HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team led by nine points at the half but was unable to hold off Hofstra, falling 73-58 at the David S. Mack Center on Monday night.
Senior guard
Jahlil Jenkins paced the Knights (0-3) with 17 points, four rebounds and three assists, while sophomore guard
Brandon Rush chipped in 16 points and five rebounds.
Coach Herenda's Thoughts
"Our guys played their hearts out tonight," said head coach
Greg Herenda following the game. "We played a very efficient first half but we wore down in the second half and lets make no mistake about it, Hofstra is a very good basketball team."
"This team continues to get better every single day but it is going to take time to play consistently for the entire 40 minutes. Everyone is getting so much valuable experience right now and this will help us in our upcoming conference season and beyond."
"Tonight you could see glimpses of the greatness of
Jahlil Jenkins and
Brandon Rush and once everyone else gets on the same page we are going to be a very dangerous team come January, February, and into March. I am very, very proud of this team and how they are improving and staying together during these most difficult times. We just have to continue to stay the course."
How It Happened
- After falling behind 20-11 over the game's first eight minutes, the Knights rallied back.
- Over the final 11 minutes of the stanza, the Burgundy and Blue defense held the home team to just one field goal on 1-of-15 shooting.
- The Knights nabbed their first lead when freshman guard Joe Munden Jr. buried a three-pointer from the top of the key, 29-27, with just over five minutes to play in the half.
- With the defense locked in, the Knights flipped their nine-point deficit and turned it into a nine-point halftime lead, 40-31, as Jenkins beat the buzzer with a floater.
- The hosts erased the Knights' nine-point halftime edge almost immediately.
- With all the momentum on its side, Hofstra's lead reached double-digits, 59-48, thanks to a 12-1 run which spanned nearly seven minutes.
- The Knights' deficit grew to as many as 19 points before the final horn sounded.
Inside the Box Score
- In the opening half, the Knights shot 41.8 percent but posted just a 25 percent (6-of-24) second-half clip from the field.
- Hofstra knocked down 50 percent of their second-half tries. Tareq Coburn led the charge for the Pride with 21 points on 7-of-13 from the field.
- Reigning NEC Rookie of the Week, Pier-Olivier Racine scored six points with five rebounds.
- Senior forward Oscar Okeke registered his first points of the season for the Knights.
- The Knights lost the battle on the glass 40-30 and committed 17 miscues in the loss.
Next Up
The Knights visit Providence this Saturday, December 5 to take on the Friars. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. on FS2.
