FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Fairfield University Men's Basketball begins a three-game stretch at the Hostilo Hoops Community Classic with a Friday, Nov. 25 clash with CAA preseason favorite Towson. Opening tip-off from Enmarket Arena in Savannah is set for 4 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT: WAGNER 68, FAIRFIELD 52
Fairfield fell behind early to host Wagner last Friday and, despite cutting a 17-point deficit down to seven, the Stags drew no closer in an eventual 68-52 defeat. Supreme Cook was just one rebound shy of a double-double for the Stags with 14 points and nine rebounds.
 
Fairfield (0-4) was led offensively by Caleb Fields with a team-best 16 points. In addition to Cook's 14 tallies, Allan Jeanne-Rose and TJ Long each added six with Brycen Goodine contributing five. To round out the scoring, Chris Maidoh and Zach Crisler scored two points apiece and Makai Willis netted one.
 
Cook's nine rebounds buoyed the Stags on the glass, with Long hauling in four caroms. The Stags, however, were clipped by a 35-28 margin on the boards as Wagner's Brandon Brown collected 12 rips along with 14 points.
 
THE WEEKEND SLATE
In addition to Friday's tangle with the Tigers, the Stags will challenge Mercer on Saturday, Nov. 26 and Evansville on Sunday, Nov. 27, both at 7:30 p.m.
 
Mercer will trek about halfway across Georgia, from Macon to Savannah, with a record of 2-3. The Stags are 0-1 all-time against the Bears, as Mercer earned a 64-59 win at Alumni Hall in semifinals of the 2012 CIT.
 
Evansville - a first-time opponent for the Stags - is 1-3 with a Wednesday game at UCF on deck before joining the fray at Enmarket Arena.
 
THE TOWSON UNIVERSITY TIGERS
Towson is 5-0 this season most recently defeating Coppin State at home prior to making the trip to Savannah. The Tigers opened the campaign with a home win over Albany and have reeled off three straight road victories at UMass, Penn and UNCG.
 
Nicolas Timberlake leads Towson with 18.4 points per game through five outings, while Charles Thompson and Cam Holden have posted 13.0 and 11.8 points per contest, respectively. Sekou Sylla is the Tigers' leading rebounder with seven boards per game.
 
Towson was tabbed as the favorite in the CAA Preseason Poll, garnering 12 of 13 first-place votes. Holden, Thompson and Timberlake were all named All-CAA First Team selections. The Tigers went 25-9 to earn the top seed in the CAA Tournament. Towson fell in the semifinals of the conference tournament and lost to Wake Forest in the opening round of the NIT.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
In the only prior meeting in the series, the team then known as Towson State came away with a 54-52 decision at Alumni Hall on Feb. 4, 1980. Barry Gunderson led the Fairfield offense with 12 points and Flip Williams hauled in a team-best 13 rebounds in the contest.
 
THE STAGS WENT DOWN TO GEORGIA
In 75 seasons of varsity basketball, Fairfield has played just one game in the state of Georgia. Led by 15 points from Derek Needham, the Stags knocked off host Savannah State, 41-39, on Dec. 2, 2010.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
Fairfield will play its first eight regular season games away from home, including three contests at the Savannah Invitational. The Stags will be among the last teams in the nation to tip-off in front of a friendly crowd when they make their debut at the new on-campus Leo D. Mahoney Arena on Dec. 3 against Saint Peter's. That game begins an eight-game homestand for the Stags, also one of the longest in the nation in 2022-23.
 
THE NEW DIGS
When the Stags do return home on Dec. 3, it will mark their debut at Leo D. Mahoney Arena. The $51 million venue, which stands in the footprint of Alumni Hall, seats 3,500 fans. Fairfield played the entirety of the 2020-21 season on campus due to Covid-19 protocols and played all of 2021-22 at Webster Bank Arena (now Total Mortgage Arena) in Bridgeport during construction of Mahoney Arena.
 
The Stags last played on campus AND in front of fans on March 1, 2020, which will be a span of 1,004 days when Dec. 3 arrives.
 
START STRONG
Caleb Fields has scored in double figures in each of his first four games en route to 15.8 points per game. Fields is the first player to net double figures in his first four games at Fairfield since Rakim Sanders topped 10 points in his first six contests as a Stag on his way to 16.8 points per game and an All-MAAC First Team selection.
 
TJ Long was just shy of this feat last season, scoring double figures in his first three appearances, then netting eight in his fourth game. Long would go on to score 10+ points in five of his first six appearances as a Stag and 10 times total in 2021-22.
 
UP NEXT
The Stags return north will mark the start of the first MAAC weekend of the season. Fairfield visits Manhattan on Thursday, Dec. 1 and then comes home to play its first-ever game at Leo D. Mahoney Arena on Saturday, Dec. 3 against reigning MAAC Champion Saint Peter's.