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Looking To Keep The Streak
The Niagara Purple Eagles will head into the Christmas break with a matchup against Big 4 rival the St. Bonaventure Bonnies.

Niagara (5-3) is coming off of its fifth consecutive win of the season, a 76-58 decision against Cleveland State.  Four Purple Eagles scored in double figures as senior forward Val McQuade led the team with a game-high 20 points. Junior guards Taylor McKay and Sylvia Maxwell came out strong in the first half and combined for 29 points in the game. Senior guard Meghan McGuinness shot a perfect 2-for-2 from the free-throw line while finishing with 10 points in the win.

Coming out of halftime leading 31-25, the Purple Eagles went on a 15-9 run after back-to-back three pointers from McGuinness to build their lead to double-digits. Cleveland State climbed back within single-digits down the stretch, including cutting the deficit to 56-49 with less than six minutes left on the clock. Unfazed, three 3-pointers in the span of a little over two minutes from McQuade kept NU in the lead and ultimately gave it the 76-58 victory.

The St. Bonaventure Bonnies (8-3) are coming off a 78-60 win over UNC-Greensboro. St. Bonaventure is unbeaten at home (4-0) this season and 3-3 on the road.

At home the Purple Eagles are scoring 69.3 points per game, a 3.5 ppg improvement over its season average, and boast a +27.7 scoring margin. Victoria Rampado is averaging 10.3 ppg over the first three games at the 'Taps' Gallagher Center and is a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line.

The last time NU topped SBU was with a 71-64 victory on Nov. 14, 2006. When these two teams met last season the Purple Eagles came out with a strong defensive effort. Niagara held the Bonnies to just 16.7 percent (1-for-6) from the floor, including 0-for-3 from three-point range throughout the first five minutes, but eventually dropped a 73-57 decision.
 
How To Tune In

• In addition to watching the broadcast on TWC SportsChannel, Purple Eagle fans can follow all of Saturday's action via PurpleEagles.com.  Fans can tune in to a live video broadcast on Purple Eagles All-Access with announcer Dave Universal and follow along with Live Stats.

 
On The Court
St. Bonaventure Bonnies (8-3, 0-0 Atlantic 10)

• The Bonnies are led by Jim Crowley who is in his 15th year as head coach at SBU.
• Junior forward Katie Healy is the Bonnies' top scorer, averaging 13.8 points, and averages 5.9 rebounds per game
• Junior guard Nyla Rueter also averages double-figures for SBU. Rueter scores 10.3 points per contest and 3.5 rebounds per game.
• Gabby Richmond leads the team with 6.0 rebounds per game while also contributing 7.2 points per outing.

 
Against the Atlantic-10

• Niagara has played eight of the 14 teams that make up the modern day A-10 with only two of those matchups, including SBU, coming in the last decade. Four (Davidson, Rhode Island and La Salle) were played in the 1990s while the only time NU faced-off with Dayton came in the 1978-79 season.

 
A Win On Saturday Would...

• Break St. Bonaventure's current seven-game win streak in the series against the Purple Eagles.
• Boost Niagara to a six-game winning streak for the season.
• Give NU six wins through its first nine games for the first time under head coach Kendra Faustin.

 
What A Start

• The last time Niagara started with a 3-0 stand at home was in the 2006-07 season when the Purple Eagles finished with a 14-16 overall record. That year, NU beat Colgate (76-62), St. Bonaventure (71-64), Maryland-Eastern Shore (70-54) and St. John's (63-46) to start the season 4-0 at the Gallagher Center.
• The last time the Purple Eagles began conference play undefeated was in the 2004-05 season. Niagara beat Rider (78-70), Loyola (72-64), Saint Peter's (74-64), Manhattan (59-54), Fairfield (77-72 OT), and Iona (78-65) for a 6-0 record in the MAAC.

 
Keeping The Streak Alive

• The Purple Eagles defeated Binghamton (11/26) and Detroit (11/29) for their first wins of the season. Niagara won two more consecutive games beating MAAC competitors, Saint Peter's and Manhattan on Dec. 5 and Dec. 7, respectively.
• NU most recent victory came against Cleveland State on Dec. 18. The Purple Eagles secured a 76-58 victory over the Vikings.
• The last time Niagara went on a five-game winning streak was in the 2009-10 season.

 
McGuinness Earns Big 4 Player of the Week

• Meghan McGuinness was named the Big 4 Player of the Week on Dec. 8 for her performance in the pair of games against Saint Peter's and Manhattan.
• McGuinness averaged 12.0 points and five rebounds over two games for the Purple Eagles in conference action.
• Beginning this season, the Big 4 – Buffalo, Canisius, Niagara and St. Bonaventure – will announce players of the week for men's and women's basketball.

 
Top Of The MAAC (as of Dec. 19)

• The Purple Eagles have three players in the top-30 in the MAAC in points per game.
• Sylvia Maxwell is ranked 18th with 11.3 ppg while Val McQuade sits in 20th with 10.9 ppg. McGuinness is 23rd in the conference with a 10.0 points per game.
• Kelly Van Leeuwen ranks third in the conference with a 2.8 assist/turnover ratio.
• Victoria Rampado has the fourth best field goal percentage in the conference after going 24-for-46 (52.2-percent) over the past seven games.
• As a team, Niagara has the best scoring margin within the conference (8.1). NU is third in the conference with a 1.0 assist/turnover ratio. NU also ranks first in offensive rebounds (14.9 per game) and second in defensive rebounds (29.5 per game).