March 3, 2004
FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- Let the madness begin! With the month of March in full swing, millions of hoop fans will turn their attention to the hardwood, as more than 300 Division I basketball teams start their run toward a championship. Ten of those teams will participate in the 2004 MAAC Tournament, which takes place in Albany, N.Y. at the Pepsi Arena.
The Fairfield University men's basketball team anxiously awaits the winner of Friday's game between sixth-seeded Siena College and ninth-seeded Marist College. The winner of that first-round game will advance for a quarterfinal contest against the third-seeded Stags, who finished the regular-season with a 19-10 overall record and a 12-6 MAAC mark, at 9:30 pm on March 6.
But there's more on the line than a 20th win for Fairfield. For the Red and White, this is the first step toward achieving their pre-season goal - a berth to the NCAA tournament. The regular-season is far behind Head Coach Tim O'Toole's team. The past is just that, which allows the Stags to focus on earning another nod to the MAAC championship game.
Fairfield took advantage of last year's second seed and advanced all the way to the title tilt before losing to Manhattan College. Those visions still linger for this year's group, and only a championship will wash away those memories.
Center Rob Thomson has certainly lived up to his role as the team's lone senior, leading the team with a 15.4 scoring average against conference opponents. Thomson earned his first All-MAAC award earlier this week, gaining a position on the first team. DeWitt Maxwell also collected All-MAAC accolades, taking one of five spots on the third team. Maxwell averaged better than 11 points per game in MAAC play.
The Stags split their regular season series with both Siena and Marist in 2003-04. Against Marist, Fairfield opened its MAAC schedule with a 74-60 win at the Arena at Harbor Yard. Terrence Todd and Deng Gai paced the Fairfield offense that night with 18 and 17 points, respectively. Marist came back with a 59-50 victory at the McCann Center, as Chris Handy tallied a double double with 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Red Foxes. Rob Thomson scored 12 points for the Stags, hitting five of 10 shots from the floor.
Marist brings a four-game losing streak into the MAAC tournament, including a 71-65 setback to Siena on February 21. Since defeating Fairfield on January 13, the Red Foxes have dropped 12 of 13 games. Will McClurkin leads the Marist offense with 10.3 points per game, slightly higher than teammate Brandon Ellerbee's 9.3 scoring average. Carl Hood has been the team's top scorer most recently, averaging 18 points per game over the last three outings.
Fairfield took the first game of the two-game series with Siena, registering a 91-80 decision on ESPN2 five weeks ago. Four Fairfield players reached double figures in that game, led by Kudjo Sogadzi's career-high 25 points. Mike Beers paced all Siena scores with 17 markers. In the rematch, the Saints posted a 60-58 victory behind Michael Haddix's 20 points and 11 rebounds. Thomson paced the Fairfield attack with 19 points.
The Stags have faced Siena in each of the last two MAAC tournaments, losing in the 2002 semi-finals (83-63 at the Pepsi Arena) and winning in the 2003 semi-finals (67-63 at Sovereign Bank Arena). Fairfield has not played Marist in a tournament game since a 74-73 overtime loss at the 1998 event.
Fairfield's quarterfinal game will be televised on the Madison Square Garden network (9:30 pm tip). Should the team advance, the Stags will play their semi-final game at 9:45 pm against the winner of Niagara-Iona/Canisius on Sunday evening. The championship game is slated for 9 pm on ESPN2.
