Three days earlier, Head Coach Ed Cooley witnessed his team self-destruct after halftime against an Iona Gaels team that had lost five of six games.
“Right now, we’re a team struggling with our identity,” said Cooley.
While that identity may still be in question, Fairfield worked to put the doubts to rest – at least for one night on campus.
Junior Mike Evanovich led the Stags with 19 points, en route to the Stags’ 70-64 victory over St. Peter’s College on Monday night at Alumni Hall. Jon Han ’09 also added a career-high 13 assists.
More importantly, Fairfield showed glimpses of the team that stormed out to a 3-1 conference record.
“I’m very happy with the win,” said Cooley. “We really needed that win bad.”
The Stags raced to a 22-14 lead and held the advantage for the entire first half. However, St. Peter’s showed the same resiliency the Stags saw 24 days before in Jersey City.
“I don’t know what it is with St. Peter’s,” said Cooley. “We come out playing really well and then we hit a bad [stretch].”
The two teams dueled back and forth for most of the game, with the lead changing 16 times in the second half. Ironically, in the teams’ earlier meeting three weeks prior, St. Peter’s never led.
Though pleased with the victory, Cooley said that his “young” team is still very much a work in progress.
“I felt that we were too unselfish with the basketball tonight,” said Cooley. “We had four-straight possessions where we turned down open looks, particularly Jon [Han].”
“I don’t think we did a good job defensively [against St. Peter’s]. When you look at the stats, it’s a little surprising that we won this basketball game,” he added.
Aside from the victory, the team also can draw positives from the return of junior guard Herbie Allen, who missed the team’s loss against Iona due to an injured left thumb.
Before the injury, Allen was the Stags’ hot hand, totaling 42 points in two games.
Without him, Iona’s zone defense left the Stags without a scoring option on the perimeter. On this night, however, a streaking Evanovich and a healthy Allen demonstrated how lethal Fairfield can be if clicking in all facets.
“Mike [Evanovich] hit a lot of shots,” said Allen. “Jon [Han] handled the ball real well. It was a hell of a game.”
Han is ranked 28th in the country in assists per game, with 5.8, three assists less than the national leader, Davidson College’s Jason Richards.
He has been more unselfish the second half of the season but remains Fairfield’s leading scorer, averaging 10.7 points per game.
“When Jon [Han] plays well, the Stags are good,” said Cooley. “When he struggles, the Stags are going to struggle. That’s a lot of pressure on him but good luck.
“That’s what scholarships do – earn your scholarship.”
With a home and home series against both Niagara and Canisius in the coming days, an Alumni Hall win gives Fairfield some momentum as the calendar pages turn to the second half of the season’s conference games.
To say that the next few games are a critical stretch for Fairfield would be an understatement.
Canisius provides the Stags with an opportunity to secure conference victories, given that the Golden Griffs have struggled mightily all season and hold only one MAAC win.
On the other hand, Niagara, last season’s conference champions, gives the Stags a chance to demonstrate whether they can play with the conference’s top teams.
“I want everyone to continue to see the growth of these kids,” said Cooley. “I feel the more games we play, the better we’re going to get.”
See how the rest of the MAAC matches up with Fairfield on the year (next opponent in italics)
Siena: 12-6 (7-1) Rider: 13-6 (6-2) Marist: 12-7 (6-2) Niagara: 11-6 (5-3) Loyola (MD): 9-10 (5-3) Fairfield: 6-12 (4-4) Iona: 7-13 (3-5) Manhattan: 8-10 (2-6) St. Peter’s: 4-14 (1-7) Canisius: 3-15 (1-7)
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