ALBANY, N.Y. – Road wins are never easy to come by so every one of those victories must be cherished. The Fairfield University men's basketball team picked up a key conference road decision this afternoon when it beat Siena College by a 79-67 score at the Times Union Center. Marcus Gilbert led all scorers with 23 points, but Mike Kirkland's second half contribution was equally as critical to the win.

                Kirkland tallied 13 points overall and 11 in the second half but it was when he scored those points that proved the difference. With the Stags clinging to a one-point lead at 57-56, Kirkland scored back-to-back layups that provided Fairfield with the breathing room necessary to stave off the Saints. Kirkland would add two more baskets after that personal run later in the half.

                “Mike brought a great deal of energy to the game today and when he has that energy, it takes us to another level,” Head Coach Sydney Johnson said. “There were so many guys that contributed to this win. In the locker room, I acknowledged so many individuals after the game and that's a good thing for us.”

                Coming off one of their lowest scoring first-half totals against Rider, the Stags offense showed its capability by netting a season-high 37 first-half points. Combined with a defensive effort that held the Saints without a field goal for just over seven minutes, Fairfield was able to take a 37-32 lead into the locker room. That lead came about because four Stags scored more than two field goals in the opening 20 minutes led by Sidibe and Marcus Gilbert's eight points.

                The team's first-half success did not show itself all at once as the home team opened the game with six straight points to take a 6-0 lead. Gilbert cut that deficit in half with a three-point field for the team's first points. It was the first of five three pointers for Fairfield in the half as the team took 10 shots from behind the arc.

                The Saints remained in control at 12-7 with 14:36 remaining but a Segura three pointer brought the Stags within a bucket at 12-10 with 13:09 left. Siena scored the four points to regain its six-point edge before Fairfield went on a 9-2 run to grab its first lead at 19-18. Steve Johnston's three pointer pushed the Stags in front with 10 minutes remaining.

                Rob Poole would eventually pull the Saints even at 21-21 with a three pointer but it would be the team's last field goal until he netted a two pointer at the 2:54 mark which brought Siena within a point at 30-29. Fairfield scored the next seven points to secure its biggest lead of the half at 37-29 as Nelson made a three-point field followed by a pair of points from Rose and Gilbert.

                The Saints offense was primed coming out of the locker room as its opened up with four quick points to pull within a point. Fairfield went on an 8-2 run to improve that slim margin to seven points at 45-38 at the 17:32 mark. Siena scored seven points in just over a minute to tie the score and Earl Hymes layup tacked on two more points to the run, giving Siena a 47-45 edge. Gilbert answered with a three-point field goal on the team's next possession to stop the run and regain the lead for Fairfield at 48-47 with 15:25 on the clock.

                There would be four lead changes and one tie over the next three minutes, the last of which went Siena's way after Hymes netted a three-point shot that made it 53-51 in the Saints' favor with 11:49 on the clock.

                That would be the last time that the Saints would lead in the game as Fairfield would use a 6-0 spurt to take the lead at 57-53 lead after Nelson's three pointer with 10 minutes left. Siena would come within a point following a three pointer from Poole but Kirkland scored the next four points to increase the Stags' edge to five points at 61-56 with eight minutes on the clock.

                Fairfield's lead would reach double figures at 74-63 by the final media timeout setting up the 12-point win.

                Nelson was the team's other double-digit scorer with 14 points. Hymes paced the Siena offense with 18 points. Fairfield shot 55 percent from the floor and 53 percent from three point range, making nine of 17 shots from behind the arc.