FDU this year vs. last year: A comparison by the numbers

By Ray Floriani (@rfloriani)

The NEC race is two games old. Following two convincing road wins at Merychurst and Saint Francis, observers are already wondering if FDU (11-4 overall) can run the table again.

Don’t ask coach Stephanie Gaitley.

Her focus is winning the day, one day of practice and one game at a time. Regardless, it may be time to compare this season’s edition of the Knights with the one that cut down the nets last March.

Personnel-wise, four players that started the NEC championship game last season are not in the lineup. Guard Abaigeal Babore and wing Abby Conklin have graduated. Teneisia Brown is at Providence, and Lilly Parke is out with an ACL injury.

Sophomore guard Ava Renninger is the lone returning starter. Kailee McDonald, who came off the bench last season, is Renninger’s backcourt mate. Madlena Gerke can play guard or forward. Rebecca Osei-Owusu is up front with Leah Crosby. Both Gerke and Crosby are newcomers.

Now, a look at some tempo-free numbers, from last

season and the current campaign to date:

Possessions per game

2024-25: 64

2025-26: 66

FDU will break given the opportunity, but still utilizes a pace that can be considered deliberate.

Offensive Efficiency

2024-25: 104

2025-26: 100

You want your offense to be 100 or over. Mission

accomplished.

Defensive Efficiency

2024-25: 86

2025-26: 80

The calling card under Gaitley’s tutelage. Again, you want to hold the opposition under 100. FDU is currently 44th nationally in defensive efficiency.

Effective field goal percentage

2024-25: 49

2025-26: 49

The effective field goal metric factors in three-point shooting. In raw numbers, the Knights are hitting at a 41 percent rate this season. FDU has several perimeter threats in McDonald, Renninger, Gerke, Reese Downey and Crosby. Their 37 percent shooting as a team from three raises the mark to just under 50 percent. A year ago, FDU shot 34 percent from deep. The present group, as noted, has more three-point shooters connecting at a higher rate than a year ago.

Offensive rebound percentage

2024-25: 34

2025-26: 39

The percentage of rebounds a team gathers on the offensive end. FDU is hitting the boards at an even better rate this year.

Turnover Rate

2024-25: 15 percent

2025-26: 18 percent

Turnovers divided by possessions. The ideal is to keep the rate under 20 percent. Last season, the goal was achieved. This season, the rate is a little higher while still under the accepted cutoff.

Defensive Turnover Rate

2024-25: 18 percent

2025-26: 20 percent

On the defensive end, getting the opposition to turn it over on one-fifth of its possessions is another mark of an excellent defense. Last year’s FDU team scored 36 percent of its points from beyond the arc. The present team, with multiple threats from deep, is producing 43 percent of its points from downtown.

In terms of usage, the percentage of a team’s possessions a player uses while on the floor, this group is showing more depth. Last year, Brown (27.8 percent) and Renninger (24.1) led in usage. The leaders this year are Renninger (24.6 percent) and Gerke (22.9). Interestingly, two reserves, Joi Johnson (19.4) and Downey (19.3) have a higher usage rate than two players, McDonald (16.9) and Osei-Owusu (13.2), in the starting lineup.

In the final analysis, to date, there are similarities between this season’s group and last year’s. That, in itself, is notable and a testament to the coaching given the roster changes previously noted. It will be interesting to see how the numbers and results may or may not alter as this campaign plays out.