FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- The Fairfield University men's basketball team will play its final regular-season home game on Wednesday night as the Stags host Siena College at Webster Bank Arena. The game time is slated for 7 pm.
Prior to the game, the University community will celebrate the careers of the men's basketball seniors. The senior ceremony will start at 6:45 pm.
One game separates these two teams for the third place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) standings. Siena, which comes off a setback against Iona, owns a 19-10 overall record and a 12-6 MAAC mark. Fairfield, which defeated Niagara last Saturday, holds a 17-11 overall record and an 11-7 MAAC slate.
The Saints erased a 25-point deficit and took the lead late in the game before falling to Iona at home, 87-81. The Gaels built a 21-point half time lead but Siena was able to regroup and make a valiant come back, taking the lead at 73-72 with three minutes remaining in the game. Most of that comeback was accomplished because of a 17-0 run that the Saints put together midway through the half. But Iona responded by closing out the game with a 15-8 run that ensure the victory.
Brett Bisping, who gave Siena that one-point second-half edge with a tip-in, paced the home team with 17 points and 18 rebounds. Javion Ogunyemi and Lavon Long served as Siena's co-leaders with 18 points each, while Marquis Wright came off the bench to tally 11 points. Wright returned to the lineup last Friday at Rider, netting eight points as a reserve. He missed 15 games with a foot injury after starting the first 12 contests of the season. He leads the team with a 16.2 scoring average, one of five Saints in double figures.
Brett Bisping is the only men's basketball student-athlete who is averaging a double-double for the season, checking into this game with a 16.1 scoring and a 10.1 rebounding average. Javion Ogunyemi (15.0 ppg), Nicol Clareth (13.0 ppg), and Lavon Long (10.6 ppg) are also in double digits as the team averages 78.3 points per game.
The Stags posted their fifth straight victory, a 71-59 decision over Niagara University last Saturday. Fairfield used a 20-0 run early in the second half that turned a 10-10 score into a 30-10 advantage midway through the first half. Niagara rallied and managed to pull within 10 points by halftime. Fairfield pushed the lead back to 18 points before the Purple Eagles worked their way back to within five points with a 22-9 run that made the score 57-52. The Stags scored six of the next seven points to regain a double-digit lead at 63-53 and eventually win the game by 12 points.
Curtis Cobb led all scorers with 23 points while Marcus Gilbert contributed with 22 points. Matija Milin came off the bench to add 13 points, his fourth double-digit game over the last five dates. Gilbert raised his scoring average to 17.8 points per game which places fourth in the MAAC overall. Tyler Nelson is next in line with 15.8 points per contest, followed by Cobb's 11.1 scoring average. Jerome Segura picked up three more assists to raise his total to 140, ranking third in the MAAC with 5.2 per game.
