PURPLE EAGLES MEN'S BASKETBALL
GAMES 9-10	Niagara Purple Eagles (4-4, 3-3 MAAC) vs. Rider Broncs (2-7, 2-4 MAAC)
DATE | TIME	Friday, January 8 |4 PM Saturday, January 9 | 4 PM
LOCATION	Gallagher Center – Niagara University
GAME NOTES	Niagara | Rider
SERIES	Rider Leads 27-23
STREAK	Rider W1
GAME PROGRAM	Game Program
BROADCAST	ESPN+ (Friday) | ESPN3 (Saturday) – Todd Callen/Richard Walsh
RADIO	107.3 FM/AM 1400 (Friday) | (Saturday) – Pat Malacaro
LIVE STATS	PurpleEagles.com
TWITTER	@NiagaraMBB
INSTAGRAM	@NiagaraMBB

   The Niagara Purple Eagles, who have won three of their last four games, return to the Gallagher Center for their first home games of 2021 when they host the Rider Broncs on Friday and Saturday.
 

SCENE SETTER

•  The Purple Eagles started 2021 with a split at the Marist Red Foxes in a matchup of two of the hottest teams in the MAAC as both teams entered with three-game win streaks.
•  Niagara had its win streak snapped in a narrow 63-61 defeat in the first game of the series. NU bounced back with a convincing 86-72 win the next day, behind a 51-point first half.
•  The Purple Eagles and Broncs split their two regular season meetings last year with both teams protecting home court.
•  Niagara and Rider were scheduled to meet in the 2020 MAAC Championship Quarterfinals on March 12, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.
•  The Purple Eagles are 11-3 at the Gallagher Center in the last two seasons, including a 10-2 record in MAAC games. Niagara is 2-0 at home this season.             
 

TIPOFF TIDBITS

•  Niagara boasts the MAAC-best scoring defense, holding teams to 63.8 points per game.
•  Marcus Hammond was named MAAC Player of the Week for the third time in his career on January 4. He averaged a team-leading 20 points, while also averaging 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists as the Purple Eagles split a pair at Marist on January 1-2.
•  The Purple Eagles went 24-25, including making 21 straight, to shoot 96 percent from the charity stripe at Marist on January 2. It is the 10th best free throw percentage in the nation this season. The 96 percent is the program's best with a minimum of 25 attempts, since shooting 96.8 percent (30-for-31) against Fairfield on January 31, 1998.
•  Marcus Hammond, who led NU in scoring and rebounds last season, is averaging team-highs in points with 15.3 per game and in rebounds with 5.9 per contest. Hammond ranks sixth in the MAAC in scoring. His two 20-point games are fourth most in the league.
 • Kobi Nwandu is averaging 12.1 points per game this season, including scoring in double figures in the last seven games. He scored a season-high 17 points on December 19 against Fairfield and has led NU in scoring in a game twice this season.  Nwandu is 39 points shy of 1,000 career points. He scored 450 points at East Stroudsburg (2016-18) and 414 points at LeMoyne (2018-19).
•  Justin Roberts is second in the MAAC in free throw percentage (.917).
•  The Purple Eagles, who led the MAAC in assist-to-turnover ratio, turnover margin, and fewest turnovers per game last season, rank near the top in those categories again this season. NU is second in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.07), turnover margin (2.9), and turnovers per game (10.6) while ranking 22nd in the nation in turnovers per game.
 
On The Court
Rider Broncs (2-7, 2-4 MAAC)
•  The Broncs, who were picked to finish 11th in the MAAC Preseason Poll, are 2-7 on the season and 2-4 in league play.
•  Dwight Murray leads the Broncs in scoring (13.7) and rebounds (6.3), and his 4.4 assists per game are second in the MAAC.
•  Rider leads the MAAC in free throw percentage (.768).
•  The Broncs have to replace 87.6 percent of their scoring from last year's team which is the second most in the nation behind Kentucky (94.0 percent).
 
Against The Broncs (Rider Leads 27-23)
•  After winning seven out of nine meetings from January 2006 to March 2009, NU has won only four times in the last 21 encounters.
•  The Purple Eagles snapped a three-game losing streak in the series with a buzzer beating win on January 17, 2020 in the Gallagher Center.
•  Niagara is 10-8 in the last 18 meetings against Rider at home. 
 
Last Meeting - February 9, 2020
Rider 73, Niagara 58
 
LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. – Nick MacDonald scored a career-high 18 points to lead all scorers as the Purple Eagles fell to the Rider Broncs, 73-58, on Sunday afternoon.
 

The Series	Rider Leads 27-23
Last Game	February 9, 2020
	Rider 73, Niagara 58
Last Niagara win	January 17, 2020
	Niagara 70, Rider 68
Last Rider win	February 9, 2020
	Rider 73, Niagara 58
Last Niagara win at Home	January 17, 2020
	Niagara 70, Rider 68
Last Rider win at Niagara	January 13, 2019
	Rider 97, Niagara 81
Current streak	Rider W1