ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (Interstat) — Justice Shoats scored 26 points and Gavin Doty added 25 as Siena pulled away in the second half to defeat Fairfield 76-61 in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men’s basketball game Sunday at Boardwalk Hall.

The Saints, who led by 10 at halftime, used a decisive 12-2 run midway through the second period to extinguish a Fairfield rally and secure a regular-season series split. Siena improved to 22-11 overall, while Fairfield fell to 21-13.

The most critical sequence of the game unfolded after Fairfield had clawed back to within four points. With Siena leading 51-47 and just under 12 minutes remaining, the Saints locked down defensively and unleashed their two leading scorers. Shoats ignited the run with a driving layup, and after a Fairfield turnover, Doty drew a foul and sank two free throws. Following another Saints defensive stop, Francis Folefac found Shoats for a 3-pointer from the wing, pushing the lead to 11. The run was capped by another Doty 3-pointer, assisted by Riley Mulvey, giving Siena a commanding 63-49 advantage with 10 minutes to play. Fairfield never got within single digits again.

Shoats, a guard from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, was efficient throughout, adding four assists in 39 minutes. His backcourt partner, Doty of Fulton, New York, was equally potent, shooting 9 for 9 from the free-throw line in the second half to help seal the victory. The duo combined for 51 of Siena’s 76 points.

Siena established control early, shooting to a 40-30 halftime lead behind balanced scoring. The Saints’ interior defense, led by the 7-foot Mulvey and the 6-foot-7 Folefac, challenged Fairfield consistently at the rim, recording five blocks as a team. Folefac finished with 10 points, five assists and two blocks, while Mulvey contributed four points, four assists and a block.

For Fairfield, Declan Wucherpfennig of Teaneck, New Jersey, and Braden Sparks of Villa Rica, Georgia, each scored 13 points. Wucherpfennig added three assists and a block, while Sparks dished out five assists. Antione Williams added 12 points for the Stags, who struggled to find consistent offense outside of spurts in the second half.

The game was a reversal of the teams’ meeting just over a week prior, when Fairfield defeated Siena 72-58 on its home floor. The Saints improved to 2-1 against the Stags this season, having also won an 85-77 contest in January.

Siena entered the game as a 3-point favorite according to sportsbooks, and the combined score of 137 points fell under the pregame over/under line of 140.5. An announced crowd of 1,395 attended the neutral-site contest.

The Saints conclude their regular season with momentum, having won three of their last four games. Fairfield, which had won two straight coming in, will look to regroup before the conference tournament. Both teams now await their seeding for the upcoming MAAC tournament, where they will seek an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.