NEW ROCHELLE, NY – A lead as large as 24 points proved to be vital for the Iona College men's basketball team this evening during a 96-89 victory against Fairfield in MAAC action at the Hynes Center.

In the final 68 seconds of action, the Gaels (12-8, 5-4 MAAC) converted 14-of-16 free throw attempts to hold off a furious comeback from the Stags (8-9, 3-5 MAAC) throughout the final moments.

Jordan Washington matched his season-high of 30 points to lead all scorers, finishing 11-of-14 from the field to go along with eight rebounds. Jon Severe posted 16 points, six rebounds and three assists while E.J. Crawford and Sam Cassell Jr. evenly split 26 points. Cassell added six boards and Rickey McGill orchestrated the offense with eight assists to go with eight points and three steals.

Tyler Nelson and Jerry Johnson led the effort for Fairfield with 27 and 26 points respectively. The two combined to shoot 21-for-33 from the floor that included eight made 3-pointers. Johnson also added nine rebounds for a game-high.

Iona came out aggressive in the opening minutes, building a 10-0 lead less than three minutes into the game. The first half lead grew to as large as 24 points on a Washington jumper with 7:38 remaining. However, Fairfield started a run of 19-6 to cut the deficit to 11 points with 1:43 left until halftime.

The margin of 12 points at halftime was created as Washington converted a layup and free throw followed by a dunk from Jonathan Kasibabu for Fairfield in the last minute of play.

Severe once again pushed the Maroon & Gold lead to 24 points at 63-39 with a 3-pointer less than five minutes into the second half. From that point, the Stags outscored the Gaels 22-7 in exactly seven minutes to bring the margin to single digits, 70-61, for the first time since it was 20-12 in the first half.

Fairfield managed to cut the Iona lead to as little as five points on four occasions in the final 50 seconds with Nelson and Johnson combing for nine points in that frame. However, the efficient free throw shooting and an early lead helped Iona hold on for the 96-89 victory.

With the victory, the Gaels move to 10-1 on the season when making 10 or more 3-pointers with 10 makes this evening. Iona also moves to 5-1 at home this season.

Looking ahead, the Maroon & Gold host Quinnipiac on Monday for second of back-to-back home games. Tipoff is scheduled for a 7:00 pm as the Gaels looks to avenge a 97-91 overtime loss in Hamden last Saturday.