WEBSTER BANK ARENA – The offense came from the expected. It also came from the unexpected. But in the end, the Fairfield University men's basketball team came up short despite improved play against Sam Houston State University. The Bearkats edged the Stags by a 74-60 score in the second game of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.

                Fairfield's offense showed what it can do many times during the night as the Stags scored their most points since the season opener against Central Connecticut, a 71-63 victory. Junior Marcus Gilbert led the team in scoring with 14 points, no surprise for Fairfield fans since he has been the number one scoring in all four games this year.

                But the Stags did receive a boost from freshmen Tyler Nelson and Jerome Segura as well as a solid effort from junior Mike Kirkland. Nelson led all reserves with 11 points, his first double-digit performance of his Fairfield career. Segura set his season best with seven points, and dished off four assists. And, Kirkland added a personal high of five points including his first three-point field goal of the season.

                The Stags attacked often and they attacked frequently early in the game, showing an energy that seemed only to be surpassed by their head coach. Head Coach Sydney Johnson cajoled and cheered his team on as Fairfield overcame an early deficit that was only a point or two over the first five minutes of the game.

                Down 6-4, junior Marcus Gilbert converted a great pass from Jerome Segura into a three-point field goal that gave the Stags their first lead at 7-6. After a pair of Sam Houston State free throws, the combo of Segura and Gilbert was responsible for another long-range jumper that made it 12-10 in favor of the home team. On the team's next possession, it was Segura's turn to score and it doubled up the lead to 12-8 at the 13:16 mark.

                Fairfield would continue to build its lead until it reached 10 points at 20-10 after Steve Johnston made his first three pointer of the contest with 10:35 remaining in the half. Sam Houston State scored the next five points, all of which came from DeMarcus Gatlin, to cut the deficit in half at 20-15. The Stags recovered to improve its advantage to eight points three different times, the last of which was 28-20 with 4:50 on the clock.

                Back-to-back three point field goals by Kaheem Ransom brought the Bearkats all the way back to make the score 28-26. From that point, Sam Houston State went on a 9-2 run that gave the team its biggest lead of the half at 35-30. Nelson's buzzer-beating three pointer allowed Fairfield to come within a possession at halftime as the scoreboard read 35-33 in favor of Sam Houston State.

Fairfield opened the second half with a layup from K.J. Rose that tied the game at 35-35. The Bearkats would take control of the game with a 22-5 run that would give the visitors a 17-point lead at 57-40 with nine minutes left. Sam Houston State would lead by as many as 20 points before the Stags cut the deficit to 12 points with under a minute to go.

Kaheem Ransom led all scorers with 18 points, pacing the Sam Houston offense.

The final day of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic is scheduled for Sunday when Sam Houston State plays Wofford at noon, followed by Fairfield hosting South Dakota at 2 pm. Tickets for the doubleheader are available at the Arena box office or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com.