Iona holds on to beat Fairfield 71-62

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) - Lamont Jones scored 20 points and Mike Glover had 13 points and 11 rebounds as Iona took a 19-point first-half lead and held on to defeat Fairfield 71-62 Friday night.

The Gaels (16-5, 8-2 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference), coming off a 65-62 loss at Siena, led 34-15 with 59 seconds to go until halftime.

Iona maintained a double-digit advantage until the Stags (10-10, 5-4) got within eight with 7:30 left. After they closed the deficit to 61-57 with 2:39 to go, Scott Machado scored three of his 18 points.

Desmond Wade's 3-pointer for Fairfield with 38 seconds remaining made it 66-62, but the Stags missed their last three shots as the Gaels hit 5 of 6 free throws.

Iona, which leads the nation in assists (19.90 per game) had a season low of nine, two fewer than its previous low of 11 against Siena.

Rakim Sanders' 24 points led Fairfield.