SAVANNAH, Ga. – TJ Long scored a team-best 15 points and Jake Wojcik canned three three-pointers in the second half as Fairfield University Men's Basketball defeated previously unbeaten Towson, 74-69, to open the Hostilo Hoops Community Classic in Savannah on Friday evening. Caleb Fields added 11 points for the Stags.
 
"That was a good team win, everybody who checked in to the game made positive contributions," said Head Coach Jay Young. "It was nice to see some shots go in, especially for some guys who had been struggling to find their shot, and I was proud to see us tough one out against a talented and well-coached Towson team."
 
Fairfield earns its first win of the campaign to improve to 1-4. The Stags had their best offensive game of the year with season highs in points (74), field goals made (25), field goal percentage (.500), three-pointers made (11) and three-point percentage (.478).
 
The loss is Towson's first, falling to 5-1 after previously posting wins over Albany, UMass, Penn, UNCG and Coppin State. The reigning CAA regular season champion and preseason favorite in the conference this year, the Tigers are currently ranked sixth in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25.
 
The team's traded buckets for the majority of the first half. Long buoyed the Stags with nine first-half points, and Supreme Cook scored five of his seven in the opening 20 minutes as Fairfield built a 34-28 lead with 2:46 to go. Towson responded with the final five points of the frame as the Stags headed to the intermission with a slim 34-33 edge.
 
Back-to-back triples for Long and Fields opened the second half scoring, and the Stags maintained than cushion out to a 51-42 lead as Wojcik nailed his first three-pointer of the season – and his 100th as a Stag – with 12:57 to go.
 
Towson clawed all the way back in a span of just over four minutes, outscoring Fairfield 16-7 over that stretch to knot the game at 58-58 before Makai Willis hit a long baseline jumper to put the Stags back in front. The score would be tied two more times before Wojcik knocked down another trey and Caleb Fields hit a jumper off of an offensive board to put the Stags on top, 67-62 with 4:21 left.
 
After a Towson free throw, Fields nailed a three-pointer to make it a 70-63 game with 2:43 left, setting the scene for a nail-biting conclusion. Towson's Cameron Holden made a layup with 1:51 left followed by a Charles Thompson score to cut the deficit to 7-67 with 1:11 remaining.
 
On the ensuing possession, the Tigers' full-court pressure forced a turnover and a Nicolas Timberlake dunk made it just a one-point game with 58 seconds to play. Towson forced another turnover on the next in-bounds play, but Cook came up huge with a block of the potential go-ahead layup, causing a shot clock violation in the process with 28 seconds to go. This time, the Stags got the ball in to Jalen Leach, who was fouled as soon as he crossed the timeline and calmly sank two free throws to make it 72-69 with 21 seconds remaining. The Stags defense forced a stop and the rebound went to Leach, who drew the foul and again converted from the stripe. The final heave from Towson drew iron, and Fields reeled in the rebound as the Stags came away with a 74-69 decision.
 
Leach's 4-for-4 finale at the stripe ran his total to a season-best nine points. Cook finished with seven points and a team-high seven rebounds, with fellow posts Willis and Chris Maidoh also scoring seven apiece.
 
Towson's Holden led all scorers with 18 points. Timberlake added 15 and Thompson had 11.
 
The Stags continue action in Savannah on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. against Mercer. The Bears are currently 2-3 with a game against Robert Morris on tap for later tonight before challenging the Stags tomorrow.