EDISON, N.J. – Three members of Fairfield University Men's Basketball have received postseason honors from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Braden Sparks and Brandon Benjamin were both voted to the All-MAAC Second Team, while Benjamin and Declan Wucherpfennig each garnered a unanimous selection to the MAAC All-Rookie Team.
 
Braden Sparks earns his first All-MAAC nod amid one of the best offensive seasons in Fairfield Men's Basketball history. His 545 points to date rank 11th in program single-season history – just one point shy of joining the top 10 – and his 91 made three-pointers are good for fourth in a season at Fairfield. Sparks heads to Atlantic City ranked second in the MAAC in scoring at 17.6 points per game. He is also first in made three-pointers (91), third in three-point field goal percentage (.399), and seventh in overall field goal percentage (.418).
 
Sparks scored 20 or more points in 14 games this season – the most by a Stag since Tyler Nelson reached the 20-point mark 19 times in 2017-18 – including a career-best 27 points in the Jan. 30 win at Iona. The senior guard rounds out his statline with 3.2 rebounds and a team-leading 2.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game, playing a team-high 32.9 minutes per outing.
 
Brandon Benjamin lands on the All-MAAC Second Team and MAAC All-Rookie Team with historic statistics for a rookie big man in both Fairfield and MAAC history. He is averaging 13.9 points and a MAAC-best 10.2 rebounds per game – on pace to be the first MAAC freshman to ever average a double-double for an entire season. Benjamin also leads the MAAC and ranks second in the nation with 4.21 offensive rebounds per game, and slots second in the MAAC in field goal percentage (.567) and blocked shots (1.52 bpg). His 14 double-doubles are the most in the MAAC this season and the most by a Stag since Anthony Johnson's 17 in 2009-10.
 
To date, only Iona's John Estick (7.8 rpg, 1994-95) and La Salle's Lionel Simmons (9.8 rpg, 1986-87) have ever led the MAAC in rebounding as true freshmen. Benjamin's 297 rebounds are second all-time behind Simmons (322) in total boards by a MAAC rookie.
 
Benjamin scored a career-high 26 points in the Feb. 5 win at Sacred Heart and hauled in a career-best 15 rebounds in three outings, including that early February crosstown triumph. He has appeared in 29 games with 28 starts, averaging 30.9 minutes per contest.
 
Benjamin is the first Stag to earn All-MAAC honors as a freshman since Derek Needham earned Second Team honors in his rookie season in 2009-10.
 
Declan Wucherpfennig garnered his unanimous MAAC All-Rookie spot on the heels of 12.3 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Wucherpfennig ranks fourth in the MAAC in rebounds per game and third in the conference with eight double-doubles. He scored a career-high 23 points at Saint Peter's on Feb.15 and owns both a 19-rebound game (Dec. 5 at Manhattan) and a 17-rebound outing (Feb. 27 vs. Siena).
 
Wucherpfennig joins Sparks as the only Stags to start all 31 games this season. He is shooting .532 from the field, including 17 made three-pointers, while playing 31.2 minutes per contest.
 
Fairfield Men's Basketball enters the MAAC Championship with a record of 19-12 overall. The Stags went 11-9 in the MAAC, tying for sixth place and collecting the seventh seed in this week's conference tournament. Fairfield tips off the postseason on Thursday, March 5 against 10th-seeded Manhattan. Action from Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall tips off at 8:30 p.m.