Anville, PA (November 16, 2019)- On Saturday, the FDU men's basketball team concluded play at the Rinso Marquette Tournament on the campus of Lebanon Valley College. The Devils bested Penn State Schuylkill by a score of 76-56, securing their first win of the 2019-20 season. The Devils improve to 1-2, as the Nittany Lions fall to 0-6.

First Half
After giving up the first basket of the game, the Devils offense went on an explosive 10-0 run, that started with three straight baskets by senior Andy Fleurantin. On the ensuing FDU possession, junior Oliver Ortman drained a three-pointer, off of an assist from senior Kenneth LaRocca. Up 9-2, LaRocca added to the lead, as he hit both of his free throw attempts. A few minutes later, the Devils took advantage of another trip to the charity stripe, as junior Cameron Saintil knocked down a free throw, to cement the 10-0 FDU run.

Freshman Andrew Schulz got in on the action, when he made a three-pointer with 9:59 to go in the first half. With 7:30 remaining in the half, junior Shawn Smith snatched the steal from the Penn State Schuylkill offense, and hit a fast break layup on the other end. Leading 22-8, freshman Joseph Nigro grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled. Nigro netted both of his attempts, extending the Devils lead to 24-8. Continuing to apply the pressure, Fleurantin nailed a three-pointer off of the pass from Ortman. Fleurantin would then return the favor to Ortman, as he hit Ortman for a pass, who nailed a three of his own. Up 30-8, FDU continued to tack on to their lead, as they would head into the halftime break, up 37-13. 

Second Half
FDU started the second frame right where they left off, as they executed on back-to-back three-point field goals from Ortman and LaRocca. With 17:13 left in the contest, Fleurantin gave the Devils their largest lead of the game, hitting another three, to put the Devils up 47-17. With 14:25 left, it was Fleurantin yet again, who executed off a pass from Ortman for the three-pointer. Back on defense, LaRocca recorded the steal, then dished the ball to Fleurantin, who found Ortman for the layup. Both teams continued to trade baskets, but the Devils would hold on for the win.

Familiar Faces
The Devils upperclassmen led the charge with Junior Oliver Ortman finishing with 21 points on 9 of 17 shooting and Senior Andy Fleurantin scoring 19 points on an efficient 7 of 11 from the field and 4-8 from beyond the arc.

D-Fence 13 of
The Devils forced 19 Nittany Lions turnovers and came away with 8 steals.

All-Tournament
Ortman finished as 1 of 5 members of the Rinso Marquette All-Tournament team. He finished the weekend averaging 18 ppg on 13 of 28 from the field, adding 6 three-pointers.

From Coach
"I'm so proud of our guys. We set the tone in the first half, executing on both ends of the floor and that got us the win. Now we need to build on that and make sure it's a 40 minute thing, regardless of score." - Head Coach Jeff Slanovec

Whats Next
The Devils return to the court this week, as they visit Rutgers-Newark for a 7 p.m. tip on Tuesday.