Homecoming

After an eight-game road trip, the Niagara Purple Eagles return to the friendly confines of the Gallagher Center to host the Quinnipiac Bobcats in the first meeting between the programs on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tip.

Wednesday’s game will be Niagara’s first home contest since a dramatic 65-63 victory over another NEC opponent, the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers, on Nov. 22. The Purple Eagles will play their third NEC team this season and second in as many games.

The game will also be the home debut of senior Anthony Nelson, who missed the first three games of the season due to an injury. The Plainfield, N.J. native has scored 24 points in consecutive games and has moved into 45th place all-time in scoring.

 
Ready For Action

s The Purple Eagles shot a season-high 48 percent from the field and 43.8 percent from behind the 3-point line versus Central Connecticut State.

s Niagara was 18-for-19 at the free throw line in the win at St. Bonaventure. The 94.7 free throw percentage ranks tied for 11th in the nation in a single game.

s The Purple Eagles are currently the 26th youngest team in the nation according to weighted playing time.

s Senior Anthony Nelson moved into 45th place in scoring at Niagara. He needs 11 points to surpass Phil Scaffidi for 44th place.

s Junior forward Kashief Edwards has scored in double-figures in nine out of 11 games this season. Edwards ranks sixth in the conference in scoring (13.6) and fourth in minutes per game (35.6). 

s Sophomore Eric Williams had a season-high 10 points and career-high eight rebounds in the Purple Eagles’ previous game.

s Niagara is 39-27 versus teams from the Northeast Conference and is 44-30 all-time versus teams from Connecticut.

How To Tune In

Fans can listen live to all of the action, called by “The Voice of the Purple Eagles” Todd Callen, free through Yahoo! Sports live web-streaming and on WGR 550 AM.

Home Sweet Home

After eight games away from home, Niagara will play its first home game since Nov. 22 when it host the Quinnipiac Bobcats. The Purple Eagles went 2-6 during the road trip.

Free-For-All

Niagara had one of its best free throw shooting performance in recent program history and it came against one of its oldest rival.

The Purple Eagles were 18-for-19 (94.7%), including making 15-straight, in their 69-61 win over St. Bonaventure on Dec. 11. The single-game free throw performance ranks tied for 11th in the nation this season.

Shooting Out The Lights

Niagara shot a season-high 48 percent from the field and a season-high 43.8 percent from behind the arc in the defeat to CCSU. The Purple Eagles were also solid at the line for the second straight game, shooting 80 percent (16-for-20).

Youth Is Measured

The 2010-11 Purple Eagles are the 26th youngest team in the nation according to a weighted measuring system on KenPom.com. The metric measures the average years of Division I experience weighted by playing time.

Niagara entered the season among 50  out of 347 teams with 11 years or fewer DI experience.

Season’s Greetings

Over the past three seasons, Niagara has enjoyed the holiday season during the month of December. NU compiled a 15-6 record in December from 2007-09. The Purple and White are 1-4 in December this season and will play two more games before New Year’s.

On The Court

Quinnipiac Bobcats (7-2, 1-0 NEC)

Quinnipiac is in the midst of a three-game winning streak. The Bobcats are tough on the board, averaging 44.6 rebounds per game which rank third in the nation.

Junior guard James Johnson leads the Bobcats in scoring (17.6 ppg) and in assists (4.3 apg). Seniors Justin Rutty and Deontay Twyman are also scoring in double-figure at 16.3 and 11.6 ppg, respectively.

Against The Nutmeg State

Niagara has an impressive 44-30 record all-time against teams hailing from Connecticut. NU has winning records versus CCSU, Fairfield, UConn and Yale.

Moving Up The Charts

Senior Anthony Nelson currently has 903 career points, good for 45th all-time on Niagara’s scoring list.

The New Jersey native needs 232 points during the 2010-11season to become the 41st member of the Niagara 1,000 Point Club.