HACKENSACK, N.J. - The Knights sought redemption and got it - and then some! FDU men's basketball logged win No. 17 on the season as the Knights blew past St. Francis Brooklyn 86-69 in the regular season finale at Stratis Arena on Senior Day. With the win, the Knights, selected tied for sixth in the NEC Preseason Poll, locked up the second seed in the upcoming Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Championship, beginning on Wednesday, March 1.

After celebrating Heru Bligen, Pier-Olivier Racine, Daniel Rodriguez, Demetre Roberts and Grant Singleton in a pregame ceremony, head coach Tobin Anderson gave the start to the quartet and after the opening tip was won by Racine, Rodriguez etched the first bucket of the game 20 seconds in, followed by a made free throw by Racine to give the Knights a 3-0 lead.

Bringing on everyday starters Ansley Almonor, Joe Munden Jr. and Sean Moore, FDU expanded to a 7-0 advantage, opening up 75 percent from the field (3-for-4) before conceding the first points of the afternoon to the Terriers.

Coming off an outing in which FDU tallied just three triples, the Knights went off for four in the first 20 minutes which was led by Almonor who recorded 11 points in the first half. St. Francis Brooklyn would have their only lead of the game in the first half coming out the under-12 media timeout following two free throws after a technical foul was accessed against the Knights' head coach. Down 15-14 with 9:52 to play before the break, FDU hit back-to-back buckets, first a jumper by Bligen, followed by a steal and finish off the hands of freshman Brayden Reynolds.

Leading by four at halftime, FDU started off the final 20 with possession and an 8-2 run to open up a 10-point lead. Almonor contributed 12 points in the second half to finish with a game-high 23 points, shooting a perfect 6-for-6 from behind the arc, the second time this season the Spring Valley, N.Y. native shot a career-high six threes against St. Francis Brooklyn.
 
Holding off a 13-3 run by the Terriers to close the ballgame, FDU fired on all cylinders with Moore ending the game on 5-of-6 shooting and Munden hot from the floor, 3-for-4 in his final four tries.

12 Knights scored in the contest, including all five Senior Day honorees while the team's 60 percent three-point shooting (12-for-20) is the most in a game this season for FDU.

Tripling their game-over-game assist total to 24 from eight dishes against the Red Flash on Thursday - the most against a Division I opponent this season.

"I thought we played very unselfish in the second half. First half was kind of sluggish," said Anderson. "In the second half we shared the ball and made unselfish plays. When you make shots life is a little easier. The credit goes to the players. Since we got together in July, these guys have been great in their commitment to work hard and play together. We're getting better and there's still a ways to go and get ready for Wednesday."

The Knights await their matchup in the 2023 NEC tournament quarterfinal with the six-time NEC champions scheduled to host on Wednesday, March 1 at 7 p.m. Fans are encouraged to arrive early for a 2023 postseason t-shirt. Tickets for the game are on-sale now at FDUKnights.com/MBBQF.

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