NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – A gritty second half performance gave Niagara life, but the Purple Eagles ultimately fell short to the Iona Gaels, 75-61, on Sunday afternoon.

"We had too many turnovers and didn't make open shots, and that was the bottom line the first half," head coach Chris Casey said.  "I thought we did a better job in the second half, but unfortunately we put ourselves too far behind to make it a game at the end."

Niagara (6-19; 4-10 MAAC) went into halftime trailing the Gaels (14-9; 11-3 MAAC), 48-28, and Iona pushed its lead to a 21-point cushion at 53-32 with 16:43 to play.  Over the next 6:33, Emile Blackman and Justin Satchell combined for 13 points as Niagara went on a 17-5 run to cut the score to 58-49 with 10:10 left to play. The comeback effort escalated when Matt Scott tossed a full-court pass to Blackman, who threw down a heavy dunk to cap the run and get Niagara within single digits for the first time since the 12-minute mark in the first half.

A Scott layup with 7:01 remaining in the game made the score 62-52; however, a 9-2 Gaels' run over the next 3:57 put the score at 71-54 as they pulled away for their win despite the Purple Eagles outscoring Iona, 33-27, in the second half.

Satchell recorded his first double-double of the season with team-highs 16 points and 10 rebounds, while sharing game-high honors with four assists. Blackman and Scott joined Satchell in double figures with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Marvin Prochet notched eight points, seven rebounds and two blocks.

The Purple Eagles are back in action on Friday against Saint Peter's at 7 p.m. The game will air live on ESPN3 and on the Niagara Sports Network via AM 1400 WWWS and www.PurpleEagles.com/Watch.   

Stay connected with the Purple Eagles through social media. Follow Niagara Athletics on Twitter@NUPurpleEagles and for men's basketball updates at @NiagaraMBB. Check in with the Purple Eagles on Facebook/PurpleEagles and on Instagram @NUPurpleEagles.