Senior Anthony Johnson scored 16 points, including his 1,000th career point. (Peter Caty/The Mirror).
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. — Fairfield head coach Ed Cooley had made three previous trips to the McCann Center in Poughkeepsie to face Marist. None were successful.
On Thursday night against the struggling Red Foxes Cooley checked off another task on his coaching to-do list with a 70-50 victory. With the win the Stags (14-5, 7-2 MAAC) stayed alone in second place, just one game behind Siena. Marist dropped to 1-18 overall and 1-8 in the conference.
“My first three years we played here, it wasn’t a pleasent experience” Cooley said. “I was 0-3 as a head coach and my seniors were 0-3. That’s all we talked about all week.
“We tried to play at our pace … They got some open shots but wIth their youth I think they were rushed because of the pressure and I think that played right into our hands. I think our size made a big, big difference,” Cooley added.
Marist was led by 11 points by Korey Bauer and Daye Kaba and 10 from freshman Candon Rushin.
The Stags never trailed in the game and led by as many as 25 points. They shot 51.9 percent from the floor and won the rebound battle 38-23.
Fairfield was led by Anthony Johnson, who had a double double (16 points, 11 rebounds) and scored his 1,000th career point in the first half. Johnson is the 37th player in Stags history to reach the milestone in his career, a feat he achieved in 100 games, even after missing the second half of last season after a career-threatening blood clot sidelined him.
Freshman point guard Derek Needham finished with 13 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds. Junior forward Yorel Hawkins chipped in with 13 points and six boards.
Johnson scored his 1,000th point on a basket with 7:56 remaining in the first half, two of a team-high 10 points in the period.
“It’s special. The kid really has come a long, long, long, long way — from not being raised by parents, to not knowing who the parents are,” Cooley said. “His story is unbelievable. For him to be on track to graduate — and he’s only a couple of courses away — it truly is a remarkable story, and I’m just so proud of Fairfield for giving that young man a chance to change his life.”
The Stags jumped out to a 15-5 lead over the first four minutes of the game, pushing the ball up the court and controlling the pace of the game. They connected on their first 10 shots of the game.
Fairfield was able to extend that lead out of the first media timeout of the game, taking a 24-9 lead after a 9-2 run in the next three minutes, led by three-pointers from Mike Evanovich, Colin Nickerson and Derek Needham. The Stags were 5-for-12 from beyond the arc in the half.
Marist cut the lead down and went into the half trailing 37-26.
Fairfield started the second half as fast as the first half, going on a 18-7 run over the first eight minutes of the half.
The Stags then extended the lead all the way to 25 points 2:01 left in the game after Needham connected on a long three.
Marist head coach Chuck Martin, in his second season, was quick to praise the Stags.
“That’s a really good Fairfield team,” Martin said. “That team’s got a chance to play in the NCAA tournament … Take the Fairfield off the front of their jerseys, they could be an A-10 or Big East team, with their size and strength.”
They return to the court on Sunday afternoon as they travel to New Rochelle to take on the Iona Gaels at 3:30 p.m. The Gaels currently sit in third place in the MAAC.
“We’re going to try and impose our will on them and I am pretty sure they will do the same,” Cooley said. “That’s tough game. They are a really good team.”
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