NEW BRITAIN, Conn. - FDU men's basketball (11-8, 4-0 NEC) kept the good times rolling Saturday as the Knights toppled Central Connecticut, 88-80, at Detrick Gymnasium, sweet revenge for the Knights, after the Blue Devils ended the FDU campaign last season in the opening round of the Northeast Conference tournament. The win over Central Connecticut pushed the Knights' win streak to five-straight as FDU moved to 2-0 in road NEC games this season.

Up only two at the half, the Knights placed 17-of-31 tries from the field (54.8 percent) and would finish the 40-minute game one percentage point shy of the mark with FDU ending regulation with 28-of-52 shooting (53.8 percent). Senior transfer Heru Bligen made his return to the Knights' rotation in the road bout after last appearing in the road non-conference game at Hartford on November 30. Bligen didn't look like someone who hasn't played in FDU's last nine games with the Glenn Dale, Md. product coming off the bench for 24 minutes of action in which he scored six points on two field goals with three rebounds, two assists and one steal.

Trading leads with the home Blue Devils down the back stretch of the second half, junior guard Sébastien Lamaute found himself in foul trouble with four whistles against him and 16 minutes to play in the game. Lamaute shined for a team-high five boards (tied with Grant Singleton) to go along with 13 points with thanks to five made field goals.

Singleton did not start with Tobin Anderson turning to Ansley Almonor, who's been clutch from behind the arc, getting the nod in the starting five. The Spring Valley, N.Y. native Almonor finished with three made triples in six attempts.

"I thought our guys played very well down the stretch," commented Anderson. "CCSU is very hard to guard and both teams made shots and make plays all game. We were fortunate to get a couple big defensive stops. Good team win and nice to have Heru back and making an impact!"

FDU's road trip continues with the first of two meetings this season against Stonehill on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. live on NEC Front Row.

The 2022-23 men's basketball season is presented by Bogota Savings Bank.