NEW ROCHELLE, NY – The Iona University men's basketball team suffered a heartbreaking 71-70 loss to Fairfield in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action Friday night at the Hynes Center. Fairfield freshman Halon Rawlins went 1-for-2 from the free throw line with 3.3 seconds remaining to break the final tie, and a 40-foot attempt at the buzzer by the Gaels rimmed out. Graduates CJ Anthony and Toby Harris paced the Maroon & Gold with 20 and 14 points, respectively.

THE RUNDOWN

Iona jumped out to an 8-0 lead, its largest advantage of the night. Junior Denver Anglin stepped into a three-pointer on the opening possession, while Harris buried a triple and Anthony finished inside to fuel the early surge. Fairfield responded and evened the score at 19-19 with 8:01 left in the first half.
 
Junior Kosy Akamentu capped an 11-4 run nearly four minutes later to give the Gaels a 30-23 edge with 4:06 remaining. The Stags closed the gap to one with 2:10 left, then briefly took a 34-33 lead with 18 seconds to play. Graduate Lamin Sabally answered with a layup in the final moments, sending Iona into the break up 35-34.
 
The first 15:30 of the second half unfolded almost entirely within one possession, aside from an 80-second stretch in which the home side led by four. During that span, the teams traded five lead changes and eight ties. Rawlins gave Fairfield a five-point cushion with a three-pointer at the 4:30 mark.
 
The Gaels responded by scoring six of the next seven points, tying the game at 65-65 on a Harris three-pointer with 2:53 remaining. After exchanging free throws and a field goal for the 13th and 14th ties of the night, Anthony drilled a three to put the Maroon & Gold ahead 70-67 with 1:32 to play. Fairfield answered immediately as Braden Sparks knocked down his fifth three of the contest. Iona had two chances to regain the lead but came up empty, and with the game and shot clocks nearly aligned, a foul sent Rawlins to the line for the deciding free throw.

IONA PERFORMERS

• Anthony finished 5-for-14 from the field and a perfect 8-for-8 at the line, knocking down two three-pointers. He added five rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
• Harris shot 5-for-12 and connected on four triples, while chipping in two rebounds and an assist.
• Akamentu and Anglin each scored nine points, and Sabally contributed eight.
• Rookie Alliou Fall posted seven points, six rebounds, and three steals.

THE OPPONENT

• Sparks led all scorers with a season-high 27 points on 11-for-21 shooting.
• Brandon Benjamin recorded a 13-point, 15-rebound double-double with five assists, two steals, and two blocks.
• Declan Wucherpfennig added 16 points in the win.
• Rawlins finished with nine points and seven rebounds.

TEAM STATISTICS

• Iona held a narrow shooting edge at 41.8 percent to 41.5 percent overall and 38.5 percent to 33.3 percent from three-point range, connecting on 10 triples for the 13th time in 23 games.
• Fairfield controlled the glass with a 42-31 rebounding advantage, including 21-11 on the offensive boards, though the Gaels held a 12-10 edge in second-chance points.
• The Stags posted 13 assists and 11 turnovers, while Iona finished with nine assists and 11 giveaways. A key difference came in points off turnovers, where Fairfield held a 21-15 advantage.

UP NEXT

With a bye from MAAC play Saturday, the Gaels return to action next Thursday at archrival Siena. The matchup at MVP Arena in Albany marks the second meeting between the programs this season and will air nationally on ESPN with a 7 p.m. tipoff.

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