FINAL FAIRFIELD FRIDAY
Fairfield University Men's Basketball kicks off a home weekend to conclude the regular season, beginning with a Friday, Feb. 27 visit from Siena. Opening tip-off from Leo D. Mahoney Arena is set for 7 p.m. with the Hall of Fame duo of Bob Heussler and Joe DeSantis calling the action.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Fueled by 27 bench points and five players in double figures, Fairfield University knocked off host Quinnipiac, 85-79, last Sunday in Hamden. Braden Sparks set the pace offensively with a game-best 21 points.
 
Sparks' 21 points brought his season total to 511 – the 23rd 500-point season in Fairfield history. He knocked down two three-pointers this afternoon as part of a 7-for-13 day from the field and shot 5-for-6 from the free throw line.
 
Eric Mejia stepped into the starting lineup and netted a new career high with 16 points, also matching his career highs of five rebounds and six assists.
 
In the post, Declan Wucherpfennig added 13 points and six rebounds, with Brandon Benjamin contributing eight points and five rebounds in 11 minutes of work.
 
Fairfield's 27 bench points were guided by 14 from Deuce Turner and a career-high 11 points by Isaac Munkadi. Ryan Zan added a key bucket on his way to two points and four boards in a reserve role.
 
Sunday's contest featured 25 lead changes, 23 of which came in the first half.
 
COACH CASEY ON QUINNIPIAC
"Our bench was fantastic today. We got great minutes from the bench to bring home a win. I'm really proud of our guys. We're always going to fight you for it, and sometimes that's the most important thing."
 
SECOND TIME AROUND
The Stags are 6-1 when playing an opponent for the second time. Fairfield has earned a home-and-home sweep of Niagara and Sacred Heart and took the back half of series splits with Manhattan, Canisius, Marist, and Quinnipiac. Saint Peter's is the lone MAAC foe to win its second games with the Stags in 2025-26.
 
KEEPING IT 100
Chris Casey enters the weekend at 54-44 as leader of the Stags. He is one win shy of matching the second-most wins by a head coach in his first 100 games at Fairfield. The record belongs to George Bisacca with 66 wins in his first 100 games. Fred Barakat and Jim Hanrahan share second place at 55 wins. Barakat's 55 wins are also the most through 100 games in Fairfield's Division I history.
 
MOST WINS IN FIRST 100 GAMES

1.	George Bisacca	66 wins	1958-62
2.	Jim Hanrahan	55 wins	1950-55
3.	Fred Barakat	55 wins	1970-74
4.	Chris Casey	54 wins (98 games)	2023-26
5.	Mitch Buonaguro	50 wins	1985-88
6.	Ed Cooley	48 wins	2006-09
7.	Sydney Johnson	48 wins	2011-14
8.	Tim O'Toole	44 wins	1998-03
9.	Terry O'Connor	41 wins	1981-85
10.	Paul Cormier	40 wins	1991-95
11.	Jay Young	39 wins	2019-22

 
LET THE SPARKS FLY
Braden Sparks ranks second in the MAAC in scoring at 17.6 points per game. With 511 total points, he has tallied just the 23rd 500-point campaign in 78 seasons of Fairfield Men's Basketball. Sparks is tied with Derek Needham's senior campaign of 2012-13 for 21st on the Stags' single-season list.
 
Sparks' MAAC-high 88 three-pointers rank fifth for sixth in a season in Fairfield history. He is first in the MAAC with 3.03 three-pointers per game and third in the conference among NCAA qualifiers with a .407 three-point percentage.
 
THE SIENA UNIVERSITY SAINTS
Siena split its last weekend of MAAC action, falling at first-place Merrimack and defeating second-place Saint Peter's to improve to 19-10 overall and 12-6 in conference play. The Saints are currently tied with SPU for the second seed with two games remaining for both clubs.
 
Siena is led by Gavin Doty, who ranks fourth in the MAAC with 17.4 points per game and sixth at 7.2 rebounds per contest. Justice Shoats (13.0 ppg) and Francis Folefac (10.9 ppg) are also averaging double figures for the Saints.
 
Siena is the MAAC's second toughest defense with 66.4 points per game allowed. Offensively, the Saints are seventh in the conference, scoring 71.7 points per outing.
 
EARLIER THIS SEASON
Fairfield was on the short side of an offensive slugfest on Monday, Jan. 19 at Siena, falling to the host Saints by a score of 85-77. Brandon Benjamin scored 20 points to lead four Stags scoring in double figures.
 
Benjamin's 20 points came on 10-for-11 shooting from the field, with his only miss coming from beyond the arc. He also pulled down a team-high six rebounds.
 
After a scoreless first half due to foul trouble, Braden Sparks had all 18 of his tallies after the intermission. He knocked down three three-pointers, running his season total to a conference-leading 60 triples.
 
Declan Wucherpfennig added 12 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists, and Tony Williams had an even 10 points while dishing out a team-leading four helpers.
 
Halon Rawlins fell just shy of joining his four teammates in double figures, finishing with nine points. Off the bench, Deuce Turner scored five points and Eric Mejia netted three.
 
US AND THEM
Siena's back-to-back wins in the series snapped Fairfield's three-game winning streak against the Saints.
 
The Green and Gold had won nine head-to-head meetings in a row before the Stags' recent success.
 
EVERY POSSESSION MATTERS
Fairfield holds an 11-5 record in one possession games under Head Coach Chris Casey and has won its last seven contests decided by three points or less.
 
The Stags are 26-13 in all games under Casey that were decided by either one or two possessions (six points or fewer).
 
ALL ABOUT THE BENJAMIN
Brandon Benjamin is one of 13 players in the nation to average a double-double, posting 14.3 points and a MAAC-best 10.3 rebounds per game. Among those 13, Benjamin is one of three true freshmen on the ledger.
 
Benjamin ranks 10th in the nation in rebounds per game and second nationally with 4.21 offensive boards per contest. He is also second in the MAAC in field goal percentage (.575) and ranks second in blocked shots (1.57/game).
 
SENIOR SENDOFF
Fairfield Men's Basketball concludes the 2025-26 regular season on Sunday, March 1 with a visit from Mount St. Mary's. Senior Day proceedings begin at 1:30 p.m. prior to a 2 p.m. tip-off with The Mount.
 
The Stags will recognize graduating seniors Noah Best, Luke Davidson, Michael Rogan, Braden Sparks, Ryan Zan, and grad student Deuce Turner in their final home game.