POTTSVILLE, PA - Niagara (5-6) notched its fifth win of the season in its non-conference finale, defeating Bucknell (5-6), 63-52, at Martz Hall in Pottsville, Pa., on Saturday afternoon in the Bucknell Basketball Kids Classic. Niagara has won four of its last five games heading into the conference slate.
Sophomore David Brooks (Philadelphia, PA/Philadelphia Christian Academy) came off the bench with a game-high 15 points to lead Niagara in scoring for the first time in his career. Other Niagara players in double figures included Tremmel Darden (Las Vegas, NV/Las Vegas) with 13; James Reeves (Rochester, NY/Edison Tech), 12; and Alvin Cruz (Rio Pedras, PR/Florida Air Academy), 12.
Niagara's leading scorer, Juan Mendez (Montreal, Quebec/Florida Air Academy) struggled with foul trouble, playing just 20 minutes and scoring two points while grabbing a team-best nine rebounds. Reeves also had nine rebounds. The Purple Eagles played sound defense, limiting Bucknell to 27.6 percent (16-58) from the field.
The Niagara defense keyed on Bucknell freshman Kevin Bettencourt, who had 19 points in the Bison's last outing, a 67-60 win over defending Big West champion Santa Barbara. He was held to just four points, hitting just one-of-15 from the field. Senior Boakai Lalugba, who leads the Patroit League in both scoring and rebounding, grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds, but was limited to 11 points, six below his average.
"Bucknell runs its offense so well. We extended our defense to take down the time Bucknell had to run the offense over the last 10 minutes," said Niagara coach Joe Mihalich.
Regarding the foul trouble on Mendez, Mihalich said "we decided to put another shooter on the floor. Going small and putting another shooter on the floor helped us with Bucknell's match-up zone."
Niagara led at half, 28-27 and the contest went back and forth in the second stanza. Tied 45-45 with 8:51, Niagara took the lead for good on an Alvin Cruz three-pointer, then added a Darden steal and dunk for a 5-0 run and a 52-45 lead. From the point when the game was tied at 45, the Purple Eagles out scored Bucknell, 18-7.
Niagara, which is 1-1 in MAAC play, returns to league play Wednesday at Marist (5-7, 1-2) in the fourth of a streak of five straight road games. The Purple Eagles will continue the road trip with a Friday game at Manhattan (8-3, 2-1), the pre-season pick to win the league. After the two MAAC games, Niagara returns home for a 7 p.m. game on Tuesday, January 14 game with Siena in a rematch of the 2002 MAAC title game.
