Box Score

               BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Rakim Sanders tallied a game-high 23 points with nine rebounds to lead the Fairfield University men's basketball team to its third straight win, a 64-56 decision over Siena College on Sunday afternoon. Derek Needham netted five three pointers in the game which led to 19 points for the Stags.

                The two teams exchanged baskets to open the game as Sanders and Eric Hymes posted the points. The Stags would score the next 10 points, six of which came off a pair of three pointers from Derek Needham for a 12-2 advantage. Siena broke the strong with Owen Wignot's layup which brought the visitors within eight points at 12-4.

                Sanders pushed the lead to 11 points with the first of his four three-point baskets to make it 15-4 with 13:19 on the clock. The Stags continued to play aggressively on the defensive side of the court, leading to several transition baskets. Their defense gave the team ample opportunity to increase the lead to as many as 18 points, the first of which came at 26-8 with 10:10 remaining. Fairfield would hit that 18-point mark two more times, the last of which came at 36-18 with 4:33 left after the final Sanders three pointer.

                For Fairfield, it would be the last basket the team would score in the half as Siena rounded out the half by outscoring the Stags 6-1 which decreased the deficit to 13 points by intermission, 37-24. Sanders nearly had a double-double in the opening 20 minutes with 17 points and nine rebounds, the only student-athlete for either team that reached double figures in the opening half.

                Needham buried another three pointer to start the second half to push the lead to 16 points at 40-24. Siena began to chip away at that advantage on its next possession when OD Anosike made a pair of free throws that set up off a 10-4 run that would bring the Saints with 10 points at 44-34 with 15:38 remaining.

                Siena continued to whittle away at the lead and came as close as six points, 44-38, after Downs and Brandon Walters made consecutive baskets with 14:29 remaining. Needham put a stop to that run with a long three-point shot on t he team's next possession pushing the lead back to nine points at 47-38. After another defensive stop, the Stags regained a double-digit advantage when Maurice Barrow made two free throws.

Barrow went to the line even though he was not the player fouled. Needham went to the floor hard on a breakaway, but was fouled. Needham was subbed out after the play, giving Barrow the chance to add to his point total. However, Needham returned to the floor a few minutes later and halted another Siena run with his fifth three pointer of the game that made the score 56-43 with 7:41 on the clock.

Sanders iced the game with a pair of inside baskets that gave Fairfield a 17-point edge at 60-43 with 4:24 remaining. Anosike's put back basket cut the lead to 15 points at 60-45, ending a five-minute scoring drought for the Saints.

The Saints finished the game with an 11-4 run that brought them within eight points by the second-half buzzer, ending the game with a 64-56 final score.

Anosike finished the game with 12 points and a personal-best 22 rebounds, splitting it evenly between offensive and defensive rebounds.  Downey added 17 points and Hymes pitched in with 14 points for Siena.

Fairfield returns to the court on Thursday night when it hosts Manhattan College at Webster Bank Arena. Game time is 7:30 pm.