LORETTO, Pa. – FDU (4-10, 1-1) suffered an 85-82 defeat at the buzzer at Saint Francis (3-12, 1-1) on Sunday evening.
 

KNIGHT OF THE KNIGHT

• Joey Niesman (7-17 FG) scored a season-high 23 points
  • 15 of those points came in the first half
  • Niesman finished 8-9 at the free throw line
• Niesman also matched a season-best with eight rebounds
• The Knights' point guard dished out five assists

GAME STORY

The first half proved to be extremely tight as neither team led by more than six points. Trailing 19-13 midway through, FDU got back-to-back bench threes from Noah Melson and Arthur Cox that tied the game at 19-19. A pair of free throws each from Cox and Niesman made it a 10-0 FDU run as they grabbed a 23-19 lead. Saint Francis answered back with a 9-0 spurt of their own.
 
As the half wound down, the Knights squeaked out a 46-44 lead heading into the locker room. FDU was able to make up for shooting just 3-15 from deep, by going 15-33 from the field and 13-14 from the free throw line in the opening stanza.
 
The second half offered more of the same. Neither team found a lead of more than four points. There were seven lead changes and six ties in the second stanza alone. The game would be decided in the closing minutes.
 
Leading 77-76 with just over 90 seconds left, Saint Francis buried a triple to extend their lead to four. FDU got a much-needed bucket from Jackson on the next possession to cut the lead down to two. The teams exchanged free throw trips and Saint Francis led 82-80 with 15 seconds to play. The Knights forced a turnover on the ensuing in-bound and threw it low to Cyril Martynov, who was fouled on his layup attempt. The center converted both free throws to tie the game. After a timeout, Saint Francis quickly got the ball up the floor and knocked down a game-winning triple as time expired.
 

COUNTING THE CAVALRY

• Taeshaud Jackson finished with 16 points and nine rebounds
  • Second-straight game with 16 points
• Raysean Johnson (3-5 FG) returned to double-figures with 11 points
• FDU limited themselves to nine turnovers
• The Knights were 26-33 from the free throw line
• There were 46 fouls called in the game

WHAT''S NEXT

FDU returns home on Thursday, January 8, at 5 p.m. to take on Chicago State. Fans can catch the game on the YES Network and Gotham Sports App.  
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