Retrievers Take Knights Men's Hoops, 87-62
Felton records double-double, Hammond nets 20 in defeat.

Box Score/Play-by-Play

Hackensack, NJ – Senior center James Felton (Jersey City, N.J.) recorded a double-double, his first of the year, with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and senior forward Matt Hammond (Burlington, N.J.) netted 20 points and pulled in eight boards, but the Fairleigh Dickinson (1-13, 1-4 NEC) men’s basketball team fell short, 87-62, at the hands of visiting UMBC (7-5, 3-2 NEC) at the Rothman Center this evening.  Four Retrievers scored in double digits, led by Malik Wallace’s (Camden, N.J.) effort of 17 points, six rebounds and five assists.

            With 5:35 remaining and the contest knotted at 66-66, UMBC seized control by scoring the next nine points to pull ahead 75-66.  Peter Mulligan (Bronx, N.Y.) highlighted the run with six of his 16 points.  The Retrievers went on to seal the game by scoring 21 of the final 27 points, seven of them at the free throw line.

            After 10 lead changes, the Knights trailed 42-36 at the half, but 11 points by Felton sparked a 16-7 run, giving Fairleigh Dickinson a 52-49 advantage with 13:07 left.  UMBC answered with a 9-2 spurt to pull back ahead, 58-54 and the lead would change hands twice more before the Retrievers closed it out with their final burst.

            Both teams shot 46 percent from the field, but UMBC shot 78 percent from the free throw line and turned the ball over only 11 times, while Fairleigh Dickinson hit only 58 percent at the charity stripe and committed 20 turnovers.

            Felton hit on 6-of-9 from the field and also added two blocks.  Hammond connected on 8-of-12 from the field.  Iman Mattox (Hayward, Calif.) added 11 points and Lionel Bomayako (Paris, France) chipped in 10 points for the Knights.

            Will McClurkin (Middle Island, N.Y.) netted 15 points and pulled down six rebounds for the Retrievers, while Kareem Washington (White Plains, N.Y.) contributed 12 points and four assists off the bench.

            The Knights return to action on Saturday, January 12, when they host Mount St. Mary’s at 7:00 p.m.