BROOKLYN, N.Y. – You can never really count out Tyler Nelson. And for that reason, you can never really count out the Fairfield University men's basketball team. With LIU Brooklyn making a late bid to steal the game away from the Stags, Nelson saw the shot clock ticking down and knew that he had to make a play. So the senior systematically cut to the basket and with the softest of touches, released the ball toward the basket and watched it roll over the front rim and into the net as the shot clock buzzer sounded.

                "At the moment, my shots are not falling so I'm just trying to find other ways to get to the basket," Nelson said. "I knew the play was for me. I came off the screen and I knew my guy was on my hip so I could be aggressive and get to the basket and get the shot off."

                It changed the game from one possession to two possessions as the Stags took a 70-66 lead with under three minutes remaining. And, that margin held true as Fairfield picked up a road victory against the Blackbirds, 76-72 at the Barclays Center.

                For the Stags, it was the best way to end their seven-game road trip that sent them literally across the country with stops in Indiana, Ohio, and Texas. And, it was the confidence boost that the team could certainly use heading into its two-game home stand that starts with Old Dominion University on December 17 at Alumni Hall.

                "I think we have been on the road a lot and it's been bumpy," Head Coach Sydney Johnson said. "I really love the confidence that the guys are showing in each other and in committing to what we are trying to do here. I love to get this win to reinforce the commitment that the team has shown so far this year."

                Today was yet another close game as Fairfield has now played six games with a final margin of eight points or less which includes three games of four points or less. With so many close games on the docket already, Nelson and classmate Jerome Segura have played a role in the development of this team which includes so many newcomers. Besides Nelson's team-high 17 points, Segura added a season-high 14 points and dished off six assists this afternoon.

                "We need our older guys to step up including me," Nelson said. "Sometimes it will be tough for the younger guys especially in close games like today. It's up to Jerome and me because we have all the experience and it's up to us to step up and make winning plays in these types of games."

                Today, neither team could really take a foot hold as the biggest lead of the game belonged to the Stags at six points and that came with four seconds remaining at 76-70. With the game teetering back and forth for most of the afternoon, it was Nelson and Segura's second-half play that made the difference. Nelson posted 13 second-half points while Segura added eight points over the final 20 minutes.

                LIU Brooklyn's biggest lead came midway through the second half at 55-51 but Jesus Cruz nearly erased that deficit with a three-point basket that brought the Stags within a point. A pair of free throws pushed the Blackbirds' lead back to three points before Segura's layup made it a one-point game again at 57-56. Wassef Methani converted a layup to put the Stags back in front but the game was tied on the next LIU Brooklyn possession, courtesy of a free throw that knotted the score at 58-58.

                Segura broke the tie with a jumper in the lane that made it 60-58 in Fairfield's favor, a lead which doubled when Cruz made a basket at the 6:40 mark. The Blackbirds hung around for the next five minutes and were within a possession at 68-66 with under 100 seconds remaining in the game. It was at that point that Nelson seized the opportunity to go the basket with the shot clock expiring which turned into two more points for the senior and gave the Stags a two-possession advantage.

                The Blackbirds came within two points on one more occasion at 71-69 but Jonathan Kasibabu converted a key one-and-one situation that recaptured a four-point edge for the Stags and ice the game for the visitors.