THE OPENING TIP
Fairfield University Men's Basketball continues a six-game homestand on Wednesday when Quinnipiac makes the short trip from Hamden to Webster Bank Arena. The action tips off on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. with Bob Heussler and Joe DeSantis on the call.
 
TOWN OF FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY DAY
All town of Fairfield residents receive discounted tickets at the ticket window on gameday with valid proof of residency. Youth fans (12 and under) accompanied by an adult Fairfield resident do not need to provide proof of residency.

• Webster Bank Arena Box Office – The Box Office is a preferred cashless site. Single game tickets for all Fairfield home games can be purchased in advance at fairfieldstags.com/basketballtix.
• Webster Bank Arena Concessions – All food and beverage vendors will be cashless including the bar inside the Stags Club. All major credit cards are accepted.
• Parking – Season parking passes are still available for purchase at fairfieldstags.com/TIX. The parking garage and lots surrounding Webster Bank Arena accept cash only on gameday
• FREE Student Tickets – Admission is free for current Fairfield University students by presenting a valid StagCard
• FREE Student Shuttle – A student shuttle will run continuously from the BCC traffic circle to Webster Bank Arena beginning at 6 p.m.
• $5 Student Parking – Fairfield students with a StagCard can park in any of outdoor lots surrounding Webster Bank Arena for only $5 (cash only).
• Covid-19 Policy – Per the city of Bridgeport, all spectators are required to wear masks at all times while inside Webster Bank Arena unless actively eating or drinking.

LAST TIME OUT
After trailing visiting Siena for a span of more than 34 minutes in Sunday's MAAC matinee, Fairfield pulled even with the Saints on a Taj Benning bucket with 4:11 to play. However, the Saints scored the game's next four points and the Stags never leveled the score again as the visitors made their free throws and time ticked away on a 62-56 final. Benning was the lone Stag to net double figures with 10 points.
 
Supreme Cook was just shy of double figures with nine points and pulled down a team-best seven rebounds. Jake Wojcik collected six rebounds for the Stags to go along with his seven points and two assists.
 
BANK HOLIDAY
Wednesday's game is the second in a six-game homestand for the Stags from Feb. 6-18. The stretch is the longest homestand comprised solely of conference games in both Fairfield and MAAC history, excluding the "back-to-back" scheduling model used due to Covid-19 concerns during the 2020-21 season.
 
The streak is also the longest ever at Webster Bank Arena and the longest overall for the Stags since a program-record seven consecutive home games during the 1986-87 MAAC Championship season. That run saw Fairfield host La Salle, Lehigh, Fordham, Saint Peter's, Manhattan, Iona and Yale all in succession. However, only six of those games were played to completion at Alumni Hall, as the Jan. 10 meeting with Fordham was suspended and then finished in the Bronx on Feb. 7.
 
THE QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY BOBCATS AT A GLANCE
Quinnipiac has lost three straight games to fall to 11-10 overall and 6-7 in the MAAC, most recently dropping a 76-63 home decision to Monmouth this past Sunday in Hamden. The Bobcats are 3-6 in games played away from People's United Center this season, including a 2-4 tally in MAAC road outings.
 
Matt Balanc leads the Bobcats and ranks seventh in the MAAC with 14.5 points per game. Kevin Marfo adds 10.5 points per outing and is the only MAAC player to average a double-double as conference's leading rebounder with 10.7 boards per contest. His rebounding numbers also slot him at ninth in Division I.

As a team, the Bobcats rank second in the conference with 73.7 points per game and slot 10th defensively at 72.1 points allowed per game. Quinnipiac's scoring is fueled by a league-high 9.0 made three-pointers per contest.
 
LAST MEETING: QUINNIPIAC 72, FAIRFIELD 66 (1/16/22 in Hamden, Conn.)
Fairfield rallied back from a double-digit deficit to tie host Quinnipiac in the second half of the Jan. 16 in-state MAAC clash in Hamden. But the Stags were ultimately unable to pull ahead of the Bobcats, who held on down the stretch to take a 72-66 decision.
 
Caleb Green netted his 1,000th career point in the contest, reaching the milestone on a clutch three-pointer during the Stags' comeback.
 
Supreme Cook continued his strong play in the post, scoring a team-high 13 points and hauling in a game-best 11 rebounds – often while matched against MAAC leading rebounder Kevin Marfo.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
A recent 4-0 run in the all-time series has Quinnipiac on top, 11-7, in the 18 all-time meetings between the two programs. The clubs met once as non-conference foes at the 2011 Connecticut 6 -- a 72-60 Fairfield victory in Uncasville. The Stags and Bobcats also clashed in the semifinal round of the 2018 MAAC Championship with Fairfield taking a 74-64 decision to advance to the finals.
 
CLOSE NEIGHBORS
Eight of the 18 all-time meetings between Fairfield and Quinnipiac have been decided by one possession and/or in overtime. Seven of those encounters featured either a game-winning or game-tying basket within the final five seconds of regulation.
 
In total, the 18 games in the series between the Connecticut foes have been decided by an average of just six points -- including this season's first meeting on Jan. 16 which was decided by that exact margin at 72-66 in favor of the Bobcats.
 
SECOND TIME AROUND
Last season, the Stags went 8-5 when seeing an opponent for the second (or third) time. In addition to the MAAC "back-to-backs" that comprised the majority of last season's schedule, this record also includes the second non-conference meeting with Hartford as well as seeing Manhattan, Saint Peter's and Iona for a third time in the MAAC Championship.
 
The Stags are 1-2 in return games this year, defeating Marist on Jan. 23 in their second meeting while falling to Monmouth and Siena.
 
THE SIXTH MAN STEPS IN
After 32 straight appearances as Fairfield's sixth man, Jesus Cruz moved into the starting five on Sunday against Siena. The fifth-year Stag has spent nearly equal time as a starter and reserve, making 74 starts and 71 appearances off the bench in his career.
 
CLOSE GAMES, QUANTIFIED
Fourteen of Fairfield's 22 games this season have been decided by fewer than 10 points, including five where the final margin was one possession or determined in overtime.
 

Average Margin of Victory/Defeat
Overall (22 games)	10.5 ppg
vs. Division I opponents (21)	8.4 ppg
in Wins (10)	15.6 ppg
in Losses (12)	6.3 ppg
in MAAC Wins (4)	7.5 ppg
in MAAC Losses (7)	5.4 ppg

 
1,000 POINT TRIO
Taj Benning scored his 1,000th career point on Jan. 20 against Monmouth to become the 45th member of the Stags' 1,000 Point Club. His 10 points against Siena on Sunday have pushed him to 1,059 career tallies and into 36th all-time.
 
In addition, Caleb Green reached 1,000 career points on Jan. 16 at Quinnipiac. He scored 633 in two seasons at Holy Cross and 373 to date in two active campaigns at Fairfield to post 1,006 points to date.
 
Jesus Cruz netted his 1,000th point last season and has since risen to 15th on the career charts with 1,358 points. Next on the list for Cruz is Jerome "Flip" Williams, who scored 1,371 points for the Stags from 1976-80.
 
SEE YOU (MUCH) LATER
The Stags have seen eight of their 10 MAAC opponents at least once, with both ends of the home-and-home series against Manhattan and Saint Peter's still on the slate. While Fairfield was originally set to host Manhattan on Dec. 31 -- a game that was subsequently moved to Feb. 16 -- the original schedule did not pit the Stags against Saint Peter's until the 16th game of the 20-game MAAC ledger on Feb. 18.
 
This scheduling quirk his has only happened once before in seasons with a 20-game MAAC slate (excluding the "back-to-back" schedule in 2020-21). In the 2014-15 campaign, Fairfield did not meet Niagara for the first time until the 17th MAAC game of the season.
 
UP NEXT
The Stags' homestand at Webster Bank Arena continues on Saturday, Feb. 12 against Niagara at 1 p.m. The contest is the front-end of a doubleheader that will also feature Fairfield Women's Basketball challenging Siena at 3:30 p.m.