NEW BRITAIN, Conn. - Suffering a 17-point setback at St. Francis Brooklyn on Thursday, February 3, the Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team (2-16, 3-8 NEC) hits the road for the final game of the roadtrip as the Knights face Central Connecticut on Saturday, February 5, for the second time in six days. Tip-off from Detrick Gymnasium is set for 1 p.m. live on NEC Front Row.

FDU received a win in the conference standings following Mount St. Mary's COVID-19 related forfeit on December 29 giving the Knights a 1-0 start in NEC play. Following the cancellations against Merrimack (January 6) and Bryant (January 8), FDU was assigned a loss in the NEC standings for each contest. The forfeits do not impact the Knights' overall record.

Game Info 
FDU (2-16, 3-8 NEC) at Central Connecticut (6-15, 3-7 NEC)
Saturday, February 5, at 1 p.m. -- Detrick Gymnasium (New Britain, Conn.)
Coverage: NEC Front Row | Live Stats
Tickets
In-Game Updates: @FDUKnightsMBB

Media Game Notes
FDU | CCSU | NEC Weekly Release

All-Time Series
FDU leads 29-21
First Meeting...FDU 75, Central Connecticut 74 (12/14/1988)
Last Meeting...FDU 75, Central Connecticut 55 (1/30/2022)
 
Scouting the Blue Devils
After facing FDU on January 30, Central Connecticut fell in a two-point battle to league-leading Wagner, 54-52, in New Britain. The Blue Devils trailed by 24 with 16:39 to play before getting with one point with 1:26 to go. The Seahawks would hold off the rally to remain unbeaten in league play. CCSU junior Ian Krishnan scored his 1,000th career point in the game with a foul shot at the 7:05 mark of the second half. Freshman Andre Snoddy had 10 points and 10 rebounds to lead CCSU. Freshman Joe Ostrowsky added 10 points, while senior Stephane Ayangma grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds. Central shot 18-of-60 (.300) overall and went 6-of-26 (.231) on three-pointers. The Blue Devils went 10-of-15 (.667) at the foul line. The Blue Devils' defense would buckle down after an Elijah Ford jumper with 14:08 to play. CCSU limited Wagner to two foul shots during a 12-2 run over a 6:48 span. Krishnan had six points during the spurt and a three-pointer by freshman Trenton McLaughlin would make it 45-33 with 8:15 to play.

More on the Blue Devils

Scouting the Knights
With junior guard Brandon Rush leading the charge with 17 points, the Fairleigh Dickinson men's basketball team was never too far from reach of St. Francis Brooklyn as the Burgundy and Blue (2-16, 3-8 NEC) fell to the Terriers by a final score of 81-64 Thursday evening at the Daniel Lynch '38 Gymnasium in an ESPN+ showdown. St. Francis Brooklyn cruised a 4-0 lead in the first two minutes before sophomore Mikey Square Jr. landed the floater at 17:58 in the first half to cut the deficit in half. The co-captain would go on to score the Knights' next two points to bring the Knights back within three at 7-4. He finished with a Knights-leading four blocks. Rush would first get his name in the boxscore after earning the assist on fellow junior Devon Dunn's bucket to make it a one-point game. Dunn finished the contest with seven points, earning the start playing 27 minutes for Greg Herenda's side. The Washington, D.C. product added four boards, two assists and a steal. Freshman Anquan Hill did the gritty work, tallying a team-high six rebounds with all but two coming on the defensive side of the ball. The Knights held the lead twice in the road bout, with the largest lead for FDU being two points just before the under-16 electronic media timeout in the first half. Rush finished the game shooting 6-for-13 from the field, leading the Burgundy and Blue and further separated himself from the pack as the junior now sits with 121 points in conference games this season. Square sits behind him with 88. Square's four blocked shots were the most of any Knight in a game this season. "Give credit to St. Francis, they are playing on all cylinders right now. We just could not stop them all-night long," remarked Herenda.

Full St. Francis Brooklyn Recap

What's Next
Returning home, the Knights will face Saint Francis U (Pa.) on Thursday, February 10, at 7 p.m. for Jewish Heritage Night and Sacred Heart on Saturday, February 12, for the Hall of Fame Celebration as part of FDU's Division I Athletics Hall of Fame Weekend, presented by Marriott Saddle Brook.

Fans can stay connected with FDU men's basketball on Instagram and Twitter, @FDUKnightsMBB.

The 2021-22 men's basketball season is presented by Bogota Savings Bank.