Jan. 2, 2007
LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. - Michael Van Schaick tallied a game-high 19 points while Anthony Johnson just missed a double double with 14 points and nine rebounds as the Fairfield University men's basketball team came up short against Rider University by a 58-55 score. The Stags saw a seven-point second-half lead disappear after the Broncs put together a 12-0 run late in the game.
Fairfield led for most of the game with Rider's lone first half leads coming at 2-0 and at 24-22. After the Broncs opened with the game's first basket, Fairfield scored five straight points including a three-point hoop by Van Schaick. It was the first of three three pointers by the senior in the half. The home team closed the deficit to one point at 7-6, but the Stags came right back with an 8-0 run to take its biggest lead of the game at 15-6.
The Broncs stayed close for the remainder of the half, and even took a brief two-point lead with 3:23 remaining. Marty O'Sullivan secured the lead for Fairfield with a three-point basket with 35 seconds left on the clock to give the Stags a one-point advantage at intermission.
After Jonathan Han hit a lay up in the opening seconds of the second half, Rider tied the game on Lamar Johnson's three-point basket. Rider nudged ahead by a point a few minutes later at 35-34, but saw that lead quickly disappear after an 8-0 Fairfield run allowed the Stags to take their biggest lead of the half at 46-39 with 8:46 remaining.
The Stags went into a scoring drought from that point, a stretch that lasted six minutes and enabled the Broncs to go on a 12-0 run to take control at 52-46 lead with 2:43 remaining. Rider still led by six points at 56-50 with 1:09 left, but Van Schaick's three-point basket cut the lead in half and gave Fairfield additional life.
After a missed jumper by Rider, Han grabbed the rebound and went the length of the court to pull Fairfield within a point at 56-55. Jason Thompson, who missed his first three free throws in the game, was fouled and made both shots of the double bonus to make the score 58-55.
Fairfield had two shots at tying the game, but Van Schaick's NBA-length three-point attempt bounced off the rim to Han. Han ran to the corner and released a three-point shot that also hit rim. O'Sullivan grabbed the rebound but his pass back to the top of the key went wide and wound up in the backcourt with nine-tenths of a second on the clock.
Han finished the game with a career-high 11 rebounds for Fairfield. Thompson tallied a double double for the Broncs with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
