HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team tips off its three-game road trip on Thursday against first-place Merrimack in North Andover, Mass.

Thursday's contest serves as a homecoming for FDU Head Coach Greg Herenda, who is an alumnus of Merrimack and still holds the team's single-game record with 22 assists. In addition, Herenda spend four years as an assistant coach from 1985-89 with the Warriors.

FDU Knights (4-13, 2-4 NEC) at Merrimack Warriors (12-8, 6-1 NEC)
Thursday, Jan. 23 – 7:00 PM
Hammel Court (North Andover, Mass.)
Watch: NEC Front Row
Talent: Bill Jensen & Ian Beauchesne
Notes: KNIGHTS | Merrimack
Links: Live Stats | Twitter 

Bonus: NEC Overtime - The Hammel Coaching Tree

All-Time Series
All-Time Series...First-ever official meeting
Last Meeting..FDU 77, Merrimack 62 (Exhibition - 11/3/16 at FDU)
Led by double-doubles from Tyrone O'Garro and Mike Holloway the Knights won a 2016 exhibition against the Warriors.
The Knights trailed by four at the break but turned on the jets in the second half and used a 21-6 run to stake a double-digit lead. Over that stretch, the Knights shot 10-of-17 from the floor and forced five Warrior turnovers. On his team's slow start to the game Greg Herenda said, "Their zone in the first half gave us fits but we were able to make some adjustments and got our fast break going and the sped the game up which was to our advantage."

FDU Last Time Out
Led by redshirt junior guard Xzavier Malone-Key's game-high 23 points, the Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team rolled to an 83-60 victory over Central Connecticut State inside the Rothman Center on Monday afternoon.

Donning their alternate black uniforms for the first time, the Knights registered their best shooting performance of the season, knocking down 53.4 percent overall and draining 11-of-22 from three-point range in the Martin Luther King Jr. Day victory.

Malone-Key notched his point total with an efficient 9-of-13 performance, which included 3-of-4 from long range. Junior guard Jahlil Jenkins added 16 for the Knights (4-13, 2-4 NEC), while sophomore Brandon Powell extended his streak of double-digit scoring efforts to five games by netting 13 points with eight boards in the win.

Junior forward Elyjah Williams contributed to the Knights' 42-36 rebounding advantage by nabbing 13 caroms to go along with nine points, four assists and a pair of blocked shots.

Xavier Wilson topped the box score for the Blue Devils (1-19, 0-7 NEC) with 12 points as the team shot 35 percent overall and just 6-of-22 (27.3 percent) from behind the arc.

Coach Herenda's Thoughts
"I am really proud of the entire team tonight," said Greg Herenda following his team's win. "We went back to the gym and worked our tails off the last four days and this game was the product of four great practices. Individually, we had some great performances but Xzavier was very special tonight. He played with great focus and poise and our whole group fed off of him and Jahlil. Today was a big step in the right direction but we still have to continue to improve possession by possession -- plain and simple."

What's Next
The Knights travel south from Massachusetts to Connecticut to square off with Sacred Heart on Saturday, January 25 at 3:30 p.m.