FAIRFIELD, Conn. – A balanced and efficient scoring attack led the Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team to an 82-69 win over Sacred Heart at the Pitt Center on Thursday night.
Senior guard
Jahlil Jenkins led four Knights (9-14, 8-9 NEC) in double figures as the team kept its NEC Tournament hopes alive entering tomorrow's regular-season finale.
The Knights shot 54.7 percent from the field aided by a 5-for-6 effort from freshman forward
John Square Jr., who finished with a career-high 15 points in 19 minutes of action. Senior forward
Elyjah Williams scored 13 points with six rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots, while sophomore guard
Brandon Rush joined the trio in double figures with 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
Coach Herenda Postgame (Video)
How it Happened
- The teams traded leads in the early going before the Pioneers established a 22-16 edge midway through the half.
- Trailing by five with 6:28 remaining in the half, the Knights outscored the Pioneers 17-6 over the final six-plus minutes with Jenkins leading the charge.
- The teams exchanged the lead twice in the final 90 seconds before the Knights extended their lead to two possessions when Jenkins nabbed a steal and finished at the other end with a behind-the-back move and layup.
- The Burgundy and Blue shot over 51 percent from the field in the half and led 42-36 at the break.
- Williams' nine points and four rebounds paced the Knights in the stanza.
- Five minutes out of the break, an 11-0 FDU run was highlighted by a three-pointer by Rush, which extended the Knights' lead to 13, 51-38.
- The Knights out-scored the Pioneers 15-3 over the first seven minutes of the half.
- A pair of free throws by Brandon Powell increased the Knights' cushion to 18, 57-39 with 13:41 to go.
- After the Pioneers cut the lead down to 11, the Knights countered as Williams and Square Jr. each assisted each other on a layup as the lead grew to 19 for the first time, 67-48 with 7:30 to play in regulation.
- The Knights remained in control and maintained a double-digit lead until the final horn.
Inside the Box Score
- The game featured nine lead changes and four ties.
- With the win, the Knights ended a four-game losing streak at Sacred Heart.
- The Knights made 17 of their free throw attempts and are 28-of-29 at the line as a team over the last two games.
- The 17-for-17 performance at the charity stripe is the team's most makes without a miss since at least 1997.
- The teams tied with 28 rebounds apiece but the Knights won the turnover battle 16-11.
- The Knights' 54.7 percent shooting effort is their second-highest output this season.
- Jenkins, who ranks fourth all-time at FDU in points, enters the regular-season finale with 1,688 career points, 13 shy of third on the Knights' list.
- Tyler Thomas, who entered the night as the NEC's leading scorer, topped the box score for the Pioneers with 22 points on 7-of-14 from the field.
- A win tomorrow gives the Knights their sixth-straight season with a .500 better or record in NEC play, as well as, an opportunity for their sixth-straight postseason appearance.
Next Up
These two teams close out their regular season tomorrow with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m. in Fairfield.
