EYES ON FOUR
Fairfield University Men's Basketball hits the road on Saturday, Jan. 17 in search of its fourth consecutive win with a 2 p.m. visit to Marist. The Red Foxes' veteran duo of Dean Darling and Steve Eggink will call the action on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT
Fairfield scored a season-high 98 points to roll past visiting Manhattan, 98-62, on Wednesday at Mahoney Arena. The 36-point margin of victory was Fairfield's largest ever in a MAAC game.
Deuce Turner led the offensive barrage with 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting with three three-pointers.
Tony Williams added a new best for his young career with 16 points, adding three triples of his own.
In the post,
Brandon Benjamin netted 11 points and hauled in a career-high 15 rebounds to polish off his MAAC-leading eighth double-double. Rounding out the four Stags to net double figures was
Declan Wucherpfennig with 10 on an efficient 4-for-5 day from the floor.
A total of 12 Stags chipped in to the scoring on the day, as Fairfield finished at 36-for-63 from the floor for a season-best .571 field goal percentage.
Manhattan, which entered the day averaging 76.6 points per game, had its lowest scoring MAAC outing of the season with the Fairfield defense conceding just 62 points.
COACH CASEY ON MANHATTAN
"That was a great team win. We got contributions from everybody, and it was as close as we've been to playing a complete 40 minutes. But what I'm most proud of and what brings me the most joy is the way that we supported each other and celebrated each other. That's what our team is all about."
STAGS TAKE MANHATTAN
The 98-62 victory was only the fifth time that Fairfield defeated a Division I opponent by at least 36 points, and the first time that the Stags won a MAAC game by that margin. The record for a Division I game is a 104-60 victory over St. Francis (N.Y.) on Dec. 6, 1972.
98 points marked the most scored by Fairfield in a MAAC game or against a Division I opponent since the 102-98 double-overtime win against Quinnipiac on Feb. 17, 2018. The Stags last accomplished the feat in a 40-minute game in a 104-85 win over Niagara on Jan. 20, 2018.
CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARDS
Brandon Benjamin and
Declan Wucherpfennig rank first and second in MAAC with 10.4 and 7.9 boards per game, respectively. They are also first and third in offensive rebounds per game, with Benjamin corralling 4.47 (fourth in the nation) and Wucherpfennig pulling in 2.83.
Led by their frontcourt duo, the Stags top the MAAC in rebounds (40.33 per game), offensive rebounds (14.33 per game) and rebounding margin (+5.4).
BOARDS ARE JUST THE BEGINNING
Brandon Benjamin averages 14.0 points per game, ranking 10th in the league, to go along with his MAAC-best 10.4 rebounds per outing (12th nationally).
The four-time MAAC Rookie of the Week also ranks second the conference in field goal percentage (.578) and blocked shots (1.65/game). He leads the league with eight double-doubles.
Benjamin is one of 17 total players and one of only three true freshmen in the nation currently averaging a double-double. The other rookies on that ledger are North Carolina's Caleb Wilson (19.9 ppg, 10.9 rpg) and Washington's Hannes Steinbach (17.9 ppg, 11.2 rpg).
THE MARIST UNIVERSITY RED FOXES
Idle on Wednesday, Marist welcomes the Stags to McCann Arena with a record of 11-5 overall and 5-2 in league play. The Foxes own MAAC wins over Manhattan, Mount, Iona, Sacred Heart, and Ride. Their league setbacks came at the hands of Quinnipiac and Saint Peter's.
The Red Foxes are 7-1 at home this season. Marist had a six-game homestand earlier this year, but Saturday's game will be just its third game in Poughkeepsie since Dec. 7.
Fairfield and Manhattan have had similar results against all of their common MAAC opponents to date. In addition to the split against the Western New York contingent, both sides have defeated Rider and lost at Merrimack.
Marist's balanced offense is led by 12.6 points per game from Elijah Lewis and 12.3 per contest from Rhyjon Blackwell. The defense is among the nation's best, ranking fourth with just 61.7 points per game allowed. The Foxes have allowed over 70 points to just one of their first seven MAAC opponents (Sacred Heart).
THE LAST ONE WAS WILD
The last meeting between the Stags and Red Foxes was of the noted "viral" moments of the 2024-25 college basketball season, with the Stags getting a 59-56 win on
Deon Perry's 70-foot game-winner that was featured on The Today Show, SportsCenter, and worldwide across social media.
US AND THEM
The Stags and Red Foxes have split each of the last two regular season series, with the home team coming away with the victory in all four meetings. Fairfield also picked up a win over Marist in the 2024 MAAC Championship Semifinals.
Fairfield last swept the series in 2022-23, with Marist last winning both ends of the home-and-home in the 2006-07 campaign.
WEEKLY WINNERS
After leading Fairfield to victory over Rider on Jan. 9,
Braden Sparks was named the MAAC Player of the Week and
Declan Wucherpfennig was tabbed as the MAAC Rookie of the Week.
Sparks netted a team-leading 23 points; he made five three-pointers and pulled down five rebounds and dished out a team-high three assists.
Wucherpfennig scored 17 points and hauled in 11 rebounds to cap his fourth double-double of the season.
LET THE SPARKS FLY
Braden Sparks is the MAAC's leading scorer at 17.5 points per game. The senior also leads the MAAC and ranks 32nd nationally in three-pointers per game (3.11) and slots second in the conference and 30th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (.424).
Sparks is also third in the MAAC in free throw percentage (.885) and seventh in field goal percentage (.426).
Sparks has scored 20 or more points in nine games this season, including four of seven MAAC games
YOUTH MOVEMENT
The Stags have started four true freshmen (Benjamin, Rawlins, Williams, Wucherpfennig) in five games this season. To date, no other Division I team has reported a starting lineup featuring four true freshmen this season.
MONDAY MATINEE
The Stags make the trip to Siena for a matinee on Monday, Jan. 19.
Action returns to Mahoney Arena next weekend when the Stags host Niagara on Thursday, Jan. 22 and Canisius on Saturday, Jan. 24.
