WILKES-BARRE, PA. – After picking up their first Freedom Conference victory last week, the FDU-Florham men's basketball team came out strong Tuesday night and took the Wilkes University Colonels down to the final 10 seconds of the game, but they were ultimately defeated 89-87 in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

The Devils (2-22, 1-12 Freedom) have become accustomed to playing in tight games down the stretch. This was the fourth time in the last six games for FDU-Florham that has been decided by four points or less.

It was a career night for sophomore forward Donte Ali (Willingboro, N.J.) who has been filling up the stat sheet over the past few games. Ali shot 13-of-19 from the field and scored a career-high 26 points. As a team, the Devils had one of the best shooting performances of the season, shooting a combined 50 percent from the field. Ali was backed up by a tremendous supporting cast as four other FDU-Florham players scored in double figures.

The first half featured a plethora of scoring as both teams put up 40 points on one another. The largest lead came with around 3 minutes to play in the first half after Ali went to the basket on a fast break and dunked the ball through the cylinder to cap off a 7-0 run for the Devils. The Colonels (12-12, 7-6 Freedom) countered with a 7-0 run of their own to tie the game up at 40 entering the half.

In the second half, senior guards Kevin Furlong (Hazlet, N.J.) and Tymiak Hawkins (Philadelphia, Pa.) started to hit their shots and spread the ball around the court to find the open shooters. Hawkins finished the game with a career-high 16 points, seven assists and five rebounds. Furlong added 11 points, eight assists and five rebounds.

The Devils had a hard time containing the Colonels' shooters from beyond the arc. Wilkes shot 54 percent from 3-point range. Sophomore guard Tyler Jackson was 5-of-7 from deep and had a team-high 16 points in the contest.  With six minutes left in regulation, the Colonels lead was growing and after a Jackson 3-point make, they had a 78-63 advantage over the Devils.

However, the Devils found their groove offensively and began to chip away at the deficit. Hawkins and freshman guard Steve Herdman (South Amboy, N.J.) connected on back to back 3-pointers and the Colonels lead shrunk to six. FDU-Florham was not done yet as Furlong and Hawkins scored on back to back 3-point attempts and it turned into a one score game.

After forcing a turnover, the Devils retained possession of the ball and with 15 seconds left in the game, freshman Ryan Rigby (Bristol, Pa.) hit a jumper off the assist from Hawkins to tie the game up at 87-87.

With ten seconds on the clock the Colonels marched up the floor and fed senior guard Cameron Hinkel for the game winning shot and he delivered, sealing the victory for Wilkes.

FDU-Florham will return to Madison for Senior Night on Saturday, February 21, for a Freedom Conference showdown with the Delaware Valley College Aggies. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.