| GAME 16 |
| SCORE |
Niagara Purple Eagles 95, Iona Gaels 90 |
| RECORDS |
Niagara (8-8, 1-2 MAAC), Iona (4-10, 2-1 MAAC) |
| LEADING SCORERS |
Niagara – Marvin Prochet (20), Iona – E.J. Crawford (23) |
| LOCATION |
Gallagher Center |
NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – The Purple Eagles set season-highs in points, rebounds, and in 3-pointers as they outlasted the Iona Gaels, 95-90, on Friday night.
Game Summary
Several Purple Eagles contributed in various ways to help pull out the win tonight. The Purple Eagles, who led by 16 points with eight minutes remaining, scored timely baskets in the final minutes to stymie the Gaels comeback.
It was a game of runs throughout the evening. Niagara took its first lead at 7-5 with a 7-0 run. The Gaels used a 10-0 run to take a 22-13 lead and led 28-21 with nine minutes left in the first half when the Purple Eagle surged ahead.
A triple by
Keleaf Tate, followed by consecutive 3-pointers by
Raheem Solomon gave NU a 30-28 lead. With the scored knotted at 33-33, Niagara finished the final four minutes of the half on a 12-5 run, including nine straight points, for a 45-38 halftime advantage.
A
Chris Barton 3-pointer four minutes into the second half increased Niagara's lead to 58-46; though Iona responded with an 11-1 run in a two-minute span.
The Purple Eagles answered with a flurry of points.
Marvin Prochet drained a pair of 3-pointers,
Dominik Fragala connected on a triple and
Greg King dropped in a layup as part of an 11-0 run for a 70-57 lead with 10 minutes remaining.
Niagara had its largest lead of the game, 78-62, after a King dunk with 8:16 left. The Gaels scored the next eight points, before
Greg Kuakumensah's corner 3-pointer stopped the run.
Raheem Solomon and
Dominic Robb made baskets to give NU a six-point lead heading into the final minute.
However, Iona continued to chip away at the deficit, eventually cutting the lead to 93-90 with 16 seconds remaining. Iona's Asante Gist's 3-point shot was altered by
Dominic Robb as his hot grazed the front rim and went out of bounds.
Marcus Hammond made two free throws to close out the game.
Eagle's Eye On…
- Marvin Prochet added to his MAAC-leading seventh double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. He also added two steals and two assists.
- Dominic Robb had his third double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
- Raheem Solomon scored a career-high 18 points, surpassing his previous high of 15 points with 16 first half points to lead all scorers.
- Greg King scored a season-high 10 points and grabbed eight boards.
- Marcus Hammond dished out a game-high seven assists to set a new career-high.
- Dominik Fragala added eight points on 3 of 4 shooting.
- Keleaf Tate scored eight points and had a season-high four assists.
Inside The Numbers
- Niagara scored a season-high 95 points, including a season-high 13 3-pointers, and grabbed a season-high 51 rebounds.
- The Purple Eagles defeated the Gaels at home for the first time in six seasons.
- Niagara had a substantial advantage in bench points, outscoring the Gaels 47-6. NU also outscored Iona in second chance points (26-6).
Up Next
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