FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Seniors Nathan Knight and Andy Van Vliet combined for 41 points and 20 rebounds as William & Mary men's basketball won its national-leading fourth road game of the season, 62-58, at Fairfield on Sunday afternoon.
 
Playing for the seventh time in its first 10 games on the road, the Tribe (7-3) used a 13-2 second-half run and relied on its defense down the stretch to pull out the win.
 
Knight tallied his fourth-straight double-double and national-leading eight overall with a game-high 21 points and 10 rebounds. Van Vliet notched his fourth double-double of the season with 20 points on 9-of-18 shooting and 10 rebounds.
 
W&M led by two at the break, 27-25, but Fairfield (2-7) used a 10-3 spurt to open up a 37-35 lead just under six minutes into the final frame. Van Vliet and Knight sparked the 13-2 run combining for 10 of the Tribe's 13 points during the run.
 
Freshman Miguel Ayesa knocked down a right-wing 3-pointer to put the Tribe on top for good, 38-37, at the 13:50 mark. Knight scored six in a row, and Van Vliet capped the run with back-to-back buckets, the final coming with 8:40 remaining, to extend the lead to its largest at 48-39.
 
Fairfield drew as close as three, 56-53, but the Tribe did the job defensively over the closing stretch. W&M held the Stags to just one made field goal, a desperation 30-footer with one second remaining, over the game's final four minutes.
 
Defensively, the Tribe did a number on Fairfield senior guard London Taliaferro, who was averaging 16.5 points per game after a career-high 34 on a school-record 10 3-pointers in the Stags' 67-62 win over Texas A&M, the program's first against the SEC. Junior guard Luke Loewe, who finished with 11 points, hounded the reigning MAAC Player of the Week, allowing him to only attempt four 3-pointers, including the desperation last-second triple, and only 10 points. Taliaferro came into the game attempting nearly nine 3-pointers per contest and was 10-of-15 against Texas A&M.
 
How It Happened
- After Jesus Cruz scored four straight to give Fairfield the early lead, the Tribe scored five in a row to take its first lead. Junior Luke Loewe scored the final three of the spurt and his driving lay-up with 14:20 remaining gave W&M a 9-6 lead.
- London Tailaferro pulled the Stags even at nine with a 3-pointer before the Tribe answered with a 7-0 run. Senior Andy Van Vliet capped the run with a 3-pointer to extend the Green and Gold lead to 19-14 with 7:47 left.
- Fairfield used a 9-2 run to move back in front. Calvin Whipple beat the shot clock with a 3-pointer and the Stags scored six straight, including a Vincent Eze layup with 4:13 remaining to give the home team a 23-21 lead.
- W&M held Fairfield scoreless for the final 2:49 and Van Vliet scored the final four points of the half, including an up-and-under lay-up with just over a minute remaining to give W&M a 27-25 lead at the intermission.
- After Taj Benning tied at 27 on the opening possession, the Tribe scored five in a row. Nathan Knight followed up a Bryce Barnes miss with a dunk, and then Barnes found Van Vliet for a corner 3-pointer to give W&M a 32-27 two and a half minutes into the second half.
- Fairfield made four-straight shots as part of a 10-3 run to take the lead. Cruz started the run with a ring-wing 3-pointer, before Benning and Taliaferro scored on back-to-back lay-ups to give the home team the lead. A Kevin Senghore-Peterson free throw at the 14:16 mark of the second half gave Fairfield a 37-35 lead.
- The Tribe responded with a 13-2 run to take its largest lead of the game at nine points. Freshman Miguel Ayesa knocked down a 3-pointer from the right wing to put the Tribe back on top, before Knight scored six in a row with a triple and an old-fashion 3-point play. After a Fairfield bucket, Van Vliet capped the run with four in a row to give W&M a 48-39 lead with 8:40 remaining.
- Back-to-back buckets from Eze and Senghore-Peterson closed the gap to four, 51-47, with 4:55 left. Knight hit a 3-pointer on the ensuing Tribe possession to push the lead back to seven.
- Four-straight Fairfield free throws dwindled the Tribe lead down to three. Eze connected on 3-of-4 at the charity stripe, while Senghore-Peterson added the final one with 2:26 remaining to close the margin to 56-53.
- On the next Tribe possession, Van Vliet followed up his own miss to push the lead to five just 20 seconds later.
- Defensively, W&M held Fairfield without a field goal for over at four-minute stretch, until a final-second desperation 3-pointer from Taliaferro. On the other end, Loewe and Barnes connected on two free throws apiece over the final 20 seconds as the Tribe closed out the win.
 
Starters
W&M - #2 Hamilton, #5 Barnes, #11 Van Vliet, #12 Loewe, #13 Knight
Fairfield - #1 Maidoh, #2 Benning, #23 Eze, #24 Cruz, #25 Taliaferro
 
Inside the Numbers
- The Tribe held a 38-29 advantage on the glass, including an 11-7 cushion on the offensive boards. W&M outscored Fairfield, 12-6, on second-chance points.
- In the second half, W&M outrebound Fairfield, 24-12. The Tribe pulled down 10 offensive rebounds in the final 20 minutes and scored all 12 of its second-chance points.
- W&M finished the game at 40.7% from the floor (22-of-54), including 6-of-17 (35.3%) from 3.
- Fairfield shot 42.6% (23-of-54) for the game, including 46.2% (12-of-26) in the second half.
- The Tribe connected on 80% (12-of-15) at the free throw line and outscored the Stags by five, 12-7, at the charity stripe.
 
Notes
The win was W&M's national-leading fourth on the road this season … W&M outrebounded an opponent for the seventh time this season … Senior Nathan Knight posted his fourth double-double in a row and leads the country with eight on the year … Senior Andy Van Vliet picked up his fourth double-double of the season … Junior Luke Loewe scored in double figures for the fourth-straight game and sixth time overall this season.
 
Up Next
- The Tribe will have next week off for final exams at W&M and return to action on Sunday, Dec. 15, when it welcomes Goucher to Kaplan Arena at noon.
- All Tribe home games will be streamed on FloHoops. A FloHoops subscription is $12.50 per month or $95.88 per year ($7.99 per month) and provides access to 130 CAA men's basketball games, as well as special features.
- Tribe fans can catch the men's basketball action over the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley and Charlie Woollum on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM and 107.9 Bach FM are the flagship stations of the Tribe Radio Network and the audio is also available over the Web at TribeAthletics.com.
 
Tribe fans can get an inside look at William & Mary basketball with the return of 'Dining with Dane' on Tuesday, Dec. 10. The monthly luncheon featuring Tribe head coach Dane Fischer, which begins at noon, is held at Anna's Brick Oven and include a buffet for $13.75. The 'Dining with Dane' series provides fans the opportunity to get Coach Fischer's thoughts on the season and upcoming games.