) and FT% (87.8%). His 46.9 percent three-point clip is eighth best in the nation.
• The Knights overcame a 14-point halftime deficit to defeat Mount St. Mary's on Thursday in Emmitsburg -- their largest comeback this season.
• This season, the Knights are 15-0 when leading with five minutes to play in regulation.

The Series
All-Time Series...25-19
at CCSU..10-12
Last Five..3-2
Streak..L2
Last Meeting... Central Connecticut 103, Fairleigh Dickinson 96 (2OT) (1/10/19 at FDU)
The Knights came back to force overtime on a Darnell Edge 3-pointer at the end of regulation but eventually fell by seven in the second overtime.
The Knights) battled back from a 18-point deficit in the second half, with an earlier Edge three-pointer catalyzing a 15-2 run that provided the home team its first lead since six minutes into the game. Sophomore Jahlil Jenkins finished off the run with a step-back jumper.

The Blue Devils scored the next four points to go up 73-70 with four seconds left. On the ensuing inbounds play, Edge corralled the loose ball and launched a three that banked off the glass and in as time expired.

In the second overtime, the Blue Devils benefited from a 9-0 run that the Knights could not recover from, ending the comeback bid after 50 minutes of play.

Jenkins led the Knights with a career-high of 25 points on 9-of-19 shooting to go with four steals in 49 minutes. Four more Knights scored in double figures as well. Edge finished with 18 points, junior Kaleb Bishop added 15 points and eight rebounds, and Williams contributed 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds and five assists.

Kohl finished with a triple-double for CCSU with a line of 27 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. Ian Krishnan also scored 27 points for the Blue Devils and hit seven three-pointers.


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, including a 2016 NEC Championship when the team earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament featuring the third-youngest team in the nation. The Knights' sixth-year leader earned career win No. 200 on February 23 against Wagner.
• Donyell Marshall is in his third season as head coach of the Blue Devils. Last season, MArshall guided the team back to the NEC Tournament for the first time in four years. Following a successful 15-year playing career in the NBA, Marshall served as an assistant coach at both the NCAA Division I and professional levels. Before taking charge of the Blue Devils, Marshall was on the staff at Buffalo, Rider and George Washington. He is one of just six players in NBA history to have 10,000 points, 5,000 rebounds, 750 blocks and 750 three-pointers in a career. He played with eight NBA franchises during his career and appeared in the 2007 NBA Finals with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Marshall scored 1,648 points, while starring collegiately at UConn.

Scouting Central Connecticut
The Blue Devils (11-19, 5-12 NEC) enter Saturday's season finale in the midst of a five-game skid. The team has been eliminated from NEC postseason contention and has been playing without its leader scorer, rebounder and assist man, Tyler Kohl for the last four games. In their last outing, the Blue Devils suffered an 84-55 setback to  LIU as the Blackbirds drained 16 three-pointers in the contest. Senior Deion Bute enters Saturday's contest as the NEC's leader in field goal percentage at 61 percent, just ahead of FDU's Elyjah Williams (60.4%). Central will recognize the final home game for three members of the program prior to the contest for Senior Day.

Knights Last Time Out
Senior forward Mike Holloway Jr. registered a double-double and propelled Knights to a come-from-behind 65-59 win over The Mount on Thursday.

Holloway racked up 18 points and 14 rebounds on 7-of-13 shooting in the win and did most of his work in the second half where he scored 16 points. Four Knights scored in double figures as sophomore Xzavier Malone-Key had 12 points, classmate Jahlil Jenkins had 11 and senior guard Darnell Edge added 10.

After scoring just 20 points and trailing by 14 points at the half, the Knights shot 53.6 percent in the second half and raised their overall field goal percentage to 42.9 percent.

The Knights entered the game ranked seventh nationally in three-point field goal percentage but connected on just 3-of-12 from deep in the win.

The Burgundy and Blue out-rebounded the Mountaineers (8-22, 5-12 NEC) 41-34 in the contest and limited them to 33.9 percent from the floor.

Coach Herenda's Thoughts
"Mike's second half alone may be a better performance than his 35-point night he had a few weeks ago," said head coach Greg Herenda. "He played like a senior captain that literally willed his team to a huge road victory. It was great to see Xzavier step up when we needed a big shot and he had a bunch of crucial takes to the hoop. Jahlil had a tremendous second half but ultimately the guys just kept their poise and gutted that victory out.'

Up Next
The Knights will host an NEC Tournament Quarterfinal game on Wednesday, March 6 at the Rothman Center. The opponent and tip-off time are yet to be determined.