FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Taking advantage of opportunities is one of the keys to winning basketball games. In the first half, the Fairfield University men's basketball team did just that as it moved the ball offensively and kept Canisius College in check over the opening 20 minutes. But a second-half surge by the Golden Griffs proved to be the difference in tonight's game as the Stags dropped an 80-69 decision at Alumni Hall.

              "We defended well in the first half but did not carry the same intensity into the second half," Head Coach Jay Young said after the game. "Canisius is a really good second half team so we really needed to do a better job defensively in shutting them down."

              The Golden Griffs shot 53 percent from the floor and 44 percent from three-point range over the final 20 minutes of the game which helped them overcome a four-point halftime deficit. Malek Green was especially effective, scoring 19 of his career-high 29 points and making three three pointers in the second half.

              The Stags led for most of the first half, opening up an 11-point advantage at 25-14 after Jake Wojcik's jumper at the 7:58 mark. The visitors used a 9-2 run over the next three minutes to pull within four points at 27-23 at the 4:41 mark. The lead would remain at four points at halftime despite Canisius scoring seven straight points before Supreme Cook's layup with six seconds remaining propped the lead to 37-33.

              Fairfield still held the lead for the first four minutes of the second half before back-to-back three pointers from Green erased a 42-40 lead and pushed the Griffs in front for good at 46-42. The Stags stayed within a couple of possession for the next 10 minutes but Green changed things up again with a three-point play that brought the lead to eight points at 63-55 with six minutes left.

              The lead reached as many as 13 points before Canisius took the 11-point victory. The Griffs' play in the second half was fueled by strong bench play and the team's ability to score 24 points off 15 Fairfield turnovers. The bench was responsible for the second half rally, scoring 29 of the team's 47 second-half points.

              "You can't give a team like Canisius more opportunities by turning the ball over," Coach Young said. "They took advantage and scored a lot of points off our turnovers."

              Taj Benning led all Fairfield scorers with 15 points while Caleb Green and Jesus Cruz added 10 points each for the Stags. Jordan Henderson and Ahamadou Fofana each reached double figures with 19 and 11 points respectively for Canisius.

              The two teams will meet again on Saturday at Alumni Hall with game time slated for 5 pm.