Fairfield rallies to beat Monmouth 69-66

Feb 25, 2019, 04:39 am

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- Tyler Nelson scored 23 points, Jonathan Kasibabu added 20, including a go-ahead layup with 38 seconds left, and fifth-place Fairfield rallied to beat seventh-place Monmouth 69-66 on Saturday in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular-season finale for both teams.

Fairfield closed to 36-35 on Kasibabu's dunk early in the second half, but Zach Tillman's dunk capped an 8-0 run and the Hawks led 52-42. Fairfield closed to within a point three times before Kasibabu's go-ahead layup made it 66-64. Deion Hammond's free throws made it a one-point game, but Nelson iced it with a layup and Ray Salnave's 3 at the buzzer missed.

Fairfield (14-15, 9-9) overcame 30.8 percent shooting in the first half and finished at 48.1 percent to sweep the season series against the Hawks and win their fourth straight.

Monmouth led 36-30 at halftime after holding the Stags without a field goal in the final 9:01 of the first half.

Salnave and Hammond scored 14 points apiece for the Hawks (11-19, 7-11).