WEBSTER BANK ARENA – A strong second half was just what the Fairfield University men's basketball team needed. The 20 minutes after halftime was exactly how Head Coach Sydney Johnson knew his team could play and it did not disappoint against Manhattan College on Friday night. The Stags turned a five-point halftime lead into double-digit advantage for nearly the entire second half as they posted a 67-54 victory over the Jaspers on the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) opener for both teams.

                It took a while for the Stags to solve the Manhattan defense but once they cracked the code, scoring came more often for the team. Fairfield did not find the bottom of the basket in the first eight-plus minutes of the first half, managing a free throw from Amadou Sidibe and another from K.J Rose. After missing its first 10 shots from the floor, the home team found itself down only six points at 8-2 with 12 minutes remaining in the half.

                Steve Johnston found himself open on the right elbow extended and buried a three-point field goal for the Stags' first basket of the game, cutting the lead to 8-5 with 11:31 on the clock. Marcus Gilbert continued the Fairfield run by making three of four free throw attempts to tie the game at 8-8 with 8:27 left in the half. Calvin Crawford posted a free throw to regain the lead for the Jaspers but it was short lived as Gilbert tipped in a missed shot that gave the Stags their first lead at 10-9 with 8:16 remaining.

                Ashton Pankey's dunk gave the visitors a brief one-point lead once again, but Malcolm Gilbert reciprocated with his own two-handed slam that pushed Fairfield back in front at 12-11. Marcus Gilbert added a jumper to give Fairfield its biggest lead at 14-11 with 6:21 remaining. The Stags would eventually lead by five by halftime, 27-22, behind nine points from Marcus Gilbert.

                Mike Kirkland opened the second half with a layup that raised the Fairfield lead to seven points with just a minute gone by. Marcus Gilbert added a three-point field goal to give the Stags their first double-figure lead at 32-22 with 17:42 on the clock. A pair of Pankey free throws cut the lead back to eight, but Johnston connected from behind the arc that secured the team's biggest lead to that point at 35-24. Marcus Gilbert posted five more points after Johnston's triple, making it a 40-24 edge at the 15:54 mark.

                Manhattan made a solid run at the Stags after Gilbert's contribution, cutting that 16-point differential in half at 44-36 with just under nine minutes remaining. Shane Richards chipped in with five points as four different Jaspers put points on the board during the run.

                Fairfield needed just over three minutes to erase the efforts by the Jaspers, outscoring Manhattan by an 11-3 margin to recapture its 16-point edge at 55-39. Marcus Gilbert posted nearly half of those 11 points with a three-point field goal and a pair of free throws. The Jaspers did not come closer than 12 points the rest of the way.

                Marcus Gilbert recorded a game-high 24 points while Johnston registered a personal-best 15 points off the bench. Pankey was Manhattan's top scorer with 23 points while Emmy Andujar just missed a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.

                Fairfield finishes up its MAAC opening weekend with a road game against Quinnipiac University on Sunday. Game time is 1 pm at TD Bank Sports Complex.