POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The Niagara Purple Eagles fell to the Marist Red Foxes, 78-64, in the MAAC National Game of the Week on Saturday night to conclude their road weekend.

The Purple Eagles (6-17, 3-9 MAAC) had their three-game winning streak in the series snapped in part to an uncharacteristically sluggish second half which led to a big run by Marist (8-14, 5-7 MAAC).

"We played a good first half, but we didn't come out with enough intensity to the start of the second half, especially on defense," head coach Chris Casey said. 

The first half went back-and-forth with 13 lead changes. Marcus Ware and Marvin Jordan each scored 10 points in the half to pace Niagara, while Antoine Mason added a team-high three assists. Niagara was up 35-34 with one minute remaining after a Wesley Myers layup, before Marist ended the half by scoring the last four points to take a 38-35 lead into the break.

The Red Foxes rode that momentum into the second half where they went on a 16-4 run through the opening six-plus minutes.  Marist's lead increased to 22 points while Niagara continued to struggle generating offense as it tied its second lowest second half scoring output of the season. 

Mason had a team-high 19 points, four rebounds and three assists. Mason is now seventh all-time in scoring at Niagara with 1,700 points. Ware finished with 14 points and shared game-high honors with eight rebounds, while Jordan added 14 points. 

Niagara returns to the Gallagher Center to begin a three-game homestand on Friday, Feb. 7 against Iona at 7 p.m. The game will air on LCTV, ESPN 1520 AM and Purple Eagles All-Access.

For ticket information, contact the Niagara Athletic Ticket Office at 716-286-8499, tickets@PurpleEagles.com or www.PurpleEagles.com/Tickets. http://www.PurpleEagles.com/Tickets