FAIRFIELD, Conn. – After nine ties and 15 lead changes on Wednesday evening at Leo D. Mahoney Arena, a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer drew iron for Fairfield University Men's Basketball as visiting Central Connecticut State escaped with a 64-63 decision. Deon Perry led the Stags with 13 points – including 11 in the second half – in the in-state clash.
 
"For the most part, I thought we had good possessions down the stretch. We left some points out there by not finishing around the rim, but we were getting good shots. The biggest thing was that we needed to execute better on the defensive end to put more stops and scores together," said Head Coach Chris Casey. "We have a short turnaround before we head down to Monmouth, so we'll be back in the gym tomorrow morning to prepare for another tough, well-coached opponent on Saturday."
 
The squads played to a 30-30 deadlock in the first half, and CCSU came out of the locker room with six straight points to open the second stanza. Fairfield scored the next seven points to gain a quick 37-36 lead with 14:28 left, and the margin would remain within one possession until the closing minutes of regulation.
 
The lead flipped 11 times in the second half, settling at 58-58 with 3:21 left for what proved to be the final tie score of the evening. CCSU's Jordan Jones, who finished with 12 points, broke the stalemate with a layup and the Blue Devils then forced a turnover and corralled an offensive rebound before Jayden Brown laid in a bucket to extend the margin to 62-58 with 1:41 to go.
 
Prophet Johnson got the Stags back on the board with a jumper on the next possession, but CCSU answered to regain a 64-60 advantage with 46 seconds remaining. The Stags quickly pushed the ball up the court, finding Johnson for a transition trey to slice the deficit back to 64-63 with 41 ticks to go.
 
The Blue Devils drained the clock on the ensuing possession but were unable to add to the slimmest of leads, giving Fairfield a final possession with 14.8 seconds to go. CCSU, however, had been whistled for just two fouls in the frame and used their remaining infractions to deplete the clock to just six seconds remaining as the Stags angled for a game-winning look. Ultimately, a kick-out from paint found Jamie Bergens for a jumper as time expired, but the shot caromed out to end the game with CCSU taking the one-point decision.
 
Bergens joined Perry in double figures with 11 points, knocking down three of Fairfield's 11 three-pointers on the day. The Stags went 7-for-13 (53.8%) from distance in the second half to finish at an 11-for-26 (42.3%) clip for the contest.
 
In addition to Perry's 11 second-half points, Louis Bleechmore scored all eight of his points after the break – shooting 3-for-3 from the floor with a pair of three-pointers down the stretch. All of Johnson's nine points came in the second half as well, including the three-pointer that pulled the Stags within one in the final minute. Braden Sparks also scored all of his five points in the second half.
 
Peyton Smith guided the offense in the first frame, scoring all nine of his points before intermission. Birima Seck had four first-half points for the Stags with Noah Best and Isaac Munkadi contributing two points apiece.
 
Smith complemented his nine points with a team-leading six rebounds, while Johnson and Seck hauled in four apiece. Bleechmore and Perry shared the team best with three assists apiece as Fairfield assisted on 13 of its 26 field goals.
 
Jayden Brown led all scorers with 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Blue Devils. Devin Haid added 13 points and Jordan Jones netted 12.
 
The game featured the fewest combined free throws in a Division I Men's Basketball game this season, with Fairfield shooting 0-for-2 at the stripe and CCSU making its lone attempt. The Stags and Blue Devils are two of just seven teams to attempt two or fewer free throws in a contest this season.
 
Fairfield Men's Basketball returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 21 with a 1 p.m. tip-off at Monmouth. The Stags then conclude 2024 and round out the non-conference schedule on Saturday, Dec. 28 at Columbia. Both games will air live on SNY.
 
Fairfield's three-game road trip ekes into 2025 with the Stags' first trip to Merrimack since 1958 on Jan. 3. Action comes back to Mahoney Arena for the first time in the new year on Friday, Jan. 10 for a 7 p.m. clash with Iona. Tickets are on sale now at fairfieldstags.com/tix.