Men’s Basketball Rattles Off Third Straight MAAC Victory at Fairfield

Fairfield, Conn. – The Merrimack College men's basketball team won its third consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game on Saturday night, beating Fairfield University 75-54. Matt Becht led the way for the Warriors, scoring 22 points after knocking down six threes. Adam "Budd" Clark was also outstanding for Merrimack. Clark added a double-double after scoring 20 points and dishing out 12 assists. Devon Savage was the third Warrior in double figures with 14 points in the victory.  


The Essentials
Score: Merrimack 75, Fairfield 54
Records: Merrimack (11-9, 8-1 MAAC) | Fairfield (8-12, 4-5 MAAC)
Location: Mahoney Arena

Rapid Recap

• Becht started the scoring for the Warriors when he drove the lane for two points in the first offensive possession of the night for Merrimack. Becht then added a three to send the Warriors up four. Savage added a three of his own to swell the lead to seven five minutes into the game. The Stags stopped the run with a bucket. Merrimack then added seven straight points to go up 12. Both teams then battled back and forth. Clark knocked down a three to make the lead 14. The sophomore point guard added another three to give the Warriors their biggest lead of the night at 17. Fairfield came back to cut the advantage down to 10 with six minutes to play in the first half. Merrimack then went on a six-point run to get the lead back to 16 points. After a Stag score, Becht went on a personal five-point run to get the lead to 19. Sean Trumper drove the lane for two points to get the advantage over 20 for the first time of the night. Becht and Savage would add five points before halftime to make it a 24-point lead heading into halftime.
• Savage hit a three to open the second half to make it a 27-point lead for the Warriors. After teams traded baskets, Becht hit a three to increase the advantage to 29. The Stags battled back to get the lead down to 19 points with 13 minutes left in the game. Malik Edmead hit a jumper to send the lead back over 20 points. With nine minutes to go before the final buzzer, Fairfield got the lead down to 17. Savage then found the bottom of the net with a three to get the advantage back to 20. The lead bounced between 22 and 19 points for a number of minutes while the Stags were trying to mount their comeback. The Warriors proved to be too much on Saturday night, winning the game by 21.
   

Notes and Numbers

• The Warriors forced 14 Stag turnovers and scoring 17 points off the giveaways.
• Bryan Etumnu just missed a double-double after scoring seven points and pulling down 12 rebounds.
• Merrimack shot 45% from long range, knocking down 13 threes.

Up Next
The Warriors head back home to take on Mount St Mary's on Friday. Game time is set for 7 p.m. in Lawler Arena.