ALBANY, N.Y. – Defense is dirty work. And if you ask Head Coach Sydney Johnson, there are no two people on the Fairfield University men's basketball team who like to get their hands dirtier than Jerome Segura and Tyler Nelson. It was their play that Coach Johnson lauded at the postgame press conference, something he wanted to point out since more times than not, the duo's offensive prowess gains recognition.

                But tonight, it was defense that enabled the Stags to defeat Quinnipiac University in the 2018 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) semifinal round as Fairfield defeated the Bobcats by a 74-64 score at the Times Union Center on Sunday night. The victory sends the Stags into a championship matchup with fourth-seeded Iona College on Monday night, a 7 pm game that will also be broadcasted on ESPN.

                "When you have guys like Tyler and Jerome who are locked in and are willing to do the dirty work, you are going to win games," Coach Johnson said. "I know Tyler gets all the accolades for being the all-time leading scorer, but often times he is guarding the other team's best player down the stretch. Tonight, Jerome and Tyler did a good job dealing with their two scorers (Cameron) Young and (Rich) Kelly."

                Kelly, who scored 40 points the last time these two teams met, was held to just seven points tonight on 2 of 14 shooting. Young finished with 24 points with eight of those points coming from the free throw line. And Jacob Rigoni, the program's top three-point threat, made just two shots from behind the arc tonight. Put all that together and you can quickly see how the Stags' defense made a difference tonight.

                "Defense is one of my roles on this team," Segura said. "The coaches came up with a great defensive game plan and I just went out there and followed it. Like Coach said, we changed the game plan around for the third time around and it worked."

                It worked so well that the Bobcats only held two leads in the game and both were a one-point advantage. The first advantage came just three minutes into the first half and the other with six minutes remaining in the second half. Both times, Fairfield regained the lead on its next possession and both times, Jesus Cruz was responsible for the points to push the Stags back in front.

                After the Bobcats established a 6-5 lead at the 16:43 mark, Cruz finished the next possession with a three-point play that erased the deficit and gave the Stags a two-point lead at 8-6. Chaise Daniels followed with a basket to tie the score before Fairfield scored eight straight points to take control at 16-8 with 12:33 on the clock. The final six points of the run came from three pointers off the hands of Flavors Jr., two of his four long-range shots in the first half. The sophomore would finish the game by establishing career highs in with 21 points and 11 rebounds.

                The Stags continued to build upon its edge and eventually took its biggest lead of the half after a Tyler Nelson jumper put the score at 24-12 at the 9:18 mark. The Bobcats quickly worked their way back into the game with seven straight points to bring the score to 24-19 as Jacob Rigoni netted the final five points of the run. Fairfield would eventually settle for a seven-point lead at halftime, going into the locker room in front, 37-30.

                The second half became a much more contested half with Quinnipiac outscoring Fairfield by a 9-4 count that nearly erased the halftime deficit, pulling the seventh-seeded Bobcats within a basket at 41-39 with 13:56 on the clock. Rigoni posted a three-point shot during the run while Cameron Young added four points to the run.

                Fairfield eventually regained its seven point advantage after Tyler Nelson's layup made the score 48-41 with 11:44 remaining in the game. Once again, Quinnipiac was able to piece together a run, but this time it would gain the lead. The Bobcats outscored Fairfield 13-5 over five minutes and grabbed the lead after Young deposited a pair of free throws at the 6:07 mark, giving Quinnipiac a 54-53 lead.

                Cruz answered with a jumper on the team's next possession to give the Stags the lead for good at 55-54. Quinnipiac still stayed within a possession or two for the next three minutes as Young's two free throws at the 3:19 mark brought the score to 62-59. Fairfield scored the next four points, two off a layup from Jerome Segura and two more off free throws from Nelson, which made a comeback more difficult for the Bobcats.

                Nelson finished with 19 points for Fairfield, while Cruz also reached double figures with 11 points. Segura came off the bench to score eight points, best among Fairfield's reserves. Young led all scorers in the game with 24 points while Rigoni added 12 points for Quinnipiac.

                Now the Stags' senior class – Nelson, Segura, and Jared Harper – will look to finish a goal they set four years ago and that's to play for a MAAC championship.

                "Speaking as a captain, this opportunity is something I worked for individually and we worked for as a team," Nelson said. "Since I've been here, our goal is to play for a MAAC championship and be here on Monday night. And for it to finally to be here in my senior year with Jerome and Jared, I am really looking forward to this opportunity and to this game. We are all really excited and we are going to be ready to play."