Box Score ST. DAVIDS, Pa. – The FDU-Florham men's basketball team held off a second-half push by Eastern University and defeated the Eagles 71-59 on Thursday night in Freedom Conference action.

Trevor Sykes (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's Boys) led the Devils with 23 points on 8-of-20 shooting. Sykes finished 5-for-12 from downtown and hauled in 10 rebounds in the win. The newest member of the Devils 1,000-point club Will Green (Cranford, N.J./Cranford) picked up another double-double, finishing with 15 points and 10 boards, while John Flete (Flemington, N.J./North Hampton CC) chipped in with 12 points for the Devils in the victory.

The Devils (8-8, 3-2 MAC) outscored Eastern (7-9, 1-4 MAC) 42-30 in the second half after the teams played to an even draw in the first stanza. FDU shot 50 percent (16-32) from the floor and knocked down 6-of-7 free throws in the decisive second half of play.

FDU jumped out to a 7-0 advantage to open the game and led 28-18 with 5:13 to go in the opening half. The Eagles rallied over the remaining five minutes, thanks to the play of sophomore Caleb Knudsen, to even the score at 29-29 entering intermission. Knudsen picked up his fourth double-double of the season, finishing with 13 points and 15 rebounds for the Eagles.

The Devils began the second half by missing their first four shots but their defense stood tall and limited the Eastern offense through the first four minutes of action. After the two teams traded baskets, Sykes drilled a three-pointer to give the Devils a 37-35 lead with 15:22 to play. FDU ramped up the pace and pulled away, building their lead to as large as 19 points, before ultimately securing the double-digit victory.

Sykes posted 10 points in the second half, while Flete picked up all 12 of his tallies in the second period on 4-of-6 shooting. Junior guard Kevin Furlong (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan) added seven points, seven rebounds and five assists for the Devils in the win.

The Devils can attribute the win to their eight three-pointers compared to just three made baskets from downtown by the Eagles.

Next up for the Devils:
FDU continues Freedom Conference play this Saturday, January 25th when they take on Wilkes University at 2 p.m.