Army is Topped by Fairleigh Dickinson

HACKENSACK, NJ – The Army West Point men’s basketball team dropped its final non-league road game of the season, 93-84, to Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday night at the Rothman Center.

Four Black Knights (5-7) reached double-digit points against the Knights (4-4), led by Matt Wilson’s 21 on 10-of-15 shooting. The junior center also led the team in rebounding with eight boards in the game.

The Cadets buried 11 shots from deep in the contest with Alex King and Jordan Fox responsible for six of them. King capped his night with 15 points, while Fox finished with 13. Tommy Funk contributed with 12 points and dished out a team-best eight assists.

The first half was filled with scoring from both teams as each side made seven 3-pointers and combined for 92 points.

Army looked right inside to get the game started, feeding Wilson down low. The junior center began a perfect 4-for-4 from the field with nine of the team’s first 11 points. The Black Knights held a slim 14-10 edge over the Knights before the Fairleigh Dickinson offense started to heat up.

The Knights’ defense forced six turnovers and helped the offense go on a 23-5 run that lasted over six minutes. The Cadets attempted to flip the script after a timeout and went on an 8-2 run to bring the score back within single digits, 35-27, before evening the score at, 40-40, following a 10-1 spurt. However, Fairleigh Dickinson went on a late surge and took a 50-42 advantage into the break.

In the second half, the two teams continued to fill up the scoring column and combined for 85 points, but the Knights kept a sizable lead. It wasn’t until the 2:20 mark that a Wilson score from inside trimmed the deficit to seven, 86-79.

Fairleigh Dickinson brought the lead back to double-figures but a pair of Funk free throws and a Fox 3-pointer made it a six-point game with 30 seconds left to play. That would be as close as the Cadets would get though as the Knights closed out the contest to secure the win.

The Black Knights will return to Christl Arena on Dec. 22 to host Niagara in the non-league regular season finale slated for 1 p.m.