BRIDGEPORT, CT – Siena Basketball set season benchmarks all across the board defensively as the Saints shut down Fairfield 57-48 at Webster Bank Arena. Four-time defending MAAC Rookie of the Week Jalen Pickett scored a game-high 20 points for Siena which improved to .500 in conference action.

Pickett posted his fifth 20-point performance of his stellar rookie season on 8-12 shooting while adding four steals for Siena (8-11, 3-3) which never trailed and led by as many as 14 points. Evan Fisher added 11 points and six rebounds for the Saints which have matched last season's win total in 13 fewer games.

Wassef Methnani scored a season-high 15 points off the bench for Fairfield (5-15, 2-6) which has dropped four straight. Six-time MAAC Rookie of the Week Pickett and the Saints limited three-time MAAC Rookie of the Week Neftali Alvarez to just 10 points on 4-12 shooting in a matchup of the conference's top-two freshmen leaders in scoring, assists, and steals.

Pickett shot 7-8 from the field for 14 points and Siena stifled the Stags to just 27% shooting in the first half to claim a 29-24 lead at the break. The Saints ultimately bridged both halves with 11 unanswered points, holding Fairfield scoreless for 6:42 to claim their biggest lead of the game at 38-24 with 15:06 to play.

The Stags scored the next eight points to rally within as close as six, but Siena responded with a mini 7-2 spurt to push the lead back to 13 with 9:14 to go and salt the rest of the game away.

The 48 points surrendered were a season-low for the Saints which also set a new season-best for the second straight game in field goal percentage defense, limiting Fairfield to just 35.7% shooting from the field. Moreover, Siena held the MAAC's top three-point shooting team entering the evening at an even 37% to just 4-23 (17%) from distance, thanks in large part to a yeoman-like defensive effort on sharpshooter Landon Taliaferro. The Saints limited the Stags' leading scorer entering play (12.5) and the MAAC leader in threes with 60 to just a pair of free throws on 0-4 shooting from the field including 0-3 from distance over 18 minutes.

Sloan Seymour added nine points and Kevin Degnan chipped in seven points and nine rebounds against his former team for Siena which also forced a season-high 18 turnovers which led to a 19-9 advantage in points off turnovers.

The Saints will look to secure their first three-game winning streak in two years when they return to action Saturday vs. Manhattan at 7 p.m. at the Times Union Center. The first 1,000 guests in attendance will receive a Siena Saints winter knit hat. Tickets can be purchased in advance online at sienasaints.com/tickets or on gameday at the Times Union Center Box Office.