Bryant hits road, takes on FDU Saturday at 3p

FULL GAME NOTES
Watch: NECfrontrow.com
Live Stats: bryantbulldogs.com

THE PARTICULARS
Bryant takes to the highways for a single road bout Saturday afternoon, taking on Fairleigh Dickinson in Northeast Conference action at Stratis Arena (3 p.m.).

THE SERIES
The Knights and the Bulldogs have faced off seven times in their history, with all seven meetings having come at the Division I level. Bryant won the most recent faceoff Jan. 31 of last season, 78-63, in Hackensack, marking Bryant's first road victory over FDU. This is the first of two regular-season meetings between Bryant and FDU.

SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS
FDU has recorded a number of signature wins this season despite entering the game 6-11, emerging victorious over the likes of Rutgers and Seton Hall earlier this season. Sidney Sanders Jr. leads the Knights with 19.4 points per game this season, also dishing out a side-best 91 assists and a team-leading 30 steals. Mathias Seilund paces the side on the glass, pulling in 4.5 boards each time out (8.8 ppg) and has 22 of the team's 65 blocks on the year. Scooter Gillette contributes 19 more stuffs to compliment a team-high .655 field goal percentage. As a unit, Fairleigh Dickinson shoots 41.6 percent from the floor and allows opponents 75.7 points per game off a a 44.2 percent shooting clip. The Knights average 67.7 points per game on the year and average 30.4 rebounds to their opponents' 39.4 per outing.

CURRENT BULLDOGS vs. FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON
Seven current Bulldogs have faced off against the Pioneers in their Bryant careers, with seniors Alex Francis, Corey Maynard and Claybrin McMath having played in all four contests over the previous three seasons. Francis (17.0 ppg) and juniors Dyami Starks (13 points in 2012-13 contest) and Joe O'Shea (12 points in 2012-13 contest) all average double digits against the Knights.

BRYANT vs. THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE
The Bulldogs are 2-1 against the Northeast Conference in 2013-14 with a 23-50 record (.315) against current NEC members since joining the Division I ranks. All-time against current conference institutions, the Bulldog basketball program is 37-67 (.356), having most frequently faced off against regional rival Sacred Heart (11-16). Bryant went 12-6 against league opponents last season, finishing tied for second in the regular-season standings to earn a No. 4 seed in the 2013 NEC Tournament.

FRANCIS ON FIRE
Senior Alex Francis has been on fire as of late, and for the first time in his career has posted four-straight 20-point outings dating back to Dec. 30. In that span, Francis has paced the Bulldogs to a 3-1 record, averaging an impressive 24.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per contest. The New York native is shooting 63.6 percent from the floor in that time (35-55) and adds seven assists, two blocks and three steals. Thursday night at home against Sacred Heart, he also added his third double-double of the season  — the 29th of his collegiate career — with 27 points and a season-best 11 rebounds, knocking down a season-high 12 field goals (12-18) as well.

1,000 REASONS...
Junior sharpshooter Dyami Starks is poised to become the third player in a two-year span to join the 1,000-point club. He enters Saturday's contest with 976 career points, 88 of those coming during his freshman campaign at Columbia (2010-11). Starks needs just 24 points and at his current pace this season will need only two more games to eclipse the milestone.

Senior point guard Corey Maynard could also eclipse the 1,000-point milestone this season, but will need to average 12.5 points per game to achieve the feat by the end of the regular season. He is averaging 11.7 points per game in 2013-14.

WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS
For the second-straight game, Bryant dished out a new season high assists mark Thursday night against the Pioneers. After registering 20 assists last Saturday against Robert Morris, the team combined for 21 helpers last time out against Sacred Heart. Senior Corey Maynard led both charges, handing out eight and seven helpers, respectively.

MILESTONE WATCH
After Thursday's 85-70 win over Sacred Heart, head coach Tim O'Shea is just a single victory shy of his 50th win at Bryant University, having turned the Bulldogs from a one-win program into a consistent challenger in the NEC under his watch. O'Shea enters Saturday's contest with 169 career victories.

#6THFAN
Bryant has the best fans in the NCAA. Now, it's time to prove it. The NCAA's 6th Fan contest is a nationwide online competition that will determine which Division I school has the most pride and the most supportive fans. Fans can be a part of the action and help Bryant earn over $100,000 in general scholarship contributions by voting for the Bulldogs once a day every day at ncaa.com/6thFan now until Feb. 16. Fans can also vote on Twitter by tweeting or retweeting the hashtags #6thFan and #BRYANT (both hashtags must appear for vote to count). The contest also includes prizes for individual fans, including an iPad Air and an all-expense paid trip to the 2015 Men's Final Four in North Texas April 5-7.

FOR THE 100TH TIME...
Starting forward Alex Francis appeared in his 100th-career game Dec. 7 against North Dakota State, and Dec. 30 at home against Lehigh, classmate and frontcourt counterpart Claybrin McMath joined his exclusive club, reaching his own 100th appearance donning the Black and Gold. Starting point guard Corey Maynard is just four appearances away from the benchmark. Francis is also just six shy of 100 starts on his career.

DUNK COUNT
The dunk count is on once again in 2013-14, but this time around, there is another who might challenge the reign of senior Alex Francis. Rookie forward Dan Garvin has also gotten some hangtime already this season, with the pair combining for 27 dunks.

FRANCHISE FRANCIS: IN THE BRYANT RANKINGS
With half a season still to play, senior forward Alex Francis is already seated among the greatest scorers and rebounders the program has ever seen. After a 23-point performance in the NEC opener Jan. 9, he moved into the No. 3 spot on the all-time scoring list, and Francis enters Saturday's contest with 1,827 career points. To move up to No. 2, however, Francis would need 413 more points, a near-impossible order with just 13 regular-season games left to play.

Francis also ranks third on the rebounding charts with 855 in his career. He needs just 14 more boards to take over second place in that category. Francis also ranks in the program's top-10 in scoring average, field goals, field goal percentage, free throws made and rebounding average.

Bryant's Top-5 Career Scorers
1.    2390    Tom Smile, 1963-67
2.    2239    Ernie DeWitt, 1977-81
3.    1827    Alex Francis, 2010-Present
4.    1754    John Williams, 2002-06
5.    1715    Paul Berlo, 1979-83

Bryant's Top-5 Career Rebounders
1.    987    Mike Williams, 2000-05
2.    868    Jason Noel, 2000-04
3.    855    Alex Francis, 2010-Present
4.    828    Derek Kiggs, 1985-89
5.    805    Dave Sorafine, 1973-76

FRANCHISE FRANCIS: IN THE NEC RANKINGS
Bryant senior forward Alex Francis reached yet another plateau on his march up the NEC career scoring chart and enters Saturday's game ranked 13th all-time with 1,827 career points. The senior forward needs just 48 more points to enter the top 10 but will need to cross over the 2,000-point threshold to make it into the top 5.

Francis also rises to 12th on the league's all-time rebounding list (855) and has a chance to become the first player in conference history to finish with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. He needs 61 boards to break into the top 10.
 
More Francis/NEC Highlights...
» Francis is one of just four players in NEC history to rank in the top 20 in both scoring and rebounding in his career, joining the likes of CCSU's Ken Horton, LIU's Jamal Olasewere and Marist's Rik Smits.

» Francis is one of just 13 players in NEC history to reach 1,500 points and 750 rebounds in his career, and one of just five players in the league annals to reach 1,700 points and 800 boards.

» He currently ranks in the NEC top-10 in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage (first) and minutes played.

FRANCHISE FRANCIS: IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
In the latest NCAA rankings, Bryant senior forward Alex Francis currently sits among the top active NCAA Division I players in numerous categories. As of January 13, the senior is ranked third in career field goals (currently 692), seventh in career double-doubles (29), seventh in total rebounds (855), eighth in total points (1,827), 13th in career scoring average (16.8 ppg), 14th in free throws made (430) and 26th in rebounding average (7.8). He is one of just five active players to have 1,500 points and 750 rebounds to his name. Francis also ranks 22nd in field goal percentage this season, shooting at a .581 clip, and 29th in minutes played, averaging 36.39 each time out.

A STARK DIFFERENCE
Bulldog leading scorer Dyami Starks averages 20.0 points per outing and 3.29 triples per game this season, ranking 32nd and 13th in the nation and second in the league in both categories in the latest NCAA and NEC rankings. Starks already has seven 20-point games and a quartet of 30-point performances to his name in 2013-14 and also sits in the conference's top-10 in free throw percentage and minutes played.

A CONCENTRATED EFFORT
The Bulldogs have certainly added depth in 2013-14, but the Bryant bench has yet to prove it on the scoreboard. Against Division I opponents this season, just four Bulldog starters — juniors Dyami Starks and Joe O'Shea and seniors Alex Francis and Corey Maynard — are responsible for nearly 82 percent of Bryant's total scoring (1021 of 1247 points). If you go outside the starting lineup, Bryant's bench has contributed just 165 points so far this season (13.2 percent). Leading the way with 350 points, Starks alone accounts for more than 28 percent of the team's total offense against Division I foes.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs are back home for a weekend set against LIU Brooklyn Thursday (7 p.m.) and St. Francis Brooklyn Saturday (1 p.m.). Both games will be broadcast live on Cox Sports and the Ocean State Network, with Thursday's contest against the Blackbirds also appearing on Fox College Sports and MSG+.