Game Notes
FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- The Fairfield University men's basketball team returns home for the first time in nearly three weeks when its hosts Manhattan College on Friday night at the Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard. Game time is slated for 7:30 pm.
The Stags took over first place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) after its win over Niagara last Sunday. Fairfield stands on top with an 8-1 overall record, one game better than the Gaels' 7-2 mark. After Friday's game, Fairfield will play two television games as the Canisius game can be seen on MSG Network while the Iona contest can be viewed on ESPNU.
Two Fairfield student-athletes earned MAAC weekly honors on Monday. Derek Needham was named the conference's co-player of the week, while Maurice Barrow was selected the MAAC rookie of the week. Needham remains the team's top scorer with a 13.8 scoring average, the only Stag averaging better than 10 points per game. Barrow is averaging better than nine points per game during the month of January, more than double his combined scoring average in November and December.
Manhattan enters tonight's game with a 3-17 overall record and a 1-8 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) mark. The Jaspers come off a 62-53 loss to Saint Peter's at home, despite a 12-point effort from George Beamon. Manhattan grabbed a one-point halftime lead, but saw that lead disappear early in the second half as Saint Peter's outscored the home team by 10 points over the final 20 minutes.
Freshman Rhamel Brown has been an effective defensive player this season, and has already made his mark in the Jasper record book. The forward currently has 48 rejections this season, which is sixth on the team's single-season leader list. Brown needs two more to move into fifth place by himself, as Arturo Dubois holds the position with 49 rejections during the 2004-05 campaign.
The Jaspers have been gettting a good part of their offense from their underclassmen this year. The freshman and sophomores have combined for 60 percent of the team's offense this season. Sophomore George Beamon leads the team in scoring with a 15.0 scoring average. Freshman Michael Alvarado places second among his teammates, netting 10.6 points per game. Manhattan started two freshmen and two sophomores against Saint Peter's in its last outing.
