SCORE: Niagara Purple Eagles 86, Marist Red Foxes 70
RECORDS: Niagara (9-8, 2-2 MAAC), Marist (3-12, 1-2 MAAC)
LOCATION: McCann Center – Marist College
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The Niagara Purple Eagles wrapped up their conference road opening weekend with a convincing 86-70 victory over the Marist Red Foxes on Sunday for their fifth straight road win.
Game Summary
The Purple Eagles engineered a 20-1 run in the second half to pull away with the decisive win. Niagara flipped a six-point deficit with 15 minutes remaining to a 13-point advantage with eight minutes left as five different Purple Eagles scored during the run.
Trailing 52-46, Dominic Robb started the rally with a layup and later tied the game at 53-53 with 12:42 on the clock. Kahlil Dukes, then, put Niagara ahead for good on the Purple Eagles' next possession. Dukes made his only 3-pointer in the game as NU reeled off 10 straight points for a 66-53 lead.
The Purple Eagles, who led by as much as 19 points, maintained a double-digit lead for the rest of the game.
Niagara started the second half trailing 41-40 after a first half that had four lead changes. Marist led 25-17 when Niagara went on a 15-4 run, including netting nine straight, to take a 32-29 lead with 4:26 left in the half. Marist regained the lead on an 8-0 spurt and led by four points in the final seconds, but Matt Scott chipped into the lead with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, his third of the season, to end the half.
Eagle's Eye On…
- Matt Scott had game-highs in points and in rebounds. He finished with 23 points and a season-high 15 rebounds for his MAAC-leading sixth double-double. He also chipped in a team-high three assists.
- Kahlil Dukes scored 15 points and went perfect at the free-throw line (4-for-4) for the 10th time this season.
- Kevin Larkin scored a season-high 12 points, including a season-high three 3-pointers, and grabbed four rebounds in 12 minutes.
- Marvin Prochet grabbed 11 rebounds for his conference-leading sixth 10-rebound game. He added nine points and two blocks.
- James Towns was in double figures for the second time in three games with 11 points.
Inside The Numbers
- Niagara's 16-point win is its largest margin of victory against Marist since a 22-point win on January 3, 2013.
- NU outscored Marist in points in the paint (38-34), points off turnovers (19-8), second change points (15-9), fast break (4-0), and bench points (33-24).
- The Purple Eagles extended their road win streak to five straight, the longest since the 2008-09 season, which was also the last time Niagara won its first two conference road games.
- The Purple Eagles, who lead the MAAC in points per game, surpassed their average of 83.4 points per game for their 11th 80-point game of the season.
- Niagara tied a season-low with seven turnovers and in points allowed with 70.
Up Next
- The Purple Eagles return home for a pair of league contests, beginning on Friday, January 12 against Monmouth at 7 p.m.
- The game will air on the Niagara Sports Network via LCTV and WGR 550 AM.
- 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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