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It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year...Kid's Day!
The Niagara Purple Eagles and Siena Saints are set to square off on Friday morning in the 2015 Kid's Day game at the Gallagher Center.

Niagara (7-6, 3-1 MAAC) is coming off an exciting 66-64 victory against the Fairfield Stags. With the win, Niagara is currently tied in second place in the MAAC with Marist, Iona and Canisius. The 1,700 children from eight Niagara Falls-area schools will get to watch senior Meghan McGuinness, who is averaging 13.5 points per game and 3.7 rebounds per contest at the Gallagher Center. In NU's four MAAC games, Victoria Rampado leads the team with 12.0 points per game and 6.0 boards per outing. Both scorers have been set up this season by Kelly Van Leeuwen, who is fifth in the conference with 3.8 helpers per game.

At home, the Purple Eagles are scoring 69.3 points per game, a 2.7 ppg improvement over its season average, and pulling down 40.7 rebounds per contest. Niagara holds a 4-2 record at home and is still undefeated in conference play at the Gallagher Center.

The Saints (2-9, 1-1 MAAC) are coming off a 65-40 win over the Saint Peter's Peacocks before losing to the Marist Red Foxes, 56-46.  Siena, which was picked to finish tenth in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, opened conference play with losses against Fairfield and Quinnipiac. The Saints hold a 5-1 away record and a 3-3 record on their home court.

This year's Saints feature three players averaging double-figures scoring, led by Margot Hetzke's 15.0 points per game. Hertz also leads the team in rebounding with 7.4 rebounds per game. Before their loss to Marist on Jan. 4, the Saints were on a four-game winning streak.
 

How To Tune In

• In addition to watching the broadcast on LCTV, Purple Eagle fans can follow all of Friday'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
Siena Saints (8-5, 1-3 MAAC)

• The Stags are led by Ali Jacques who is in her 3rd year as head coach at Siena.
• Freshman forward Margot Hetzke is Siena's top scorer and rebounder, averaging 15.0 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.
• Senior guard Tehresa Coles also averages double-figures for the Saints. Coles scores 13.1 points per contest and averages 5.1 rebounds per game.
• Sophomore forward Meghan Donohue additionally contributes 11.5 points per outing and 5.2 boards per game.

 
Against the Saints (Siena leads 43-26)
Last Meeting - February 13, 2014

• NIAGARA UNIV, N.Y. – The Purple Eagles trailed for everything except the most important two minutes of the game, the final two minutes, and rallied for a 65-57 win over the Siena Saints on Thursday night in the Gallagher Center.

 
Tipoff Tidbits

• Niagara's offense is led by senior guard Meghan McGuinness, who averages 11.8 points per game and leads the team in scoring at home with 13.5 point per contest. McGuinness has scored at least 10 points in seven of the last eight games.
• Kelly Van Leeuwen ranks third in the nation among NCAA Division I schools with a 3.3 assist/turnover ratio.
• Friday will mark the 14th game of the season for the Purple Eagles and their seventh contest at home. NU is 4-2 at home and 2-0 against conference opponents at the 'Taps' Gallagher Center.
• NU has a 5.8 rebounding margin against its opponents which is second in the MAAC.
• Niagara had a season-high +22 rebound margin in the win over Binghamton.
• Heading into Friday's game, both teams average 66.6 points per game.
• The Purple and White are coming off an exhilarating 66-64 win over Fairfield on Jan. 4.

 
A Win On Friday Would...

• Give Niagara a three-game winning streak in the series against the Saints.
• Boost Niagara's record to 8-6 overall and 4-1 in the conference.
• Keep the Purple Eagles undefeated at the 'Taps' Gallagher Center against conference opponents.
• Give NU eight wins through its first 14 games for the first time under head coach Kendra Faustin.

 
Breaking Records

• On Dec. 30, McGuinness went 5-for-9 from beyond the arc marking her 223rd career 3-pointer which ties her in second for the all-time record. Sheryl Klick who played for Niagara from 1996-00 has also scored 223 career three pointers.
• Later, McGuinness made two three-pointers on Jan. 4 against Fairfield which moved her above Klick with the second most three point field goals made (225).
• Also on Dec. 30, Kelly Van Leeuwen had six assists for NU which marked her 283rd career assist and broke her into the top-10 for the all-time assist record at Niagara.
• Van Leeuwen then surpassed Kelly Chase who played for NU from 1984-88 and recorded 287 career assists. On Jan. 4 against Fairfield, the senior guard had four assists which placed her ninth in the all-time career assists record with a total of 289 assists.

 
Top Of The MAAC (as of Jan. 8)

• The Purple Eagles have four players in the top-30 in the MAAC in points per game.
• Meghan McGuinness is ranked 12th with 11.8 ppg while Victoria Rampado sits in the 19th spot with 10.8 ppg.
• Val McQuade is 21st in the conference with 10.6 points per game while Sylvia Maxwell is 30th with 8.9.
• Kelly Van Leeuwen ranks first in the conference with a 3.3 assist/turnover ratio.
• The Purple Eagles are second in the MAAC in scoring defense, allowing just 62.5 points per game.
• As a team, Niagara has the second best scoring margin within the conference (4.1) and the second best rebounding margin (5.8). The Purple Eagles rank third in 3-point field goal percentage (34.9 percent/ 82-for-235) and fourth in free throw percentage (69.4 percent/ 120-for-173).
• NU is also third in the conference with a 1.0 assist/turnover ratio. NU additionally ranks third in offensive rebounds (13.9 per game) and second in defensive rebounds (28.7 per game).