Men's Openers ... Inside The Boxscores

Opening night for MAAC men's basketball was Friday, and there were some interesting tidbits to be found within the boxscores ...

Here's a quick recap of the openers:

- Fairfield was a 72-60 winner over state rival Quinnipiac. And, an unexpected, unsung starter was the team's top scorer.

The Stags have plenty of star power in eligible transfers Rakim Sanders and Desmond Wade, along with all-league performer Derek Needham and 7-foot-0 center Ryan Olander.

But, on Friday, the best game by a Fairfield player was turned in by 6-foot-5 sophomore forward Maurice Barrow, who shot 8-of-11 from the floor and finished with a game-high 19 points while adding six rebounds.

- Kentucky turned in the expected rout of Marist, 108-58. But, the Red Foxes only trailed by nine, 45-36 at halftime. After that, Kentucky outscored Marist 63-22 in the second half. Freshman point guard Isaiah Morton led Marist with 13 points, but failed to record an assist.

- Loyola provided a good test for Wake Forest of the ACC before the Deacon Demons pulled away for a 75-63 victory. The Greyhounds had the game tied at 48 with 10:38 remaining before Wake went on a 7-0 run to pull away. Center Shane Walker and forward Justin Drummond each had 12 points and nine rebounds for Loyola.

- Buffalo knocked off Saint Peter's, 72-65, but Chris Prescott, a transfer from Saint Joseph's, had a nice debut in the Peacocks' lineup with 23 points, including 5-of-11 shooting from three-point territory. Prescott, though, only made 2-of-8 from inside the stripe.

- And Rider's challenging early season schedule got off to a rough start as the Broncs fell 83-57 at Robert Morris. A banged-up Rider team made the trip to Pittsburgh with only eight scholarship players. Junior swingman Anthony Miles, who averaged 5.9 points per game last season, led the Broncs with 20 points Friday. Rider stays in the Steel City to face Pittsburgh on Sunday night before taking a six-hour bus ride home for a 6 a.m. Tuesday contest at home vs. Drexel as part of ESPN's College Basketball Tip-Off 24-hour marathon.