Fairfield 70 St. Peters 43

The Fairfield University men's basketball team (12-3, 5-0 MAAC) won their 11th straight game blowing out the St. Peters Peacocks (8-8, 3-2 MAAC) at the Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard. Click for a full recap and boxscore.

The Least You Should Know:
-Fairfield has won 11 straight games the longest since the 1961-1962 season when the Stags pulled off 13 consecitive victories. It is the eighth longest streak in the nation.

-The Stags are now ranked second in the nation in scoring defense.

-The Peacocks have lost 12 straight games against the Stags and have never beaten Ed Cooley. Despite starting both Ryan Bacon and Wesley Jenkins who were both injured earlier in the week.

-St.Peters was the second to last team to allow 70 points to an opponent. (The Stags have still not allowed that many). Fairfield could have scored more if they kept the pedal to the metal.

-Derek Needham led all scorers with 16 points going to the free throw line 10 times which accounted for half of his points. Ryan Olander recorded his third double double with 15 points and pulling down a game high 12 rebounds.

This was a great game. It is obvious that the team is improving with every game. The defense was spectacular but the Peacocks did miss a lot of easy put backs and close layups. Every time that the Peacocks thought about going through the hole they clogges up the middle and the team was quick recording 8 steals and 7 blocks.

Ryan Olander was a beast on the boards. He made it look easy in this game and got a lot of key rebounds. He would reach for the long rebound and was able to power through to get the close tips. He also DID NOT MISS a shot going 7-7 from the floor and even 1-1 from behind the arc. He had a perfect game and only committed two fouls early in the second half. This was the best that I have ever seen him, he just seemed to play with confidence.

Despite going only 4-12 from the floor and 0-4 from three, Derek Needham looked like last year's version. That was the immediate feeling. He had a 2 to 1 assist to turnover ratio. But what made you the happiest was the way he drove to the hoop and either pulled up for a fading layup or rose above everyone to get a near easy layup. The shots just did not go in. Simple as that. If he continues with the way he played today, his numbers will improve.
Player of the Game: Derek Needham and Ryan Olander. Arguably the best they have both been this year.

Up Next: The Stags will go for 12 in a row as they travel to Loyola University on 1/14.

Saint Peter's Wesley Jenkins suffers knee injury

According to Jersey Journal's online sports blog, St. Peter's Wesley Jenkins has suffered a serious knee injury. Apparently he has injured his ACL in a campus pick up game. The injury is noted to not as be as serious as previously thought.

According to reports, Jenkins is not going to need surgery, but MIGHT have to sit out the entire year. No decision has been made to redshirt him.

Jenkins averaged 13.8 PPG and is one of the league's premiere shooters. He is arguably one of the team's best players.

BIG news! I don't know if the Peacocks can compete without Jenkins. They will have to rely on Ryan Bacon and their other players. Jenkins had the possibility to become the MAAC Player of the Year.

Exciting Home Games might be empty

This past week the Fairfield men's basketball team announced their complete 2010-2011 schedule. To view the complete schedule click here.

In a year when the buzz around campus is how good the basketball will be and the promise that they have. In a year when the coaches and players have guaranteed an appearance in the championship game. In a year when record attendance figures are being set for the fall sports including 950 fans attending the Women's Soccer game aganist Boston College, most people would expect an exciting and popular season for the men's basketball team.

However, that might not be. A couple of exciting and much hyped games will be affected due to the campus vacation days and location changes. These games include:

Sacred Heart (played at Mohegan Sun)

St. Josephs (tournament game, Thanksgiving break)

Vermont (Christmas break)

Army (possible Alumni Hall game)

Niagara

St. Peters

St. Joseph's is arguably the most hyped non conference home game of the season while the Army game is another example of one of the few Alumni Hall games occuring when no one is on campus.

This may just be some bad luck and the attendance figures are sure to be broken during the MAAC Championships in the Arena this year. But it would have been nice to have the student's support before the tournament and get even more hype on campus.