Fairleigh Dickinson Routs Texas Southern 84-61, Will Play Purdue on Friday
DAYTON, Ohio — Fairleigh Dickinson's high-scoring offense proved too much for Texas Southern to handle as the Knights comfortably took down the Tigers 84-61 on Wednesday in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament at UD Arena.
Sophomore forward Ansley Almonor's 23 points were a team-high for Fairleigh Dickinson, which included 15 in the second half. He was 5-of-11 from the field — with all five baskets coming from behind the 3-point line — while adding eight rebounds.
The Knights had five players finish the game in double figures, and their starting five accounted for all but six points in the contest.
After capturing the No. 16 seed in the East region, Fairleigh Dickinson will tip off against No. 1 seed Purdue at 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday inside Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
The Knights entered the game with a top-50 scoring offense in the country, averaging 77.8 points per contest during the 2022-23 season. They opened with a 14-2 lead in the first four minutes, capped by a 3-pointer by junior guard Joe Munden Jr.
Texas Southern cut the deficit to three points with 7:20 left before halftime. The team notched 26 points in the paint in the first half but was 0 for 8 from the 3-point line.
Shooting struggles opened the door for a scoring surge from Fairleigh Dickinson, which went on a 16-2 run with 1:43 left in the opening period. The Knights led by as many as 18 points before entering the locker room with a 45-29 advantage.
They made seven 3-pointers in the first half and ended the matchup 11-of-27 from range. Almonor drilled a shot from beyond the arc to start the second half, but Fairleigh Dickinson started just 2-of-9 from the field after halftime.
Despite a solid performance from graduate forward John Walker III, Texas Southern never brought the game back to within single digits. Walker notched a team-high 22 points on 9-of-17 shooting, but the team made only one 3-pointer.
The Knights took a commanding 67-46 lead with 6:34 left to play thanks to a 13-2 run. During the stretch, 12 of those points came at the free-throw line. Fairleigh Dickinson was 27-of-31 at the line and went 17-of-20 in the second half.
The team led by as many as 25 points, with Munden recording eight of his 17 points after halftime. Senior guards Demetre Roberts and Grant Singleton posted 15 and 13 points, respectively. Junior forward Sean Moore also added 10 points.
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.