When Iona men’s basketball team (12-8, 5-4 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) beat rival Manhattan College on the road on Tuesday, center Jordan Washington wasn’t at the top of his game as he scored four points (2-9 FG), while dealing with the occasional foul trouble.

Washington was a whole new player in the Gaels game against Fairfield (8-9, 3-5 in the MAAC) on Friday night. The second best scorer in the MAAC cranked up the intensity level and bullied defenders in the post to lead Iona past the Stags, 96-89.

“I pick my team up a lot because it starts with me first,” Washington, who finished with 30 points and eight rebounds said. “Once I bring the intensity, everyone else joins. That’s what I have to do every game.”

Iona was in control from the start, jumping out to a 15-2 lead in the opening minutes of the first half. Fairfield managed to cut the Gaels lead down to five, but Iona found its rhythm and went on a commanding 19-2 run led by sophomore guard Rickey McGill, who finished the game with eight points and eight assists. Washington scored five points in the last three minutes of the first half.

Washington carried his energy in the second half as he tallied the Gaels first seven points. Few plays later, graduate transfers Sam Cassell Jr. and Jon Severe made back-to-back three pointers to give Iona a 63-39 lead with 15:37 left in the game.

“They [Cassell and Severe] did a really nice job,” Iona head coach Tim Cluess said. “They are taking up the leadership role, which is why we brought them here in the first place.”

Severe finished with 16 points and six rebounds. Cassell netted 13 points while collecting six rebounds.

Fairfield didn’t give up. With the help of junior guard Tyler Nelson, the MAAC’s leading scorer, The Stags kept battling back until they were able to cut Iona’s lead down to six points with under five minutes to go.

Iona, who was in need of a clutch shot, got it when freshman EJ Crawford connected on a three-pointer to put the Gaels up 82-73.

“We had to keep fighting and keep going,” Crawford said. “We needed someone to take a big shot and it happened to be me this time.”

Crawford tallied 13 points (5-7 FG) and shot 3-4 from behind the arc. Crawford is the only freshman on the team, but he plays like he has been at Iona for a few years.

“He played a lot more under control and let the game come to him,” Cluess said. “As he does that he becomes more and more like an Iona player.”

The Maroon & Gold were able to hold off Fairfield from that point despite Nelson making a pair of three pointers. Nelson finished with a team high 27 points. Guard Jerry Johnson Jr. registered 26 points and nine rebounds.

Fairfield suffered a big loss in the first half when Curtis Cobb collided with Crawford and fell to the ground. Cobb had to be carried off the court in a stretcher.

Coach Cluess wants his players to continue to focus on one game at a time and he hopes the team will be at their highest level when March comes around.

“All I worry about is the next game,” Cluess said. “We have to get better every time out and hope we will be at our peak when we hit March.”