HACKENSACK, N.J. - After a thrilling 93-91 victory over Sacred Heart on Saturday, Jan. 27, FDU men's basketball (10-12, 4-3 NEC) continues a four-game homestand Thursday when the LIU Sharks (4-15, 3-4 NEC) visit the Bogota Savings Bank Center on Feb. 1 at 7 p.m. ET on the YES Network and the YES App. Tickets are on-sale now at FDUKnights.com/Tickets.
 

About FDU

The Knights look to go back-to-back in conference action following the high-scoring win over Sacred Heart. The 184 points were the most in a regulation Northeast Conference game since FDU faced Bryant on Feb. 19, 2022 (105-93). Ansley Almonor paced the Burgundy and Blue with 22 points and the Knights kept Sacred Heart's leader Nico Galette at bay with just two first half points. Heru Bligen heated up in the second period for the Knights with 16 points -- 14 in the second half -- in the triumph.

Almonor hit his 150th career three-pointer against the Pioneers, tying him for ninth all-time at FDU with Sean Baptiste '10. His eight 20-plus-point performances this season are the most of any NEC player in 2023-24. Over his three-year FDU career, Almonor has 16 20-point or more outings, the fourth most since 2010 and the most of any FDU forward. He enters Thursday's game 63 points away from the 1,000 points scored milestone.

In the Knights' last five games, the team is 4-1 while averaging 78.1 points a game (above season average). Sean Moore is FDU's leading rebounder during that stretch, averaging 7.2 boards a game (26 defensive) and Almonor owns 90 points (18.0 a game) shooting 44.3 percent from the field (27-61) and 14-38 from three-point land (36.8 percent).
 

About the Opponent

1-2 in their last three NEC outings, LIU sits tied for seventh with Wagner in the nine-team NEC after the first month of league play. Led by second-year head coach Rod Strickland, the Sharks have struggled to find consistent footing, though they have a scorer in Tai Strickland who averages 15.2 points a night. The Sharks shoot over 40 percent from the field and convert 29.4 percent of their three-point field goal tries.
 

About the Series

LIU visits Hackensack in the 117th all-time meeting between the Knights and the program that is now the Sharks. The two sides are 58-58 against one another in the series that began on Jan. 22, 1951. In the NEC era (1981), FDU leads the regular season series 47-33. The Knights are 3-2 against LIU in the last five meetings, 1-1 at home.
 

What a Win Would Mean

• FDU would make it three-straight wins against the Sharks as the Knights swept LIU last season
• Be the 999th all-time win for the program

 

What's Next

FDU hosts Wagner on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. live on NEC Front Row and the NEC on the Run app.

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.