SCORE: Niagara Purple Eagles 78, Monmouth Hawks 77
RECORDS: Niagara (10-8, 3-2 MAAC), Monmouth (5-11, 1-3 MAAC)
LOCATION: Frank and Barbara Layden Court at the Gallagher Center
NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – The Niagara University Purple Eagles collected their third straight win by holding off the Monmouth Hawks, 78-77, on Friday night.
Game Summary
Niagara needed a defensive stop in the final seconds to pick up its first win over Monmouth in 10 meetings. Clinging to a 78-77 lead, the Purple Eagles forced a Monmouth turnover with one second on the clock as the Hawks failed to get a shot off.
The Purple Eagles led for the majority of the game and as much as 13 points in the second half. In a first half that had six lead changes, NU created separation with an 8-1 run to build a 34-26 lead with 3:28 left. Kahlil Dukes and James Towns combined for 23 first half points to help guide the Purple Eagles to a 40-31 halftime lead.
Dukes connected on one of his three triples to give the Purple Eagles their largest lead of the game, 67-54, with 8:22 remaining in the game. Niagara led by 11 points with under three minutes left, but had to hold off a late run by the Hawks to pull out its third consecutive win.
Eagle's Eye On…
- Kahlil Dukes led all scorers with a game-high 25 points for his 12th 20-point game of the season. Dukes added to his MAAC-leading total in 3-pointers with three and added three assists.
- James Towns notched a career-high with 18 points, including draining a career-high four 3-pointers on six attempts. Towns had three steals to share game-high honors.
- Matt Scott, the conference leading scorer, had 14 points and four assists to share team-high marks.
- Dominic Robb added 12 points and a game-high four blocks.
- Marvin Prochet led NU with 10 rebounds for his sixth 10-rebound game. He share team-high honors with four assists and game-high honors with three steals.
Inside The Numbers
- Niagara snapped a nine-game losing streak to Monmouth while picking up its first win over the Hawks since they joined the MAAC in the 2013-14 season.
- This is Niagara's second three-game win streak of the season.
- Niagara improves to 7-2 when leading at halftime.
- Niagara led for 75 percent of the game.
Up Next
- The Purple Eagles continue their home weekend against Saint Peter's on Sunday at 2 p.m.
- The game will air on the Niagara Sports Network via LCTV and AM 1400 WWWS.
- For ticket information, contact the Niagara Athletic Ticket Office at 716-286-TIXX, tickets@Niagara.edu, or www.PurpleEagles.com/Tickets.
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