The Niagara Purple Eagles look to put together their first three-game winning streak of the season when they face the Fairfield Stags on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Hall in Fairfield, Conn.

The Purple Eagles have momentum after winning their last two games as they look to snap a five-game losing streak against Fairfield that goes back to the 2009-10 season.  That season they actually split the season series, winning the first game on the road 52-49 and dropping the contest at home, 55-41.

A new starting five has led to some different looks for the Purple Eagles, namely Meghan McGuinness.  The sophomore started the first 12 games of the season and shot 28.1 percent (16-for-57) from beyond the arc.  Coming off the bench in the last two games, she has hit 53.8 percent (7-for-13).  She has also seen her points per game increase from 7.0 ppg to 17.0 ppg in the last two contests.

How to Tune In
Fans can follow all of the action via Live Stats on PurpleEagles.com.
 
Last Time Out
The Niagara women’s basketball team extended its winning streak against Saint Peter’s to three games with a 54-46 victory on Thursday night.
  
The Purple Eagles (7-7, 2-1 MAAC) held the lead throughout the entirety of the first half as Kayla Stroman hit the first shot of the game, a three-pointer, and they never looked back.  The biggest lead of the half was an 18-point advantage built through success from beyond the arc.  As a team Niagara hit 5-of-8 attempts (62.5 percent).  The Peacocks (0-14, 0-3 MAAC) were able to put a short run together and cut the lead to 29-19 with a three-point shot at the buzzer.
  
The second half was closer than the first as Niagara’s lead was kept in the single-digits for most of the half.  With the score at 49-43 and 33 seconds remaining, the Peacocks were forced to foul.  McGuinness went to the line and hit 5-of-6 of her chances to keep Niagara in the lead.
 
On The Court: Fairfield Stags (8-6, 2-1 MAAC)
The Stags finished the non-conference schedule with a 6-5 record thanks to a five-game winning streak that put them at 5-1.  After losing in the opener to Florida (71-49), the beat Brown (49-34), Butler (54-45), St. Bonaventure (52-49), Vermont (51-47), and St. Francis Brooklyn (52-43).  From there they went 1-4 down the stretch.
 
Fairfield split the first weekend of MAAC games.  It won the opener at home against Loyola 64-54 then dropped a game at Marist 61-56.  It got to its current record with a 6-59 win over Siena on Thursday. 
 
This season the Stags are led by junior forward Katie Cizynski who has team-highs in both ppg (11.8) and rpg (7.8).  Brittany Obi-Talbot, a fellow junior forward, is also averaging double-digit ppg with 10.1 this season.
 
Against the Stags (Fairfield leads 32-17)
The Purple Eagles are up against a five-game losing streak to the Stags.  The last Niagara victory came on January 16, 2010 when it won 52-49 on the road .Three of the last five losses have been by a single-digit margin.
 
Hoping History Repeats Itself
The last time the Purple Eagles topped the Stags was on Jan. 16, 2010 in a game played on the road. 
   
Close Calls
The last four games played at Alumni Hall have all been close.  Last season was a 57-46 decision which came after a 48-37 loss.  Before the 52-49 win in 2010, the two teams went into double overtime before Fairfield came away with a 66-65 win.
 
Gatto Past Success
Lauren Gatto, who is coming off of a double-double against Saint Peter’s (14 points and 11 rebounds) recorded her first double-double of her Purple Eagles career against the Stags on Feb. 17, 2012 when she scored 11 points and recorded 10 boards. 
In the first game of last year’s series, she scored 20 points. 
 
Ties That Bind
At 7-7, this is the first time the Purple Eagles have been .500 or better this late into the season since the 2006-07 season.  That year the team was 8-6 overall record but was 0-3 in conference play.
   
This year’s 5-6 non-conference record was also the best since the 06-07 season where the team went 8-3.
 
Starting off Strong
This season’s 2-1 start to MAAC play is the best since the 2004-05 season when the team went 3-0.  The team finished that season with a 20-9 overall record and went 13-5 in conference play.
   
Life On The Road
Niagara went 3-3 last season on the road during the conference season.  It beat Loyola, Canisius, and Iona away from the Gallagher Center. 
   
This season it is 1-0.
 
Top Of The MAAC
The Purple Eagles are in the top-3 in a few important offensive statistical categories.  They currently have the second highest scoring offense with 62.1 ppg (two points behind Iona’s 64.6 ppg), tied for third in field goal percentage with a 38.5 percent clip (Iona leads with a 40.0 percent for the year), and first in assists per game with 14.6 apg.
 
High Fliers
Lauren Gatto leads the team with 13.7 ppg, which was good enough to land her fifth in the conference.  Gatto also leads all players in the MAAC in field goal percentage, hitting 51.5 percent of her looks from the floor.