Jan. 10, 2004
FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- After safely tucking away the non-conference portion of its schedule, the Fairfield University men's basketball team will return to Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action on January 11 with a game against Saint Peter's College in Jersey City. Game time is slated for 3 p.m. The Stags finished the non-conference season with a 7-4 record.
Three teams remain unbeaten in conference play, with Fairfield (1-0) and Saint Peter's (3-0) representing two of those three squads. Manhattan, which owns a 4-0 conference mark, knocked Niagara from the unbeaten ranks following a 90-81 victory in upstate New York.
The game also has another unique quality in that two national statistical leaders will face off against one another in this game. Saint Peter's Keydren Clark led the nation in scoring with 26.8 points (295 points in 11 games) heading into this week's action. Fairfield's Deng Gai continues to rank first in Division I with 5.3 blocks per game (53 blocks in 10 games). The NCAA statistics are released each Monday evening, with the next set due on January 12.
Deng Gai looks for his third straight double double after registering a season-high 22 points and 11 rebounds in a 69-64 win over Elon University. Rob Thomson just missed a double double by scoring nine points and 10 rebounds, before fouling out with five fouls in the second half.
Fairfield is in the midst of a month-long road trip. The Stags are playing their seventh straight game away from the Arena at Harbor Yard, not returning to Bridgeport until January 21 against Manhattan College. The Red and White's road trip continues this week with games at Marist College on January 13, at Iona College on January 16 and at Manhattan College on January 18.
