Coming off a thrilling win over an archrival, the Niagara Purple Eagles now turn their attention to the Monmouth Hawks as they look to split the regular season series.
Scene Setter
• Niagara topped rival Canisius, 69-66, in dramatic fashion on February 12. The Purple Eagles scored the game's final four points with two clutch free throws by
Raheem Solomon to take the lead and a layup by
Justin Roberts with 20 seconds remaining.
• The Purple Eagles had a three-game win streak halted in an 82-71 defeat at Monmouth on January 24. NU outscored Monmouth in paint points (28-26) and bench points (31-23).
• The Purple Eagles have defeated the Hawks the last two times in the Gallagher Center. They edged Monmouth, 78-77, on January 12, 2018 to snap a nine-game losing streak in the series. NU had a dominant second half performance on its way to a 73-48 win on last season, which was Niagara's largest win in 10 seasons.
• The Purple Eagles are 5-2 in league games (6-3 overall) at the Gallagher Center, including winning four of their last five.
• Monmouth leads the MAAC in steals per game (7.8) and in turnovers forced per game (15.9), while NU ranks amongst the nation's best in fewest turnovers per game. The Purple Eagles rank 17th in the nation in steal percent (7.0) according to KenPom.com.
Tipoff Tidbits
• The Purple Eagles lead the MAAC in turnover margin (4.0), turnovers per game (10.6), and fewest turnovers (254). NU ranks ninth in the nation in fewest turnovers, 11th in turnovers per game, and 17th in turnover margin.
• Niagara is first in the MAAC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.17) and had a positive assist-to-turnover ratio in 12 straight games from December 1 to January 19.
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Marcus Hammond leads the Purple Eagles in scoring with a career-high 13.0 points per game and is averaging 15.5 points in league games which ranks fifth. He has scored in double figures 14 times, including a span of seven straight games from January 3-26.
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Marcus Hammond scored a career-high 36 points to lead all scorers at Quinnipiac on January 10. Hammond's 36 points are the most by a Purple Eagle in two seasons and are tied for the most by a MAAC player this season.
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Marcus Hammond is second in the MAAC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.2).
• NU is shooting a MAAC-leading 38.7 percent from 3-point range in conference games.
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Nick MacDonald set a career-high in scoring with a game-high 18 points at Rider on February 9. MacDonald went 7 for 10 from the field and made a career-best four 3-pointers.
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Greg Kuakumensah has scored in double figures in the last four games and is tied with
Marcus Hammond in games in double figures scoring with 14.
• The Purple Eagles forced a season-high 20 turnovers and tied season-highs in field goals made (33) and in steals (13) against Quinnipiac on February 2. Niagara's three turnovers are the fewest since February 8, 2015 (Quinnipiac).
On The Court
Monmouth Hawks (14-10, 8-5 MAAC)
• Monmouth is 3-3 since beating Niagara on January 24. The Hawks started their Western New York trip with an 85-71 win over Canisius, led by a career-high 32 points by George Papas.
• Two Hawks – Deion Hammond (16.4 ppg) and Ray Salnave (14.7 ppg) are averaging double figures scoring.
• Deion Hammond leads the MAAC in 3-pointers per game (2.8), 3-point field goal percentage (.381), total points (393), 3-point field goal attempts (181), total field goals made (135), and total field goal attempts (320).
Against The Hawks (Monmouth Leads 11-4)
• The Purple Eagles have won the last two times the teams have played in the Gallagher Center.
• NU defeated Monmouth, 75-48, in the Gallagher Center on January 26, 2019 in the only regular season meeting between the teams. The 27-point win was the Purple Eagles' largest since beating Marist, 79-50, in the 2009 MAAC Tournament Quarterfinals.
Last Meeting - January 24, 2020
Monmouth 82, Niagara 71
WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. –
Marcus Hammond notched his first career double-double with a team-high 21 points and team-high 10 rebounds as the Purple Eagles fell at the Monmouth Hawks, 82-71, on Friday night to snap a three-game win streak.
| The Series |
Monmouth Leads, 11-4 |
| Last Game |
January 24, 2020 |
|
Monmouth 82, Niagara 71 |
| Last Niagara win |
January 26, 2019 |
|
Niagara 75, Monmouth 48 |
| Last Monmouth win |
January 24, 2020 |
|
Monmouth 82, Niagara 71 |
| Last Niagara win at Home |
January 26, 2019 |
|
Niagara 75, Monmouth 48 |
| Last Monmouth win at Niagara |
January 14, 2017 |
|
Monmouth 90, Niagara 83 |
| Current Streak |
Monmouth W2 |
