BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – The Niagara Purple Eagles had their two-game win streak snapped in a 73-68 defeat to the Fairfield Stags on Friday.

"I thought our guys played extremely hard and defended pretty well," head coach Chris Casey said. "There were a couple of possessions that we needed to finish around the basket and make some open shots, but I'm proud of my guys. We will gather ourselves together and get ready to play Manhattan."

Matt Scott led Niagara with 17 points and 10 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. Justin Satchell added 16 points, and Emile Blackman scored 13 points, grabbed six rebounds and had three steals.

Tonight's game, which featured 11 lead changes and eight ties, came down to the final minute. Scott's 3-pointer with 2:09 remaining shot NU (5-13, 3-4 MAAC) into the lead, 63-62. On the next possession, Fairfield's Marcus Gilbert made the first of two free throws, but missed the second; however, the offensive rebound by the Stags allowed Tyler Nelson to connect on a 3-pointer for three of his game-high 27 points to push Fairfield back in front, 66-63 with 1:30 left.

The Purple Eagles missed three shots on their next possession. Fairfield, then, increased its lead to 68-63 after a pair of free throws with 39 seconds remaining. Niagara cut the lead to 68-67 after a layup by Scott with 13 seconds left. After two free throws by Nelson made the score 70-67, Karonn Davis made the first of two free throws, and after missing the second, Fairfield (9-8, 3-4 MAAC) got the rebound to wrap up its first win at home in the series since February 2012.

The Purple Eagles twice had their largest lead of the game of seven points in the first half. An Emile Blackman's transition 3-pointer gave NU a 19-12 lead at the 11:50 mark before the Stags answered with an 8-0 run. Five straight points by Justin Satchell halted the run and put NU back in front, and then the Miami native pushed Niagara's lead to 31-24 with a jumper in the paint with three minutes left in the half. Fairfield used an 8-1 run to tie the game at 32-32, but the Purple Eagles went into halftime leading after Davis drained a 3-pointer with 16 seconds left.

The fast-paced action continued in the second half. The Stags went on a 7-0 run to take their largest lead of the game at 52-45 lead with 10:55 remaining. A dunk by Ali Tew gave NU the lead at 57-56 and after four straight points by the Stags, Blackman tied the game with a triple at 60-60 with 4:18 remaining.

Niagara continues its weekend road trip with a meeting with Manhattan on Sunday at 2 p.m. The game will air live on the Niagara Sports Network via WGR 550 AM and PurpleEagles.com/Watch.

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