Game Notes

The Fairfield University women's basketball team begins a three-game homestand on Sunday when Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) foe Manhattan College visits Alumni Hall at 1 p.m. The Stags have lost back-to-back games and are 10-5 on the year, while the Lady Jaspers, winners of three straight, are 11-5.

John Cummings and Maria Conlon will have all the action live on WVOF 88.5 FM. Fans can also watch the game online here and can access livestats.  All students age 12 and under that show a school assignment with an 'A' or 'B' will receive free admission to the game.

Fairfield and Manhattan are tied for fourth place in the league with a 3-2 conference record. It marks the third consecutive game that the Stags are playing a team that they are tied with in the MAAC standings – Siena, 3-0, and Loyola, 3-1.

Today marks the 72^nd meeting between Fairfield and Manhattan, with the Stags holding a 36-35 edge in the series. The Lady Jaspers have won three straight meetings between the two teams, by an average of 11.3 points per game. The Stags had won the four meetings prior to this current Manhattan streak, and are 4-6 over the last 10 meetings.

Brittany MacFarlane has raised her rebounding average by nearly three times from non-conference play to conference play and is now second on the tem at 5.2 boards per game. In five league games the sophomore has pulled down a conference-leading 9.6 rebounds per game in MAAC only games. Over the last two games, MacFarlane has had 25 boards, with a career-best 14 against Siena. MacFarlane added 10 points against Siena, for her first career double-double, and is averaging 4.4 points a game in MAAC play. MacFarlane has started the last seven games for the Stags and is averaging 8.1 rebounds a game in those starts.

Joelle Nawrocki has handed out 19 assists in the Stags five league games and is boasting a 2.1 assist-to-turnover ratio in conference play. She averaged 1.6 assists per game in non-conference play, against 19 turnovers.

Fairfield is 6-1 at Alumni Hall this season and 24-5 in the on-campus facility under the direction of fourth-year head coach Joe Frager. The Stags are scoring 60.4 points per game at Alumni Hall this season and are +2.9. Fairfield is shooting 73 percent from t he free throw line in the seven games. Katelyn Linney is averaging 15.4 points per game at Alumni Hall and is shooting 50 percent (23-46) from behind the arc.

Manhattan has won three straight games after dropping back-to-back conference games to open the series. The Lady Jaspers have won 11 total games this season on the strength of its defense, which through games of Thursday was ranked fourth in the country at 49.8 points per game allowed. Manhattan is forcing nearly 23 turnovers per game, a +6.8 margin, and have six players – led by Abby Wentworth's 52 – that have 19 or more steals. Wentworth is the only player on the squad in double-figures, averaging 14.4 points per game, as well as having handed out a team-best 69 assists.