CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - FDU men's basketball (6-8, 0-0 NEC) fell to No. 11/9 Illinois (10-2, 1-0 B1G) Friday evening 104-71 in front of a sold-out State Farm Center in the final game of 2023.
FDU came within six of the Fighting Illini under the four-minute mark of the first half, but the No. 11-ranked team in the nation created a 20-point lead down the stretch of the opening period, an advantage that would grow up to the final buzzer of the non-conference matchup.
Despite falling behind in the infant minutes of the ballgame, the Knights created chances in transition as punctuated by FDU's first of 12 three-pointers courtesy of graduate student guard
DeVante Jamison's (Dorchester, Mass./Jeremiah E. Burke) dish to senior forward
Sean Moore (Columbus, Ohio/Reynoldsburg). The bucket tied the game at five points all, the lone tie mark of the game.
FDU forced three Illinois turnovers in the first four minutes. The Burgundy and Blue's signature press kicked into gear as the first half marched on.
Jack Castleberry's team created 11 turnovers in the first 20 minutes.
The Knights attempted just one free throw in the first half, an 'and-one' make by senior guard
Joe Munden Jr. (Harlem, N.Y./Monsignor Scanlan). The home Illini went to the line 13 times in the first half, making 10 of their attempts from 15-feet (76.9 percent).
Coming out of the break, each team scored an even 12 points in the first 12 minutes before the first place team in the Big Ten Conference went on to score 44 additional points to seal their seventh home victory of the campaign.
During the back-and-forth moments after the intermission,
Jo'el Emanuel (Suffern, N.Y./Suffern) nailed the execution of an end line out-of-bounds set with D. Jamison sending the lob perfectly for a SportsCenter-esque slam. Emanuel ended his night with a trio of field goals (two three-pointers).
Illinois was the beneficiary of balanced scoring with six Illini players posting 10 points or higher, led by Dain Dainja's 19. FDU's
Ansley Almonor (Spring Valley, N.Y./St. Joseph Regional [Mont.]) led all scorers with 20 points while adding three rebounds, an assist, steal and blocked shot. The 20-point-or-higher outing was Almonor's 14th at FDU, tied for the most in a three-year span with former Knight
Demetre Roberts hitting the mark (all accomplished in 2023-24 season).
'Bullet' [D. Jamison] continued to dish out assists as the NEC leader contributed a team-high five on the evening. FDU's five blocked shots set a new game high this season.
The loss was FDU's third-straight as the Knights slip to 3-6 on the road.
FDU men's basketball has a clean slate to start off 2024 as the Knights travel to North Andover, Mass. to face Merrimack in a rematch of the 2023 NEC tournament final at Lawler Arena on Thursday, Jan. 4 at 7 p.m. ET on NESN (New England region) and NEC Front Row. FDU returns home on Saturday, Jan. 6 at 2 p.m. ET in the first-ever meeting between the Knights and Le Moyne, the NEC's newest members, live on the YES Network and streaming on the YES App.
Tickets for the matchup against Le Moyne are on-sale now at
FDUKnights.com/Tickets.
Connect with FDU men's basketball on
X and
Instagram,
@FDUKnightsMBB.
Bogota Savings Bank is the presenting sponsor for the 2023-24 FDU men's basketball season.
