FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Faced with a 10-point halftime deficit on Sunday against visiting New Hampshire, Fairfield University Men's Basketball held the Wildcats to just 23 points after the intermission, surging to a 72-68 victory. Braden Sparks scored a game-high 22 points, and the rookie duo of Brandon Benjamin and Declan Wucherpfennig each recorded a double-double.
 
With the win, the Stags improve to 5-3 on the season – finishing November with five wins for the first time in program history. New Hampshire falls to 2-6.
 
After conceding 45 points on 62.1% shooting from the field in the first half, the Stags clamped down to allow on 23 points on six total field goals for the Wildcats (18.8%) after the break. The Stags shot 45.8% for the game fueled by an 8-for-18 (44.4%) performance from three-point range.
 
"We did a really good job of defending in the second half, and we didn't in the first half. And it wasn't really a case of a lot of adjustments," said Head Coach Chris Casey. "It was more so that we kicked it up a notch defensively, which we needed to do to win the game.
 
Fairfield opened the second half on a 15-4 run to flip the 10-point deficit to a 50-49 lead with 14:53 remaining. Neither team would lead by more than two possessions the rest of the way, with the Stags' defense keeping UNH on lock to help see out the 72-68 final.
 
Offensively, Sparks was an efficient 7-for-9 from the floor with five three-pointers on his way to 22 points. The senior also corralled five rebounds with three assists and two steals.
 
Benjamin scored 16 points with 10 rebounds to record his second career double-double and also blocked four shots. Wucherpfennig had 12 points and a career-best 14 boards to post his first double-double as a Stag, including five offensive rips.
 
Cam Estevez came off the bench and filled out his statline with eight points, five rebounds, and four assists. Deuce Turner added five points and four assists, Eric Mejia tallied four points, Halon Rawlins knocked down a three and made two key steals in the second half, and Isaac Munkadi put home his lone field goal attempt for two points.
 
Benjamin and Wucherpfennig piloted the Stags to a 42-34 advantage on the glass. Sparks and Estevez chipped in five rebounds apiece, and Ryan Zan had three boards in relief to help fuel the effort.
 
New Hampshire was led by 13 points and eight rebounds from Belal El Shakery and 12 points by Davide Poser.
 
Up next, the Stags make the annual early December dip into MAAC play with trips to Manhattan and Merrimack on Dec. 5-7.
 
Action returns to Mahoney Arena when non-conference play resumes on Sunday, Dec. 14 with a visit from Monmouth. Tickets are on sale now at FairfieldStags.com/TIX.