GAME 11 |
SCORE |
Niagara Purple Eagles 78, Army West Point Black Knights 66 |
RECORDS |
Niagara (6-5), Army (5-8) |
LEADING SCORERS |
Niagara - James Towns (19) | Army – Jordan Fox/Alex King (12) |
LOCATION |
Christl Center |
WEST POINT, N.Y. – The Niagara Purple Eagles poured in 51 second half points on their way to a 78-66 victory against the Army West Point Black Knights on Saturday afternoon.
Game Summary
An 18-3 run midway through the second half allowed the Purple Eagles to seize control of a tightly-contested matchup.
Marvin Prochet's four points in eight seconds to open the second half sparked a furious back-and-forth affair featuring 13 lead changes in a seven-minute span. Prochet connected on a baseline jumper, then stole the inbound pass and scored a layup to put the Purple Eagles ahead, 31-29.
The lead continued to flip over the next seven minutes with the final lead change occurring at the 13:20 mark. Trailing 46-45,
Dominic Robb drained a jumper to spark a 9-0 run. Prochet hit a 3-pointer, followed by baskets by Robb and an acrobatic tip-in by
James Towns for a 54-46 lead with 12 minutes remaining.
The Black Knights scored six straight points to cut the lead to 54-52 with 10:53 left, before the Purple Eagles exploded with an 18-3 run, including 11 straight points, in a seven-minute span. Niagara made 8 of 12 shots from the field, including two 3-pointers, with
Marcus Hammond leading the way with eight points. Defensively, the Purple Eagles held the Cadets without a made field goal (0-for-10) and had two steals during the stretch. A Towns layup at the 2:56 mark gave the Purple Eagles the largest lead of the game at 72-55.
The Black Knights led 12-4 after five minutes as the Purple Eagles went 1-for-10 from the field; Niagara began to heat up as the half progressed. A
Keleaf Tate layup cut the lead to 19-18 before Army went on a 6-0 run. However, the Purple Eagles surged ahead for their first lead of the game with a 9-1 run, powered by Tate's five points, at 27-26 with one minute left in the half. Army's Jordan Fox made a 3-pointer to take a 29-27 lead into halftime.
Eagle's Eye On…
- James Towns scored a game-high 19 points, including 16 in the second half. He led the team in assists with five and grabbed six boards.
- Dominic Robb netted 13 points, had four rebounds, and three blocks.
- Marvin Prochet scored 15 points, grabbed nine rebounds, swatted three shots, and had two steals.
- Greg King grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds.
- Marcus Hammond scored 8 points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field.
- Keleaf Tate had a game-high three steals to go along with nine points.
Inside The Numbers
- Niagara's 51 second half points are the most this season.
- The Purple Eagles had season-highs in steals (7), field goals made (30), and in rebounds (45), while their 78 points, 47.6 field goal percent, and six blocks are the second highest this season.
- Dominic Robb had his eighth 3-block game of the season and 29th in his career.
- Niagara improves to 2-4 when trailing at halftime
- The Purple Eagles handed the Cadets their first home loss of the season (4-1).
- Niagara has won three straight versus Army, including in consecutive seasons.
- After scoring a total of nine points in 9 games, Marcus Hammond has scored 17 points in his last two games.
- There were 15 lead changes and four ties.
Up Next
Stay connected with Niagara Men's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram. Follow Niagara Athletics all year long on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and purpleeagles.com.