BUFFALO, N.Y. — Niagara's bench delivered when it mattered most, powering the Purple Eagles to a 64-63 victory over rival Canisius Friday night that snapped a five-game losing streak and a nine-game road losing streak for NU.
How it Happened
Justice Smith scored 12 points off the bench and
Jaeden Marshall added 18 as Niagara's reserves outscored Canisius' bench 50-11. The Purple Eagles (8-13, 3-7 MAAC) erased a 10-point first-half deficit and took their first lead of the game on
Olumide Adelodun's 3-pointer with 4:55 remaining.
Paul McMillan IV led all scorers with 27 points for Canisius (2-19, 2-8), but his potential game-winning layup in the final seconds rimmed out, handing the Golden Griffins their eighth loss in MAAC play.
Trailing 33-26 at halftime, Niagara outscored Canisius 38-30 in the second half, shooting 59.1 percent going 5-of-10 from 3-point range to complete the comeback.
Jahari Williamson scored 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including three 3-pointers for the Purple Eagles.
Canisius led for over 34 minutes but couldn't hold off Niagara's second-half surge. Dylan Godfrey added 12 points for the Golden Griffins, who shot 54.5 percent.
Niagara Notes
• Niagara moved to 110-84 all-time against Canisius.
• Friday marked the 79th time in series history where the final score was decided by five points or less. Niagara leads that portion of the series, 45-34.
• Niagara shot over 50.0 percent for the fourth time this season and over 45.0 for the seventh consecutive game.
• Canisius committed 16 turnovers, the fifth Niagara opponent to commit 15 or more in a game this season.
• NU's 50 bench points Friday marked the second time this season the reserves scored 50 or more points.
• Friday marked the seventh time this season Niagara has had a game decided by one possession – improving to 4-3 in such contests.
• Marshall scored 13 of his game-high 18 in the second half. The senior led the team in scoring for the fifth time this season, joining Adelodun and Williamson as the only Purple Eagles to lead the team in scoring five or more times.
Up Next
Niagara will travel to North Andover, Mass., for a Thursday night battle with Merrimack on Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
