DePaul fends off Fairleigh Dickinson, improves to 3-0

DePaul won. Again!

A 27-point performance from Kansas Jayhawks transfer Charlie Moore engineered a 70-59 victory for the Blue Demons over the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights. The victory brings DePaul to a 3-0 record which, by the way, leads all teams in the nation. So how’s that?

On a serious note, this was a rather good showing, although it turned into quite a rockfight at the end. The teams traded jabs for much of the second half until DePaul began to take and then run away with the game. FDU took a three-point advantage at the 9:55 mark of the second half. From there though, the wheels fell off. DePaul cut the lead to one 31 seconds later, added another layup a minute or so later and then zoomed away.

Moore was truly the star of the show Friday night. He was responsible for 16 of the 36 points that were scored in the second half by the Blue Demons. He went 6-for-9 from the floor and 4-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc in the second half as well, putting on a show that helped lead DePaul to victory. For the game, he finished 10-for-16 and 5-for-9 from long range.

Paul Reed put on yet another dazzling display also. After getting his 10th career double-double on Tuesday against the Alcorn State Braves, Reed collected his 11th double-double against the Knights. He scored 12 points on a mark of 5-for-10 from the floor, and pulled down 11 rebounds. Eight of his boards were on the defensive glass, raising his DR% to 30.3 percent in the early goings. Which, hey, that’s pretty great!

Joining Moore and Reed in double figures was Jaylen Butz . Butz scored 13 points on an efficient mark of 5-for-7 from the field. He shot 3-for-6 from the free throw line, which could have obviously been improved upon. But still, he had a solid night at the office. He added six boards to his line, four on the defensive glass, and two blocks, too. Freshman guard Markese Jacobs had nine points, nearly scratching the double-figure surface, but was a meager 2-for-6 from the field.

If there were any worries from DePaul’s performance, it would likely be on defense inside. They allowed Fairleigh Dickinson to go 17-for-34 on 2-point tries, and couldn’t really stop Kaleb Bishop, who went 6-for-8 inside. He, along with Jahlil Jenkins and Elyjah Williams were FDU’s main contributors on the night, as they combined to shoot 14-for-23. The 3-point differential wasn’t too far either, as DePaul shot 38.9 percent to FDU’s 35.7.

Jalen Coleman-Lands’ slow start continued, as he scored just three points in 20 minutes. The senior did find ways to contribute elsewhere though, as he recorded two rebounds, two assists and picked up a steal. He didn’t get into foul trouble this time around like he did against Alcorn State, as he finished the game with one foul. ventually, he’ll likely put the pieces together.

Freshman wing Romeo Weems had a little bit of trouble also, as he scored just four points in 22 minutes. Weems did have five boards though, and had a block and steal, to boot.

This marks the fifth time since the 2002-03 season that DePaul has started out 3-0. The Blue Demons achieved this mark a year ago, back in 2008-09, 2003-04 and 2002-03. The most common of denominators here is that in four of those five years, Dave Leitao was the head coach. Jerry Wainwright was responsible for the 08-09 occasion.

DePaul, now ranked 77th on KenPom as of writing, will take their unbeaten record into Iowa City on Monday. The Blue Demons are set to take on the 1-0 Iowa Hawkeyes as part of the 2019 Gavitt Tip-Off Games.