GAME 19
SCORE	Niagara Purple Eagles 75, Quinnipiac Bobcats 72
RECORDS	Niagara (9-10, 2-4 MAAC), Quinnipiac (8-9, 3-3 MAAC)
LEADING SCORERS	Niagara – Marvin Prochet (24), Quinnipiac – Cameron Young (24)
LOCATION	People's United Center

HAMDEN, Conn. – The Niagara Purple Eagles survived a last minute rally to defeat the Quinnipiac Bobcats, 75-72, on Saturday afternoon.

Game Summary
The 15^th all-time meeting between the Purple Eagles and Bobcats was close throughout with Niagara holding on for its fourth straight win in the series.

Trailing 22-17, Marvin Prochet provided seven points in Niagara's 9-3 run, with the Purple Eagles going 4-for-4 from the field, for a 26-25 lead with 8:23 left in the first half. The Bobcats replied with a 10-2 run over the next three minutes. Niagara closed the half on a 7-2 spurt to trail 37-35 at halftime.

It was an electric start to the second half with three lead changes in the first five minutes. James Towns made two straight 3-pointers for a 54-50 Niagara lead, before the Bobcats went back in front at 55-54 behind a 5-0 spurt. Marvin Prochet connected on his fourth 3-pointer of the game as NU retook the lead for good. Prochet, then, added a jumper and an assist on Raheem Solomon's layup for a 61-55 lead with 8:38 remaining.

A pair of freshmen made 3-pointers on key possessions in the final five minutes. Marcus Hammond connected on a triple to give Niagara a 66-59 lead with 4:37 left and Raheem Solomon's corner 3-pointer pushed Niagara's lead to 69-63 with 3:11 on the clock.

Hammond drained a pair of free throws to give Niagara its largest lead of the game at 75-67 with 40 seconds left. Niagara, the best free throw shooting team in the MAAC, kept the door open for the Bobcats. After going 10-for-10 at the free-throw line, the Purple Eagles missed their last seven free throws as Quinnipiac eventually cut the lead to 75-72. However, the Bobcats missed game-tying 3-pointers by Cameron Young with 14 seconds left and Rich Kelly with four seconds left.  

Eagle's Eye On…

• Marvin Prochet tied a career-high in scoring with 24 points to share game-high honors. Prochet made his first six shots en route to shooting a career-high 81 percent from the field. He was 4-for-5 from the 3-point line.
• Chris Barton netted a season-high 14 points, including nine in the first half.  
• Raheem Solomon, a native of Hartford, Conn., scored 12 points, grabbed three rebounds, and had a game-high plus-10 rating.  

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• The Purple Eagles shot a season-high 51.9 percent from the field and a season-high 58 percent from the 3-point line. Their 11 3-pointers are the second most this season.
• Niagara outscored Quinnipiac in bench points, 21-0.
• The Purple Eagles have won four straight in the series.
• NU picked up its first conference road win of the season.
• Niagara improved to 4-1 this season in games decided by less than four points.

 
Up Next

• The Purple Eagles start at a four-game homestand on Tuesday, January 22 versus the Saint Peter's Peacocks at 7 p.m.
• The game will air on the Niagara Sports Network via LCTV, WGR 550 AM and www.PurpleEagles.com/Watch. 
• 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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