HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball kicks off a three-game homestand on Friday night against Long Island University. The Knights currently trail the Sharks by one game in the Northeast Conference standings.

FDU Knights (8-17, 6-8 NEC) vs. LIU Sharks (12-15, 7-7 NEC)
Friday, Feb. 21 – 8:00 PM
Stratis Arena – Hackensack, N.J.
Watch: NEC Front Row
Talent: Dan Long & Tom Green
Notes: Knights | LIU
Links: Live Stats | Twitter 
News: Jahlil Jenkins NEC Player of the Week

All-Time Series
Tied 54-54
at FDU..28-25
Last Five..1-4
Streak..L1
First Meeting..LIU 97, FDU 48 (1/22/51 at LIU)
Last Meeting..LIU 84, FDU 70 (1/11/20 at LIU)
All five starters scored in double figures for the Knights, led by Kaleb Bishop and Brandon Powell who scored 17 and 14 points, respectively. Xzavier Malone-Key added 12 points in the loss and Elyjah Williams scored 11 with nine rebounds and four assists. Jahlil Jenkins also finished with 11 to go along with a season-high six assists and six rebounds. Jashaun Agosto paced the Sharks with 20 points on 9-of-11 shooting, while Raiquan Clark scored 19 points with eight rebounds. The Sharks shot 50 percent overall and made 11-of-29 from behind the arc, while the Knights hit 45 percent from the field and 7-of-26 (26.9 percent) from deep. Although they won the battle on the glass 35-34, the Knights failed to net five or more steals for just the third time this season, logging three in the loss.

FDU Last Time Out
The Knights nearly overcame a 13-point halftime deficit but ultimately came up short, falling 76-75 at Central Connecticut State on Tuesday night.
 
In the loss, sophomore guard Brandon Powell matched his career-high with 16 points with six rebounds, while redshirt junior guard Xzavier Malone-Key also finished with 16 and six. Reigning NEC Player of the Week, Jahlil Jenkins scored 14 points with four assists, Kaleb Bishop added 13 points and Elyjah Williams narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds.
 
The Blue Devils (4-24, 3-12 NEC), who were led by Ian Krishnan's 16 points, shot 54.7 percent overall and made 8-of-15 from three-point range in the win. The Knights (8-17, 6-8 NEC) out-rebounded the opposition 35-29 and shot 40.9 percent overall and 9-of-19 (47.4 percent) from long range.
 
Both teams took care of business at the free throw line as the Blue Devils knocked down 10 of their 11 tries, while the Burgundy and Blue hit 12-of-14.
 
Coach Herenda's Thoughts
"All the credit goes to Central -- they have quietly been playing very good basketball of late and they played an almost flawless first half," said Greg Herenda following the loss. "Donyell has done a terrific job with his young kids.
 
"The second half was a completely different story," Herenda continued. "We fought and clawed and were right there but we just came up one big play short. That would have been our third straight road win but now we are home for three straight. This conference is so balanced and so competitive and tonight showed just that."

Next Up
The Knights are back in action at the Rothman Center on Sunday afternoon against Robert Morris. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m.