Season Preview Early Edition Game Notes ♫ 23-24 - 195
Oct 29, 2023 21:38:01 GMT -5
FU73, stag76, and 3 more like this
Post by reindeerfan on Oct 29, 2023 21:38:01 GMT -5
Early Edition Game Notes is intended to be fun, informative and sometimes irreverent way to look at the numbers, but if you take this stuff too seriously you are cautioned against reading any further. Please proceed at your own risk!
PLEASE DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR!
.
Fairfield – Season Preview Early Edition Game Notes ♫ 23-24 - 195
With the first game only one week away the Early Edition kicks of the season with a preview edition of game notes
UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
With the departure of several members of last years coaching staff, their will be many new faces along with people in new roles during the 2023-24 basketball season. The changes include the promotion of Assistant Coach Chris Casey into the role of interim head coach, the addition of Glenn Braica as an assistant, the return of Taj Benning to Fairfield (as an Assistant coach), and the addition of Matt Knezovic as the Director of Basketball operations.
Taj Benning
There is a lot of excitement in Stagland around the return of Taj Benning to Fairfield. Benning was a fan favorite who was highly respected for his leadership ability and work ethic while a student athlete. Benning finished his playing career among the top 25 Stags all time in 8 statistical categories including games played(2nd), Minutes(4th), 3 point field goals made, free throws made, personal fouls, assists and field goals attempted. He scored 1,175 points to rank 28th all-time and also recorded over 500 rebounds and 200 assists. Benning helped lead the Stags to the MAAC Championship Games during the 2018 and 2021 seasons.
Matt Knezovic
Matt joined the staff after one season at Oberlin. Prior to Oberlin, he spent time as an assistant at Clarendon College, Daytona State College, and Central Michigan. As a student-athlete, Knezovic played at Mansfield University and Hartwick College and was named to the Empire 8 Sportsman of the Year team as a senior in 2018.
Glenn Braica
Braica attended Queens College(NY) and played for the Knights from 1984 to 1988 as a point guard. Later Braica was an assistant at St. Francis College before being hired by Norm Roberts as an assistant at St. John's University. Braica spent the last 13 years as the head coach at St. Francis(Brooklyn) where he won 177 games, and finished his tenure with an above 500 record in NEC conference play including finishing first in the conference during 2014-2015 season.
Chris Casey
Chris Casey returns for his 5th year at Fairfield and his first year at the helm of the Fairfield Stags. Casey was named interim Head Coach just a few weeks ago and it appears he will have the opportunity to pilot the Stags through the 2023-24 season. Casey is a MAAC coaching veteran having served 8 years on the staff at Saint Peter’s College, 4 years as an assistant at Fairfield, and 6 years as a head coach for Niagara. During his time at Niagara he compiled a 64-129 record including a 19 win CIT Season. Casey is currently 39th all time in wins as a head coach in the conference and he is 4th among active coaches behind John Dunne, Kevin Baggett and Reggie Witherspoon. In addition to his experience as a head coach at Niagara, Casey served as the Head Coach for LIU Post where he compiled a 62-25 record(.713) and Led LIU to two consecutive NCAA tournaments.
Chris Casey MAAC Coaching Record
Chris Casey DII Head Coaching Record LUI
CLOSING THE BOOK ON YOUNG
Jay Young finished his time at Fairfield with a 50-73 (.407) record including a 32–46 (.410) record in conference play. With his 407 overall winning percentage, Jay sits in 9th place in Fairfield history in coaching winning percentage behind 8th place Mitch Buonguoro (.411) while ahead of 10th place Terry O’Connor(.398). Young is also 8th all time in career coaching wins behind 7th place holder George Bisacca who won 61 games at the helm at Fairfield. Young holds a 4-4 record in MAAC tournament play.
Here’s a recap of victories by Coach
MOST LOSSES IN THE FIRST FOUR SEASONS
Jay Young failed to seriously threaten Sydney Johnson’s Fairfield record for most losses during the first 4 seasons with the program (80 losses). Young’s teams only accumulated 73 losses during the past 4 years. Here is a recap of losses by coach during their first 4 years at Fairfield:
Most losses in first 4 years
Johnson 80
Young 73
O'Connor 68
Cormier 67
Buonguoro 64
O'Toole 63
Cooley 60
Barakat 46
Biasacca 31
Lynam 23
YOUNG’S LOOK AHEAD
In a pre-season interview former head Coach Jay Young suggested that the Stags, “need to be way more consistent. The difference between us being 18-13 last year instead of 13-18 was our inability to win close games and shoot the ball better. We just lost so many of those games.” According to one euphoric fan, “if we had just beaten Niagara, Rider, Iona, Manhattan, Quinnipiac, Canisius and Siena last season we might well have won the conference. But those 11 losses really hurt us and doomed us to a 7th place finish.”
CHALLENGES FACING COACH CASEY
With many talented new players coming into the program there is great optimism surrounding the program (as there is every year). However new head Coach Chris Casey will be faced with the challenge of directing a lot of newcomers as Fairfield has lost more 70% of the minutes played from last years 7th place team, Perhaps the biggest challenge facing Casey is, the Stags once again are facing injuries as reports are five Stags including Caleb Fields, Jalen Leach, Brycen Goodine, Birima Seck and Alex Yetna did not appear in a recent scrimmage as they recover from injuries.
HOPING TO GET OFF TO A GOOD START
Coach Casey is hoping his Stags get off to a good start. George Bisacca has the longest winning streak to start a career with a 2-0 start during the 1958-59 season. The best record for the first 10 games belongs to Mitch Buonguoro going 7-3 during the 1985-86 season. Additionally Buonguoro finished that season with the best overall winning percentage of any first year stags coach .744 (24-7).
BRACE YOURSELF FOR ANOTHER SEASON
The count down begins, and there is only one more week before a bunch of college basketball bloggers allow a college basketball team to determine their mood for the next 5 months
COMIC OF THE DAY
Garfield
Garfield is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis. Originally published locally as Jon in 1976, then in nationwide syndication from 1978 as Garfield, it chronicles the life of the title character Garfield the cat, his human owner Jon Arbuckle, and Odie the dog. As of 2013, it was syndicated in roughly 2,580 newspapers and journals and held the Guinness World Record for being the world's most widely syndicated comic strip.
RETURNING PLAYERS
It’s unusual for a Stag team not to have at least one returning 500 career point scorer. This has seldom happened at Fairfield, but this year, for the first time in the Division I era, Fairfield does not have a single returning player who has scored at least 350 career points as a Stag. Fairfield’s leading returning career point scorers Jalen Leach and Caleb Fields, have each scored 339 career points at Fairfield. Its safe to say, players are unlikely to challenge for spots on the career leader boards this season, but here is a little about the returning players.
Caleb Fields Caleb Fields averaged 11.7 ppg per game, playing 1047 minutes while appearing in 29 games. Fields started nearly every contest, playing a team high 36.1 minutes per game connecting on 50 three-pointers and 81.2 percent of his free throw attempts, good enough for sixth in the conference. Fields contributed a season-best 21 points in the wins over Evansville, Marist and Quinnipiac, making five three-pointers versus Quinnipiac. Fields also averaged 3.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 2.4 assists per game.
Jalen Leach Leach is one of the most experienced returning Stag players, having appeared in 58 games with 27 games starts. Leach averaged 5.8 points, 1.1 Assists, 0.5 steals, 2.6 rebounds per game last season.
James Johns Played in 28 games last year averaging 12.3 minutes and 3.0 points per game. Johns was named MAAC Rookie of the Week after averaging 9.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in back-to-back home contests against Yale and Coast Guard.
Jack Brown appeared in 13 games as a Stag Scoring 7 career points.
Brycen Goodine Played in four games prior to a season-ending injury averaging 7.3 points per while scoring a season-best 10 points versus New Hampshire. Goodine shot 6-for-13 (.462) from three-point range.
Anthony “Ant” Davis Jr. is a 6-5 guard from Stephens City, Va. and comes to Fairfield from the Miller School in Charlottesville. Davis redshirted at Fairfield last season
Michael Rogan hails from Saratoga Springs, NY, graduating from South Kent School in Connecticut. The 6-7 guard averaged a triple-double in his final season at Saratoga Springs High School before transferring to South Kent. Rogan redshirted at Fairfield last season
IMPORTANT OFF SEASON SIGNINGS
Fairfield welcomes several newcomers to the team this year. They include:
Birima Seck is a 6-11 200 pound player from Dakar, Senegal who is a junior transfer from New Mexico. Seck appeared in 46 games in two seasons at New Mexico, totaling 40 points, 83 rebounds and 13 blocked shots for the Lobos.
Jasper Floyd was a starter in the backcourt at Hillsborough College during the 2022-23 Season. The 6-3 guard ranked second on the Hawks with 14.7 points per game and led the team with 6.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists per contest. Prior to that, Floyd won an NJCAA National Championship at Northwest Florida State College. Floyd played scholastically at Wharton High School in his hometown of Tampa, FL.
Matt Curtis is a 6-3 guard from Ellington, Conn. Curtis was one of the top-ranked recruits in New England following a standout high school career at Northwest Catholic High School. The three-time All-State selection graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer with 1,911 career points, averaging 23.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game as a senior for the Lions.
Louis Bleechmore is a native of Sydney, Australia, Bleechmore played in 29 games for Saint Joseph's in 2021-22, averaging 8.9 minutes per game. He logged double-digit minutes in 12 outings on his way to totaling 56 points and 31 rebounds. Prior to attending Saint Joseph's, Bleechmore played two seasons at Harcum College in Bryn Mawr, Pa., where he averaged 11.5 points – shooting better than 50 percent from the field – and 4.4 rebounds per game.
Ryan McPartlan
Ryan McPartlan attended Fordham Prep where during his junior year he averaged 19 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists per game. He led his squad to the 2020 NYC "A' City Championship, earning Tournament MVP honors. McPartlan was an All-State and First Team All-CHSAA honoree.
Alexis Yetna began his career at USF before playing for Seton Hall. The 6-8 forward appeared in 83 games prior to coming to Fairfield securing solid stats that included averaging more than 10 points and 8 rebounds per game over this career. On the day his signing was announced in August, the James Webb Space telescope captured this image in space summarizing how most prognosticators see Yetna’s addition to the program:
Yetna has been injury prone and its seems even the heavens consider Yetna a huge question mark.
Luke Davidson is a 6-0 guard from Fayetteville, NY. Davidson was an All-State and All-League honoree at Fayetteville-Manlius, averaging 15 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in his senior campaign in 2021-22.
Marouf Moumine is a 6-6 Small Forward / Guard from Yaoundé, Cameroon. Moumine played scholastically at Cardinal Newman in West Palm Beach, Fla. and most recently spent a post-graduate year at First Love Christian Academy in Washington, Pa
Joe Ganton is a 6-4 guard from North Caldwell, NJ. Ganton was named to the Super Essex Conference All-Colonial Division First Team as a senior. He was one of Essex County's top scorers, averaging 23.8 points along with 6.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Ganton finished his high school career with 1,181 points.
Peyton Smith is a 6-10 all-state forward from Hudson Falls, NY. Smith was a two-time League MVP and a 1,000-point scorer at Hudson Falls High School. While at Hudson Falls, Smith averaged a double-double in his senior campaign, putting up 26 points and 12 rebounds per game
PUTTING THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE
Former Stag and Georgetown transfer Supreme Cook left Fairfield after scoring 910 career points as a Stag. The entire current Fairfield Roster has combined to score only 797 points while wearing a Stag uniform.
ACTIVE BLOCK LEADER
With the departure of Chris Maidoh, Jalen Leach is now the career block leader among active players with 13.
TOP 100
Caleb Fields moved into the Top 100 (93rd) all time at Fairfield in Assists with 69.
OLDEST EVER
When he takes the floor, Alex Yetna will become the oldest person ever to take the court for Fairfield.
HEARD BUT PROBABLY NOT TRUE
Fairfield Completes Successful Summer Jaunt
Following a very successful 3 game winning streak during an offseason summer trip, the Athletic Department is looking at the possibility of returning to Costa Rica again next season. According to a source close to the Athletic department, trips to places like Costa Rico give the players and staff the opportunity to experience things that they might not experience while playing in the US. As an institution we want to foster these “extraordinary learning opportunities.”
While Costa Rica is at the top of the list for next summer, because it appears what happens in Costa Rica doesn’t stay in Costa Rica, Fairfield has not ruled out a new destination for next summer like Bangkok or Columbia…..
Will New Players Bring Fairfield Their First Ever National Championship?
With changes to the transfer rule, offseason signings have the ability to change the trajectory of a program virtually overnight. Things have certainly changed at Fairfield, a school that will be fielding a radically different line-up this season featuring many incoming players. The question for many fans is, “Will these new players bring Fairfield their first National Championship Season?”
There’s no reason to think this can’t happen with Birima Seck, Peyton Smith, Jasper Floyd, Matt Curtis, Alexis Yetna, Louis Bleechmore, Ryan McPartlan, Luke Davidson, Marouf Moumine, Joe Ganton all rumored to be joining the program. Any one of these players has the potential to be the Naismith College Player of the Year. Additionally, Jack Brown has unexpectedly decided to return this season, giving Fairfield unexpected depth at the center position. Reportedly, Ant Davis has grown another half inch taller in the off season, making him a half inch taller than expected. Several returning players are sporting new hair styles, and there is no question the Stags will have a new look this season. And if all that is not enough to be thinking “National Championship,” Chris Casey found a four leaf clover during the offseason.
So it’s no wonder, Stag Euphoria is running rampant as we enter a new season, and the EEGN Staff wishes success to this years Stags!
Edition 195 @stagsmensbball , #stagsmensbball, #MAACHoops , #heardbutprobablynottrue , #EEGN ♫2023-2024♫
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PLEASE DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR!
.Fairfield – Season Preview Early Edition Game Notes ♫ 23-24 - 195
With the first game only one week away the Early Edition kicks of the season with a preview edition of game notes
UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
With the departure of several members of last years coaching staff, their will be many new faces along with people in new roles during the 2023-24 basketball season. The changes include the promotion of Assistant Coach Chris Casey into the role of interim head coach, the addition of Glenn Braica as an assistant, the return of Taj Benning to Fairfield (as an Assistant coach), and the addition of Matt Knezovic as the Director of Basketball operations.
Taj Benning
There is a lot of excitement in Stagland around the return of Taj Benning to Fairfield. Benning was a fan favorite who was highly respected for his leadership ability and work ethic while a student athlete. Benning finished his playing career among the top 25 Stags all time in 8 statistical categories including games played(2nd), Minutes(4th), 3 point field goals made, free throws made, personal fouls, assists and field goals attempted. He scored 1,175 points to rank 28th all-time and also recorded over 500 rebounds and 200 assists. Benning helped lead the Stags to the MAAC Championship Games during the 2018 and 2021 seasons.
Matt Knezovic
Matt joined the staff after one season at Oberlin. Prior to Oberlin, he spent time as an assistant at Clarendon College, Daytona State College, and Central Michigan. As a student-athlete, Knezovic played at Mansfield University and Hartwick College and was named to the Empire 8 Sportsman of the Year team as a senior in 2018.
Glenn Braica
Braica attended Queens College(NY) and played for the Knights from 1984 to 1988 as a point guard. Later Braica was an assistant at St. Francis College before being hired by Norm Roberts as an assistant at St. John's University. Braica spent the last 13 years as the head coach at St. Francis(Brooklyn) where he won 177 games, and finished his tenure with an above 500 record in NEC conference play including finishing first in the conference during 2014-2015 season.
Chris Casey
Chris Casey returns for his 5th year at Fairfield and his first year at the helm of the Fairfield Stags. Casey was named interim Head Coach just a few weeks ago and it appears he will have the opportunity to pilot the Stags through the 2023-24 season. Casey is a MAAC coaching veteran having served 8 years on the staff at Saint Peter’s College, 4 years as an assistant at Fairfield, and 6 years as a head coach for Niagara. During his time at Niagara he compiled a 64-129 record including a 19 win CIT Season. Casey is currently 39th all time in wins as a head coach in the conference and he is 4th among active coaches behind John Dunne, Kevin Baggett and Reggie Witherspoon. In addition to his experience as a head coach at Niagara, Casey served as the Head Coach for LIU Post where he compiled a 62-25 record(.713) and Led LIU to two consecutive NCAA tournaments.
Chris Casey MAAC Coaching Record
| 2013-14 | 7 | 26 | .212 |
| 2014-15 | 8 | 22 | .267 |
| 2015-16 | 7 | 25 | .219 |
| 2016-17 | 10 | 23 | .303 |
| 2017-18 | 19 | 14 | .576 |
| 2018-19 | 13 | 19 | .406 |
| Career | 64 | 129 | .332 |
Chris Casey DII Head Coaching Record LUI
| 2010–11 | 21–10 | 16–5 |
| 2011–12 | 23–6 | 15–1 |
| 2012–13 | 18–9 | 13–5 |
| LIU Post: | 62–25(.713) | 44–11(.800) |
CLOSING THE BOOK ON YOUNG
Jay Young finished his time at Fairfield with a 50-73 (.407) record including a 32–46 (.410) record in conference play. With his 407 overall winning percentage, Jay sits in 9th place in Fairfield history in coaching winning percentage behind 8th place Mitch Buonguoro (.411) while ahead of 10th place Terry O’Connor(.398). Young is also 8th all time in career coaching wins behind 7th place holder George Bisacca who won 61 games at the helm at Fairfield. Young holds a 4-4 record in MAAC tournament play.
Here’s a recap of victories by Coach
| Seasons | Coach | Wins | Losses |
| 1970–1981 | Fred Barakat | 160 | 128 |
| 1958–1968 | George Bisacca | 151 | 85 |
| 2011-2019 | Sydney Johnson | 116 | 147 |
| 1998–2006 | Tim O'Toole | 112 | 120 |
| 2006–2011 | Ed Cooley | 92 | 69 |
| 1991–1998 | Paul Cormier | 86 | 111 |
| 1950–1958 | James Hanrahan | 82 | 79 |
| 1985–1991 | Mitch Buonaguro | 72 | 103 |
| 1981–1985 | Jay Young | 50 | 73 |
| 1948–1949 | Terry O'Conner | 45 | 68 |
| 1968–1970 | Jim Lynam | 23 | 37 |
| 2019-? | Joe Dunn | 9 | 14 |
| 1949–1950 | Bob Noonan | 5 | 6 |
Jay Young failed to seriously threaten Sydney Johnson’s Fairfield record for most losses during the first 4 seasons with the program (80 losses). Young’s teams only accumulated 73 losses during the past 4 years. Here is a recap of losses by coach during their first 4 years at Fairfield:
Most losses in first 4 years
Johnson 80
Young 73
O'Connor 68
Cormier 67
Buonguoro 64
O'Toole 63
Cooley 60
Barakat 46
Biasacca 31
Lynam 23
YOUNG’S LOOK AHEAD
In a pre-season interview former head Coach Jay Young suggested that the Stags, “need to be way more consistent. The difference between us being 18-13 last year instead of 13-18 was our inability to win close games and shoot the ball better. We just lost so many of those games.” According to one euphoric fan, “if we had just beaten Niagara, Rider, Iona, Manhattan, Quinnipiac, Canisius and Siena last season we might well have won the conference. But those 11 losses really hurt us and doomed us to a 7th place finish.”
CHALLENGES FACING COACH CASEY
With many talented new players coming into the program there is great optimism surrounding the program (as there is every year). However new head Coach Chris Casey will be faced with the challenge of directing a lot of newcomers as Fairfield has lost more 70% of the minutes played from last years 7th place team, Perhaps the biggest challenge facing Casey is, the Stags once again are facing injuries as reports are five Stags including Caleb Fields, Jalen Leach, Brycen Goodine, Birima Seck and Alex Yetna did not appear in a recent scrimmage as they recover from injuries.
HOPING TO GET OFF TO A GOOD START
Coach Casey is hoping his Stags get off to a good start. George Bisacca has the longest winning streak to start a career with a 2-0 start during the 1958-59 season. The best record for the first 10 games belongs to Mitch Buonguoro going 7-3 during the 1985-86 season. Additionally Buonguoro finished that season with the best overall winning percentage of any first year stags coach .744 (24-7).
| Coach | Start | First-10 | First-Season |
| Joe Dunn | 0-3 | (3-7) | (9-14) |
| Bob Noonan | 0-4 | (2-8) | (5-16) |
| James Hanrahan | 1-0 | (4-6) | (16-11) |
| George Bisacca | 2-0 | (5-5) | (11-11) |
| Jim Lynam | 1-0 | (5-5) | (10-16) |
| Fred Barakat | 1-0 | (3-7) | (9-15) |
| Terry O’Connor | 0-1 | (3-7) | (11-18) |
| Mitch Buonaguro | 1-0 | (7-3) | (24-7) |
| Paul Cormier | 0-2 | (2-8) | (8-20) |
| Tim O’Toole | 0-1 | (6-4) | (12-15) |
| Ed Cooley | 0-5 | (2-8) | (13-19) |
| Sydney Johnson | 1-0 | (6-4) | (22-15) |
| Jay Young | 0-2 | (3-7) | (12-20) |
The count down begins, and there is only one more week before a bunch of college basketball bloggers allow a college basketball team to determine their mood for the next 5 months
COMIC OF THE DAY
Garfield
Garfield is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis. Originally published locally as Jon in 1976, then in nationwide syndication from 1978 as Garfield, it chronicles the life of the title character Garfield the cat, his human owner Jon Arbuckle, and Odie the dog. As of 2013, it was syndicated in roughly 2,580 newspapers and journals and held the Guinness World Record for being the world's most widely syndicated comic strip.
RETURNING PLAYERS
It’s unusual for a Stag team not to have at least one returning 500 career point scorer. This has seldom happened at Fairfield, but this year, for the first time in the Division I era, Fairfield does not have a single returning player who has scored at least 350 career points as a Stag. Fairfield’s leading returning career point scorers Jalen Leach and Caleb Fields, have each scored 339 career points at Fairfield. Its safe to say, players are unlikely to challenge for spots on the career leader boards this season, but here is a little about the returning players.
Caleb Fields Caleb Fields averaged 11.7 ppg per game, playing 1047 minutes while appearing in 29 games. Fields started nearly every contest, playing a team high 36.1 minutes per game connecting on 50 three-pointers and 81.2 percent of his free throw attempts, good enough for sixth in the conference. Fields contributed a season-best 21 points in the wins over Evansville, Marist and Quinnipiac, making five three-pointers versus Quinnipiac. Fields also averaged 3.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 2.4 assists per game.
Jalen Leach Leach is one of the most experienced returning Stag players, having appeared in 58 games with 27 games starts. Leach averaged 5.8 points, 1.1 Assists, 0.5 steals, 2.6 rebounds per game last season.
James Johns Played in 28 games last year averaging 12.3 minutes and 3.0 points per game. Johns was named MAAC Rookie of the Week after averaging 9.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in back-to-back home contests against Yale and Coast Guard.
Jack Brown appeared in 13 games as a Stag Scoring 7 career points.
Brycen Goodine Played in four games prior to a season-ending injury averaging 7.3 points per while scoring a season-best 10 points versus New Hampshire. Goodine shot 6-for-13 (.462) from three-point range.
Anthony “Ant” Davis Jr. is a 6-5 guard from Stephens City, Va. and comes to Fairfield from the Miller School in Charlottesville. Davis redshirted at Fairfield last season
Michael Rogan hails from Saratoga Springs, NY, graduating from South Kent School in Connecticut. The 6-7 guard averaged a triple-double in his final season at Saratoga Springs High School before transferring to South Kent. Rogan redshirted at Fairfield last season
IMPORTANT OFF SEASON SIGNINGS
Fairfield welcomes several newcomers to the team this year. They include:
Birima Seck is a 6-11 200 pound player from Dakar, Senegal who is a junior transfer from New Mexico. Seck appeared in 46 games in two seasons at New Mexico, totaling 40 points, 83 rebounds and 13 blocked shots for the Lobos.
Jasper Floyd was a starter in the backcourt at Hillsborough College during the 2022-23 Season. The 6-3 guard ranked second on the Hawks with 14.7 points per game and led the team with 6.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists per contest. Prior to that, Floyd won an NJCAA National Championship at Northwest Florida State College. Floyd played scholastically at Wharton High School in his hometown of Tampa, FL.
Matt Curtis is a 6-3 guard from Ellington, Conn. Curtis was one of the top-ranked recruits in New England following a standout high school career at Northwest Catholic High School. The three-time All-State selection graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer with 1,911 career points, averaging 23.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game as a senior for the Lions.
Louis Bleechmore is a native of Sydney, Australia, Bleechmore played in 29 games for Saint Joseph's in 2021-22, averaging 8.9 minutes per game. He logged double-digit minutes in 12 outings on his way to totaling 56 points and 31 rebounds. Prior to attending Saint Joseph's, Bleechmore played two seasons at Harcum College in Bryn Mawr, Pa., where he averaged 11.5 points – shooting better than 50 percent from the field – and 4.4 rebounds per game.
Ryan McPartlan
Ryan McPartlan attended Fordham Prep where during his junior year he averaged 19 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists per game. He led his squad to the 2020 NYC "A' City Championship, earning Tournament MVP honors. McPartlan was an All-State and First Team All-CHSAA honoree.
Alexis Yetna began his career at USF before playing for Seton Hall. The 6-8 forward appeared in 83 games prior to coming to Fairfield securing solid stats that included averaging more than 10 points and 8 rebounds per game over this career. On the day his signing was announced in August, the James Webb Space telescope captured this image in space summarizing how most prognosticators see Yetna’s addition to the program:
Yetna has been injury prone and its seems even the heavens consider Yetna a huge question mark.
Luke Davidson is a 6-0 guard from Fayetteville, NY. Davidson was an All-State and All-League honoree at Fayetteville-Manlius, averaging 15 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in his senior campaign in 2021-22.
Marouf Moumine is a 6-6 Small Forward / Guard from Yaoundé, Cameroon. Moumine played scholastically at Cardinal Newman in West Palm Beach, Fla. and most recently spent a post-graduate year at First Love Christian Academy in Washington, Pa
Joe Ganton is a 6-4 guard from North Caldwell, NJ. Ganton was named to the Super Essex Conference All-Colonial Division First Team as a senior. He was one of Essex County's top scorers, averaging 23.8 points along with 6.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Ganton finished his high school career with 1,181 points.
Peyton Smith is a 6-10 all-state forward from Hudson Falls, NY. Smith was a two-time League MVP and a 1,000-point scorer at Hudson Falls High School. While at Hudson Falls, Smith averaged a double-double in his senior campaign, putting up 26 points and 12 rebounds per game
PUTTING THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE
Former Stag and Georgetown transfer Supreme Cook left Fairfield after scoring 910 career points as a Stag. The entire current Fairfield Roster has combined to score only 797 points while wearing a Stag uniform.
ACTIVE BLOCK LEADER
With the departure of Chris Maidoh, Jalen Leach is now the career block leader among active players with 13.
TOP 100
Caleb Fields moved into the Top 100 (93rd) all time at Fairfield in Assists with 69.
OLDEST EVER
When he takes the floor, Alex Yetna will become the oldest person ever to take the court for Fairfield.
HEARD BUT PROBABLY NOT TRUE
Fairfield Completes Successful Summer Jaunt
Following a very successful 3 game winning streak during an offseason summer trip, the Athletic Department is looking at the possibility of returning to Costa Rica again next season. According to a source close to the Athletic department, trips to places like Costa Rico give the players and staff the opportunity to experience things that they might not experience while playing in the US. As an institution we want to foster these “extraordinary learning opportunities.”
While Costa Rica is at the top of the list for next summer, because it appears what happens in Costa Rica doesn’t stay in Costa Rica, Fairfield has not ruled out a new destination for next summer like Bangkok or Columbia…..
Will New Players Bring Fairfield Their First Ever National Championship?
With changes to the transfer rule, offseason signings have the ability to change the trajectory of a program virtually overnight. Things have certainly changed at Fairfield, a school that will be fielding a radically different line-up this season featuring many incoming players. The question for many fans is, “Will these new players bring Fairfield their first National Championship Season?”
There’s no reason to think this can’t happen with Birima Seck, Peyton Smith, Jasper Floyd, Matt Curtis, Alexis Yetna, Louis Bleechmore, Ryan McPartlan, Luke Davidson, Marouf Moumine, Joe Ganton all rumored to be joining the program. Any one of these players has the potential to be the Naismith College Player of the Year. Additionally, Jack Brown has unexpectedly decided to return this season, giving Fairfield unexpected depth at the center position. Reportedly, Ant Davis has grown another half inch taller in the off season, making him a half inch taller than expected. Several returning players are sporting new hair styles, and there is no question the Stags will have a new look this season. And if all that is not enough to be thinking “National Championship,” Chris Casey found a four leaf clover during the offseason.
So it’s no wonder, Stag Euphoria is running rampant as we enter a new season, and the EEGN Staff wishes success to this years Stags!
Edition 195 @stagsmensbball , #stagsmensbball, #MAACHoops , #heardbutprobablynottrue , #EEGN ♫2023-2024♫
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