NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – The Purple Eagles (14-14, 9-11 MAAC) earned the No. 5 seed in the MAAC Tournament and a first-round bye with a commanding 83-52 victory over the Marist Red Foxes (14-15, 9-11) on Saturday.

Prior to the start of the game, Niagara honored the class of 2022; Justin Roberts, Jordan Cintron, Shandon Brown, Greg Kuakumensah, Steven Levnaic, Nicholas Kratholm and Marcus Hammond.

Game Recap
First Half

• Roberts sank a 3-pointer early in the game to put the Purple Eagles ahead, 7-5.
• The Red Foxes got ahead of NU, 21-15, but back-to-back 3-pointers from Hammond tied things up, 21-21.
• The Purple Eagles and Marist were tied, 27-27, with a little over five minutes remaining, when NU went on a 10-0 run, which included four points from Noah Thomasson, four points from Sam Iorio and two from Cintron, to put Niagara ahead, 37-27.
• The Purple Eagles remained ahead by 10, 39-29, going into halftime.

Second Half

• Hammond hit another triple to open the second half, giving the Purple Eagles 42-29 lead over the Red Foxes.
• Ahead 46-33, Niagara went on a 9-0 run, which included a bucket and two free throws from Thomasson, three points from Hammond and two each from Iorio and Cintron, to put NU ahead, 57-35, with about 13 minutes to go.
• Hammond made his fourth 3-pointer of the game with about 11 minutes left in the half to give the Purple Eagles a 62-38 lead over the Red Foxes.
• Jumpers from Roberts and Thomasson and a layup from Kuakumensah gave Niagara a 30-point lead, 68-38.
• A jumper from Cintron gave Niagara a 32-point lead, 70-42, with just under seven minutes left in the second half.
• Thomasson sank two treys to keep Niagara in the lead, 78-44.
• Julian Mackey followed that up with a triple of his own to put the Purple Eagles up by almost 40 points, 81-44.
•  Kratholm scored the final bucket of the day for Niagara as the Purple Eagled down the Red Foxes, 83-52.

Eagle's Eye On

• The Purple Eagles held the Red Foxes to 52 points, which is tied for the lowest points-total they have allowed an opponent this season.
• Thomasson led all scorers with a career-high 27 points. He went 11-for-14 from the field and dished out three assists.
• Hammond added 21 points. He shot 8-for-16 from the field and 4-for-9 from the 3-point line. He also dished out three assists.
• Cintron was just short of a double-double with 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
• Iorio added eight points and five rebounds.
• Kuakumensah also grabbed five rebounds.
• The Purple Eagles shot 54.4 percent from the field and scored 38 points in the paint.

Up Next

• The Purple Eagles will play at 9:30 p.m. against the No. 4 seed in the quarterfinals of the MAAC Championships on Thursday, March 10.

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