JERSEY CITY, N.J. – The Saint Peter's men's basketball team took down Fairfield, 65-52, at Run Baby Run Arena Friday night behind a dominant defensive performance.
"I couldn't be more happy for this group," head coach
Bashir Mason stated after the win. "At Manhattan, I thought we played well enough to win. When you lose a game like that when these guys are already down and out, to be able to respond this way and keep going it says a lot about them and that we're going in the right direction. We just need to continue to fight, push forward and make our own luck."
Saint Peter's (8-13, 3-10 MAAC) held the Stags (9-16, 5-9 MAAC) to their second lowest scoring total of the season and outrebounded them 44-to-28 as the Peacocks put an end to their losing streak. The defense was all over Fairfield, forcing the Stags into committing 15 total turnovers.
Armoni Zeigler led the Peacocks in scoring with 14 points as he missed just one shot from the field all game. He added six rebounds and made his impact felt in just 18 minutes of playing time.
Bryce Eaton and
Marcus Randolph each dropped 13 points and three boards. They also both shot 100.0 percent from the free throw line as Eaton went 6-for-6 and Randolph went 8-for-8.
In addition to his two blocks,
Stephon Roberts pulled in a team-high 10 rebounds while playing the second most minutes (36) among all Peacocks.
Zaakir Williamson played a solid game as well, recording five points and three blocks.
In their last game, the Peacocks saw Manhattan make 27 free throws. Saint Peter's did just that tonight, shooting 27-for-32 (84.4 percent) from the charity stripe including 20-for-21 in the second half.
The Peacocks are back in action on Sunday for their Alumni Game when they take on Rider at 2 p.m. ET.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF: The Peacocks jumped out to a 7-4 lead over the first few minutes of the game with the help of
Mouhamed Sow who scored the first two buckets for Saint Peter's.
Both teams went back-and-forth, trading makes and stops to a 19-18 game with SPU up one. Zeigler led the charge for the Peacocks with nine points while Fairfield's Jamie Bergens led the Stags with six. The largest lead for either team was four when Fairfield was up 15-11, but a six-point run by the Peacocks got them back in it.
With under three minutes remaining in the half, Saint Peter's took a 21-18 lead after a pair of free throws from Roberts. The Stags responded with a tying 3-pointer on the other end. Two layups before halftime gave the Peacocks a 25-22 lead at the break.
SECOND HALF: To open the second, the Peacocks improved their scoring total to 29 with four free throws. The Stags then scored six unanswered to take their first lead since 7:16 in the first half at 30-29 with a 3-pointer.
After a free throw from Fairfield, Saint Peter's went on a 7-0 run to regain the lead at 36-30. The scoring run was made up of layups from
Tyreck Morris and Zeigler along with a 3 from Randolph.
The Peacocks extended their scoring run to 14 after
Adetokunbo Bakare hit a 3-pointer followed by an AND-1 from Zeigler. A technical foul was assessed on Fairfield which led to free throws from Bakare. Saint Peter's led 43-30 with under 10 minutes to go.
The Stags didn't go away as they started to come back with a 9-0 run, cutting a 15-point deficit to a 40-46 game. Randolph put an end to the run with a pair of free throws. Eaton then hit two more from the charity stripe before knocking down a clutch triple to put the Peacocks up 53-43.
Saint Peter's held on down the stretch to secure a 13-point victory over the Stags.
UP NEXT
The Peacocks stay in Jersey City for another shot at Rider on Sunday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
NOTES
Saint Peter's moves to 66-65 all-time vs. Fairfield and 39-26 against the Stags at home...the Peacocks set a new season-high in free throws made with 27 (was previously 20 against Canisius)...Saint Peter's 44 rebounds tied for its second most all season...
Zaakir Williamson recorded a season-high three blocks...the Peacocks recorded 36 bench points compared to Fairfield's 14.
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