FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The midway point of the season-opening, eight-game road trip for Fairfield University Men's Basketball sends the Stags to Staten Island for a Friday evening matchup at Wagner. Game time at the Spiro Sports Center is slated for 7 p.m. with all of the action broadcast live on NEC Front Row.
 
LAST TIME OUT: XAVIER 78, FAIRFIELD 65
Fairfield took a two-point lead into halftime and trailed by just two midway through the second half on Tuesday evening at Xavier, but the host Musketeers strung together a 13-4 run to extend the margin down the stretch and salt away a 78-65 final. The Stags were led by 19 points from Supreme Cook, matching his career high.
 
The Xavier bigs in question were Zach Freemantle, a former All-Big East Second Team pick, who posted a triple-double with 15 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists and Preseason All-Big East seven-footer Jack Nunge, who added 23 points and seven boards.
 
For the Stags, Cook was joined in double figures by Caleb Fields with 14 points, while TJ Long and Zach Crisler each chipped in eight. Fields and Long also shared the team high with four rebounds apiece, and Fields distributed a team-best four assists.
 
THE WAGNER UNIVERSITY SEAHAWKS
Wagner has traded wins and losses in its first three games, entering Friday night at 2-1 on the season. The Seahawks defeated Temple in overtime to start the campaign followed by another trip to Philadelphia that resulted in a setback at La Salle. Most recently, Wagner hosted and defeated Division III Neumann on Monday in their home opener.
 
Zaire Williams leads the team with 14.3 points per game, with 2021 NEC Rookie of the Year DeLonnie Hunt right behind him at 14.0 points per contest. Brandon Brown adds 8.3 points per contest while tearing down a team-best 10.7 rebounds per game.
 
Wagner was tabbed for fourth in the NEC Preseason Poll after sending three starters to the professional ranks from last year's squad that finished 21-6 overall and 15-3 in the conference.
 
LAST MEETING: WAGNER 63, FAIRFIELD 50 (12/23/2021)
In a game that featured six ties and nine lead changes, visiting Wagner was the team that emerged from the stalemate on Dec. 23 at Webster Bank Arena, pulling away to claim a 63-50 decision. The Stags were led by Caleb Green and Chris Maidoh with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Eight Stags scored in total, with Taj Benning falling just shy of a double-double with nine points and a game-high nine rebounds. Jake Wojcik added five points, Allan Jeanne-Rose netted four, Supreme Cook scored three and Jesus Cruz tacked on two.
 
The Stags were edged in the rebounding battle for just the second time this season, hauling in 31 caroms to Wagner's 38. Both squads collected nine offensive boards, with Fairfield as the more opportunistic team converting 10 second-chance points compared to six for the Seahawks. Wagner made up the difference in turnovers, turning 12 Stags' giveaways into 15 points while the Stags managed only six points off nine takeaways.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
Fairfield leads 6-4 in an all-time series that dates back to 1963. Excluding the 2020-21 campaign, in which teams played a truncated non-conference slate, Fairfield and Wagner have played annually since 2015-16, with the Wagner winning four of those six most recent encounters.
 
UP NEXT
The Stags head to Savannah, Ga. for three games in three games at the Hostilo Hoops Community Classic from Nov. 25-27. The lineup pits Fairfield against Towson, Mercer and Evansville before returning to the Northeast to kickoff the MAAC slate on Dec. 1 at Manhattan.