Freemantle's triple-double propels Xavier past Fairfield

It wasn't easy early on Tuesday night at Cintas Center, but as the game wore on, persistence and a triple-double by Zach Freemantle paid off for Xavier's men's basketball team in a 78-65 win over Fairfield.

Freemantle finished with 15 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. Freemantle's final assists came in the closing seconds to a cutting Desmond Claude.

It's the first triple-double by a Xavier player since Myles Davis in 2016.

Without Colby Jones \u2012 arguably its most important player \u2012 Xavier got off to a painfully slow start and trailed at the half for the first time this season.

The Stags led nearly the entire first half and had it not been for a 10-0 Xavier run, the Musketeers might…