FAIRFIELD, Conn. – TJ Long set a new career high with 25 points to lead Fairfield University Men's Basketball to a 73-54 win over visiting Marist in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action, Friday night at Leo D. Mahoney Arena. Supreme Cook added 15 points and seven rebounds in the league victory.
 
With the win, the Stags improve to 6-7 overall and 2-1 in the MAAC. Fairfield has won four of five games on its current homestand at Mahoney Arena. Marist slips to 4-8 overall and 0-3 in the MAAC with its fourth consecutive setback.
 
"It was good to see our offense get going a little bit. We've been struggling, and I know TJ is happy to make some shots. But I thought it was about our defense more than anything tonight," said Head Coach Jay Young. "In the first half, we had 28 [points] at halftime and 20 came off their turnovers. That kept us around when we were playing poorly offensively and not making shots. And then the shots started going in, but from start to finish, the thing that I was proudest of tonight was our defense."
 
Long's 25 points – besting his 23 scored in last season's home win over Rider – included five of the Stags' nine three-pointers. He scored 19 in the second half as the Stags grew their lead as large as 29 points over the Red Foxes.
 
For Cook, seven of his 15 points came at the free throw line as he shot 7-for-10 on charity tosses. Cook tops the MAAC and is among the nation's leaders in free throw attempts, going to the stripe 92 times in 13 games this season.
 
The Stags' defensive performance was bolstered by 34 points off 20 Marist turnovers. That number included 10 Fairfield steals, many of which factored into the Stags' 15 fast break points. Long and Caleb Fields had three swipes apiece. The MAAC's toughest defense has now allowed 60 or fewer points in seven of their last eight games, lowering their average to 63.9 points per game allowed.
 
The turning point in the game came just before halftime when Marist took a 24-21 lead on a Patrick Gardner layup with 4:02 remaining. That bucket marked the last Red Fox points for a span 8:55, as the Stags scored the last seven of the half and continued to roll out of the intermission. The run grew to 16-0 with five different Stags contributing to the scoring as Fairfield claimed a 37-24 lead with 15:36 to go before Marist would score again.
 
The next stretch of action belonged to Long, who knocked down all five of his three-pointers in a six-minute span, punctuated by a corner triple to extend the advantage to 60-34. The Stags continued to pour it on, building a cushion as large as 69-40 and cruising to a 73-54 final.
 
Jake Wojcik scored nine points for the Stags, with Jalen Leach adding eight. James Johns Jr. put in seven in coming off the bench, with Fields netting five and the duo of Allan Jeanne-Rose and Chris Maidoh scoring two apiece. Leach and Maidoh also each pulled in four rebounds, and Fields distributed a team-leading five assists.
 
The Stags also got a career-best 14 minutes from walk-on junior Jack Brown.
 
"I wanted energy. We got off to a slow start, and he's been on my mind a lot," said Young. "He deserves to play. This wasn't a message, this wasn't anything. This was about a kid who comes in, works hard and deserves to play."
 
Isaiah Brickner led Marist with 15 points, while Stephane Ingo neared a double-double for the Red Foxes with eight points and 11 rebounds.
 
Up next, the Stags will ring in 2023 at Mahoney Arena on Sunday, Jan. 1 with a 2 p.m. visit from Siena. The Saints improved to 8-5 overall and 2-0 in the MAAC this afternoon with an 83-76 win at Quinnipiac.