THE OPENING TIP
Fairfield University Men's Basketball takes the to George Bisacca Court at Leo D. Mahoney Arena for the final time in the 2024 calendar year with a Wednesday, Dec. 18 visit from Central Connecticut State. Opening tip-off on campus is set for 7 p.m. with the Hall of Fame duo of Bob Heussler and Joe DeSantis '79 calling the action for the Stags Sports Network on ESPN+.

PROMOTIONS

• Santa Claus Is Coming to Mahoney Arena: Get your photos with Santa on the concourse
• Coach Casey Camp Day: Coach Casey Basketball Camp attendees will receive a discount code via email for a discounted ticket to this game.

LAST TIME OUT
In the highest scoring Fairfield Men's Basketball game in seven seasons, the Stags were on the short side of a 101-94 MAAC slugfest on Dec. 8 at Mount St. Mary's. Prophet Johnson recorded his second double-double of the year with 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead five Stags scoring in double figures.
 
Johnson's 22 points came on 9-for-16 shooting from the floor. He corralled six offensive rebounds as a part of his game-best 10 caroms. Joining him in double figures were Braden Sparks with 16 points, Jamie Bergens with 15, Noah Best with 13 and Louis Bleechmore netting 11. In total, 11 Stags contributed to Fairfield's 94 points.
 
As a team, Fairfield shot 50% (34-for-68) from the field, 33% (10-for-30) from three-point range and 72.7% (16-for-22) from the free throw line. Johnson was also the Stags' top facilitator with five assists.
 
Alongside Johnson's 10 rebounds, Isaac Munkadi hauled in six boards and fueled the defense with five blocked shots.
 
The Mount was sparked by an 11-for-13 start from the field, as the hosts never trailed and built a lead as large as 15 points in the first half. The Stags battled back to within five in the second stanza, but the Mount had an answer to every rally and rode their early advantage all the way to the final horn.
 
COACH CASEY ON THE MOUNT GAME
"You have to establish yourself with defense and rebounding to have a chance to win on the road, and we didn't do that. I think our play on the offensive end is beginning to come into form, but we need more stops and rebounds to put it all together and turn games like this into wins."

THE CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY BLUE DEVILS
CCSU makes its first-ever trip to Mahoney Arena with a record of 6-4. The Blue Devils most recently dropped a 77-69 decision at Rhode Island - their only common opponent with the Stags thus far in 2024-25. By the numbers, CCSU's best win thus far is a 73-67 victory over Saint Joseph's (NET 129) in Philadelphia on Nov. 8. The Blue Devils themselves sport a NET ranking of 134 entering the week, which is currently better than any MAAC team.

Jordan Jones leads three Blue Devils averaging double figures with 12.5 points per game to go along with a team-best 3.6 assists per contest.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Fairfield is a 21-4 in the all-time series, including matchups against the former New Britain Teachers' College dating back to 1950. The series took an extended hiatus beginning in 1959, due largely to Fairfield joining the Division I ranks in 1964 and CCSU remaining in Division II until 1986.

Since CCSU transitioned to Division I, the squads have met 10 times with Fairfield winning nine. Wednesday's game will be the first meeting between the Stags and Blue Devils since the end of the Connecticut 6 Classic.

NEC STREAK
Fairfield has won six straight games against the Northeast Conference. The Stags defeated FDU on Dec. 1, knocked off Sacred Heart, FDU, Wagner and Le Moyne in the 2023-24 season and also beat the then-NEC Pioneers in the 2022-23 non-conference campaign.

Wednesday's game against the reigning NEC Regular Season Champion Blue Devils is Fairfield's last meeting with an NEC foe on the 204-25 slate.

BIG NUMBERS
The 195 total points scored in the Dec. 8 game at The Mount marked the most in a Fairfield game since the Stags defeated Quinnipiac, 102-98, in double overtime on Feb. 17, 2018. It was also Fairfield's highest scoring 40-minute game since a 109-108 victory over Saint Peter's on Feb. 14, 2006.

In addition, Fairfield had not scored 90+ points in a loss in exactly 23 years – a 94-90 loss to DePaul on Dec. 8, 2001. The Stags had not reached 94 points and landed on the short side since a 99-98 overtime loss to Gonzaga on Dec. 11, 1990.

STAYING (SOMEWHAT) CLOSE TO HOME
Due to the unbalanced MAAC schedule this year, Fairfield will not make the "Buffalo Trip" to Canisius and Niagara. With the Dec. 8 trek to Emmitsburg in the rearview mirror, the Stags' longest remaining road swing will be the roughly 175-mile journey to Merrimack on Jan. 3 for Fairfield's first visit to North Andover since 1958.

UP NEXT
The Stags close out 2024 and the non-conference schedule with a pair of Saturday road trips. First up, Fairfield visits Monmouth on Dec. 21 for a 1 p.m. contest. After Christmas, the Stags are back on the road to challenge Columbia in NYC on Dec. 28.

Fairfield also visits Merrimack on Friday, Jan. 3 before returning to Mahoney Arena to host Iona on Friday, Jan. 10.