POUGHKEEPSIE, NY – Niagara (15-11, 14-4) earned its program-best 14th MAAC win of the season Saturday afternoon with a 74-56 win over Marist in MAAC women's basketball action from McCann Arena.
 
A total of 12 Purple Eagles recorded a basket in the win, led by Aaliyah Parker's 13 points. Sydney Faulcon and Ary Hicks added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Game Recap
First Quarter
• Marist would hold at least a one-point advantage through the first four and half minutes of action before Hicks gave NU its first lead of the contest with a layup with 5:18 to go in the opening stanza.
• Niagara used an 8-0 run to double up the Red Foxes 10-5 with baskets from four different Purple Eagles.
• With 2:46 to go in the first quarter, Marist would draw within one point, 10-9, with four unanswered points.
• Aaliyah would put Niagara up 14-11 with 1:12 remaining in the first, but the Red Foxes would make it one point contest once again scoring the last basket of the frame.
 
Second Quarter
• Nickelle O'Neil would connect on a 3-pointer to start the second quarter, giving Niagara a 17-13 lead over Marist.
• The Red Foxes would tie the game at 17-17 less than a minute and a half later.
• After nearly three minutes of scoreless basketball, NU retook the lead 19-17 with a layup from Aaliyah.
• Two minutes later, The Purple and White would have an eight-point advantage, 27-19, using a 6-0 run to it's largest lead of the first half.
•  The two teams would trade baskets over the last three minutes of the half, leading to a 33-27 lead for Niagara at the break.
 
Third Quarter
• Niagara's first double-digit advantage came midway through the third quarter after Jade Rutledge made two at the line to put NU on top, 39-29.
• A fastbreak layup from Brooklyn Jones would put Niagara up 45-33 and force Marist to take a 30-second timeout.
• A 5-1 run following the Red Fox timeout put Niagara ahead by 16 points, 50-34.
• The Purple Eagles would stay in front by double-digits over the final four minutes of the quarter, taking a 57-41 lead into the final 10-minutes of action.
 
Fourth Quarter
• The first 4:43 of game play of the fourth quarter saw Niagara take a 20-point advantage, 68-48, with Angel Parker, Aaliyah, Maddy Yelle and Hicks all scoring to give NU its largest lead to this point in the contest.
• Three unanswered points by Marist would put the Red Foxes down 17, the closest they would get for the remainder of the contest.
• The Purple Eagles largest lead of the game, 74-52, came on a Hicks fastbreak layup with 1:15 to go in the contest.
• Marist would score the final four points of the contest to give the game its 74-56 final.
 
Niagara Notes
• With the win on Saturday, Niagara improves to 18-38 all-time against Marist.
• Niagara's 14th league win surpasses the previous program record of 13 set back in 2002-03.
• The Purple Eagles finished the contest 36.8 percent from the floor, its highest mark since 48.3 percent at Canisius on Feb. 15.
• The Purple and White forced 21 Red Fox turnovers, including 13 steals, led by four from O'Neil.
• Niagara won the battle on the glass, improving to 9-3 when outrebounding its opponent.
• Angel led NU with seven rebounds and five assists.
 
Up Next
• The Purple and White will play the first of their final two home games on Thursday, March 2 when it welcomes Siena to the Gallagher Center for a 6 p.m. tip.
 
Tickets can be purchased via PurpleEagles.com/tickets or by calling (716) 286-TIXX (8499).
 
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