BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – After not receiving any minutes in the last game, forward Wassef Methnani took full advantage of the 36 minutes he was afforded by Head Coach Sydney Johnson tonight. The sophomore posted a season-high 15 points, nine of which came from behind the three-point arc, but his effort was not enough to overcome Siena as the Saints posted a 57-48 decision over the Stags at Webster Bank Arena.

                His impact was felt from the first few minutes he entered the game, picking up an offensive rebound and finishing the play with a layup that secured Fairfield's third and fourth points of the game. When the Saints opened up their early lead to five points at 11-6, Methnani netted his first three pointer of the game to keep the Stags close.

                And, it was another Methnani three pointer that tied the game for the last time at 18-18 with seven minutes remaining in the half. Siena finished out the half with an 11-6 run that enabled it to go into the locker room with a 29-24 lead.

                 "In our program, I am committed to playing the best guys in the gym," Head Coach Sydney Johnson said. "And over the last three days, Wassef was one of the best guys in the gym so that needs to be rewarded with time on the court. Wassef did a good job this week of putting himself in the mix and that preparation reflected in his play tonight."

                The Saints started the second half with nine straight points to open up their biggest lead of the game at 38-24, using a three pointer from Sloan Seymour and Evan Fisher during that decisive run. Fairfield managed to come within six points on two occasions, 50-44 with 3:36 on the clock and 52-46 with 1:53 remaining, but could not close the gap any more.

                "When we created advantages tonight, Siena did a fantastic job of covering themselves whenever there was a breakdown," Coach Johnson said. "We didn't exploit those breakdowns right away by moving the ball the way it needed to be moved. And, eighteen turnovers speaks for itself so I am disappointed with the live ball turnovers that absolutely killed us. You have to credit Siena for their play but we need to get better."

                Neftali Alvarez reached double figures for the third straight game by netting 10 points in addition to serving as the team co-leader with seven rebounds. Jonathan Kasibabu also secured seven rebounds in the game, four coming in the first three minutes of the contest. He added six points and two of the team's 11 steals in the game.

                Jalen Pickett led all scorers on the evening with 20 points, making eight of 12 field goal attempts along with three assists and a game-high four steals.

                Fairfield will finish out its three-game home stand on Sunday afternoon when it hosts Iona College at Alumni Hall. With the Stags playing six of their final nine MAAC road games away from campus, Coach Johnson understands the importance of finishing up the home stand with a win.
              
                "Right now, we are just trying to get on the good side of things whether it is home or away," Coach Johnson said. "Obviously it's better to be at home when trying to correct ourselves. But that's how we looked at this game. I thought our preparation was there but we just didn't execute what we wanted to do tonight."
           
                 The Stags and the Gaels will tip off at 1 pm.