MADISON, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham men's basketball team started fast but were unable to maintain its high level of play in an 82-61 loss to Manhattanville College at the Ferguson Recreation Center on Wednesday night.
The served as a major setback to the Devils' (4-14, 2-5 MAC Freedom) MAC Freedom Tournament hopes as they fell into last place in the conference standings, while the Valiants (11-7, 4-3 MAC Freedom) now sit in third place. Each team has seven conference games remaining with the top four teams qualifying for postseason play.
Junior forward Donte Ali double-doubled for the sixth time this season by finishing with 17 points and a game-high 13 rebounds in the loss.
Alex Tuci led the way for the Valiants with 20 points and nine rebounds. The 6'5" sophomore forward also disrupted the Devils' shots all night and added three blocks to his ledger.
The Devils got off to a hot start and raced out to a 20-6 lead just under ten minutes into play. Over that span, FDU-Florham knocked down 8-of-13 shots, while limiting the Valiants to just 3-of-20.
Sophomore forward Veon Lassiter highlighted the start with a driving, two-handed slam, which gave the Devils a 12-point lead. Ali tallied seven points and freshman guard Anthony Mitchell chipped in five, including a 3-pointer during the early surge.
Unfortunately for the Devils, they were unable to sustain the early success. Over the next five minutes, the tide turned drastically and in what seemed like the blink of an eye, the Valiants had taken at 24-23 lead.
Over that five minute stretch, the Devils went ice cold, connecting on just 1-of-12 shots, while the Valiants found the touch, burying 7-of-11, including three treys.
From that point forward, the game belonged to the Valiants, who carried a 44-32 lead into the break.
The Devils' struggles continued in the second half as the home team posted a 29.4 percent shooting clip in the stanza, which allowed the Valiants to stretch their lead to as much as 23 points with 3:52 remaining before closing out the 21-point victory.
Four Valiants reached double-figures in the win, including Charles Nardone's 18 points and Anthony Maestre's 12-point effort. Maestre added six rebounds and five assists on the night.
Mitchell finished with 11 points and three rebounds for the Devils, while James Moran added six points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots.
Manhattanville took care of business on the glass, outrebounding the Devils 54-46 overall and 13-9 on the offensive end. In total, the Valiants finished 32-of-40 (42.5%) from the field, while the Devils ended 22-for-67 (32.8%).
The Devils will look to snap their four-game skid when they head to Dallas, Pa. this Saturday, January 30 to take on Misericordia University at 3 p.m.
