Jeremy Baker scored 20 points and Justin Rutty had his 14th double-double of the season as Quinnipiac held off Fairleigh Dickinson 74-65 Saturday night to clinch a share of its first Northeast Conference regular-season championship.
The Bobcats (21-8, 15-3) tied Robert Morris for the crown, but earned the No. 1 seed and home-court advantage as they open play March 4 against Monmouth. Quinnipiac also earned an automatic bid into the National Invitation Tournament (NIT), should it lose in the NEC.
Quinnipiac used a 10-1 run to lead by 14 in the first half and 39-27 at the break.
The Bobcats led 53-36 in the second half, but the Knights (11-20, 10-8) closed to 65-62 with 3:26 left. Quinnipiac made 9 of 10 free throws down the stretch.
Rutty had 14 points and 13 rebounds.
John Galvin scored 15 points and Alvin Mofunanya had 10 points and 15 boards for the Knights.
