After going 12-20 overall and 8-12 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference last year, the Fairfield men’s basketball team had to start over in order to turn the program around.
The 2025-2026 season started in mid-March for a program that was disappointed with its performance in the previous year and lost 10 players from the roster.
That made work on the recruiting trail even more essential, and the Stag coaching staff ended up with a significant return for their efforts.
First-year recruits Nasir Rodriguez, Halon Rawlins and Tony “Butta” Williams all added depth and production to the backcourt and wing. But not yet known, the most important recruits that head coach Chris Casey and his staff would bring in are former high school teammates Brandon Benjamin and Declan Wucherpfenning.
Benjamin and Wucherpfenning teamed up at Bergen Catholic in New Jersey, and upon arriving at Fairfield provided a physicality that the Stags did not have on their roster and a scorer that could help Braden Sparks and the new additions put points on the board.
The rest of the new additions came in with prior college experience.
Eric Mejia came in for his first season in Division I after a solid career at Monroe University, while Deuce Turner (UC Santa Barbara), Ryan Zan (La Salle University) Cam Estevez (University of Rhode Island) provided experience at the Division I level. The latter three combined for 17.5 points per game during their previous seasons, putting the Stags in a great position to get over the hump in the postseason.
In mid-June the new-look roster finally hit the court.
Head Coach Chris Casey said the message was a simple one: “Coming with the right attitude and right approach and appreciative of being here.”
That message would be tested as the calendar turned to November, when the Stags traveled to Penn State for their season opener.
The eyes of Fairfield fans started to open after 25 points from senior guard Braden Sparks. Additionally, the new kid on the block, Benjamin, provided an unexpected 18 points and 10 rebounds in his first ever collegiate game.
The Stags would lose the game, but hope was starting to return to the team.
Then, after a road win at NJIT and a loss at Seton Hall, this new team was about to play their first home games in a new format.
The Mahoney Classic was a multi-team event that brought the Stags, Loyola Maryland and Stonehill together to play each other over the course of one weekend.
“I loved it. I thought it was great for our fanbase and our team. We are gonna try to make it happen every year,” said Casey.
This new event proved pivotal as Fairfield was able to get wins against both teams, improving their record to 3-2.
Then, only a handful of non-conference opponents remained. The Stags took down Le Moyne and New Hampshire in convincing fashion. In the middle of the two losses though, was the Stags’ most brutal loss of the season against an excellent Columbia team.
Coach Casey explained that his team was still growing and that “With a young team they didn’t realize how hard you have to play to win at this level.” The Ivy League is ranked the ninth best league in the country, making it the second most challenging game on their schedule.
After losing two tough matchups on the road to Manhattan and Merrimack, the Stags returned to Mahoney Arena for one last non-conference stretch, rattling off three wins in a row against Monmouth, Central Connecticut State and the Community College of New York.
This three game set allowed the Stags to gain some positive momentum heading into conference play, and over the next two months they picked up quality wins against Manhattan, Iona, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart and Siena.
The Stags only lost once all season to a team that did not qualify for the MAAC Tournament, an 85-81 loss to Canisius on Jan. 2. Overall, the Stags went 12-7 in their final 19 games to earn the seventh seed and secure their spot in the postseason.
In the opening round of the tournament the Stags took care of business as the favorites with a 71-60 win over Manhattan.
The next game was one where nobody thought Fairfield would come out victorious. After losing to Saint Peter’s twice in the regular season, most experts projected Fairfield to be packing their bags.
Instead, the Stags got one of Benjamin’s best games in a Stag uniform, with a 26 point and 15 rebound performance showing that the recruiting work of the March prior had paid off.
With the win, the Stags enjoyed a day off in Atlantic City and prepared for the MAAC Semifinals against Siena, who they had just held to 35% shooting in a win on Feb. 27.
But the Saints found their shot again in the rematch, shooting 46% from the floor and 53% from behind the arc. 51 combined points from Siena’s Gavin Doty and Justice Shoats allowed the Saints to prevail, ending the Stags’ turnaround year.
It was a season where the Stags reestablished themselves as a competitor in the MAAC, finishing with a 21-13 overall record and an 11-9 mark in the conference. In addition to the winning, the Stags went from ninth in the conference in rebounding to first. The offense went from eighth to third.
The challenge of continuing to build off such success will be the departure of a pair of team captains this spring. Braden Sparks, an All-MAAC Second Team selection, will be absent next year due to graduation.
Luke Davidson will also graduate after walking on during his sophomore year and being the anchor of the team’s leadership for the past three seasons.
Coach Casey acknowledged Davidson by saying that he understood that “everybody’s role is different, but everyone’s status is the same.” Casey also added that Davidson was a huge contributor in making sure all of the new guys were able to acclimate so fast when they arrived in June.
The Stags now enter another year of the recruiting cycle to attempt to regain their first MAAC Championship since 1987.