NIAGARA UNIVERSITY – With six seconds remaining, Marist’s Patrick Garnder connected on a mid-range jumper to lift the Red Foxes (7-9, 3-4 MAAC) to a 66-64 win over Niagara (9-8, 4-4 MAAC) Sunday afternoon in MAAC men’s basketball action from the Gallagher Center.
The Purple Eagles were led by Noah Thomasson who finished with 19 points, seven rebounds and nine assists. Aaron Gray added 16 points and Lance Erving contributed 11 in the loss. As a team, the Purple Eagles finished 26-for-50 from the field.
Game Recap
First Half
• Marist and Niagara would be tied 9-9 at the 12:39 mark of the first half as the Purple Eagles started 3-for-10 from the field, compared to 3-for-8 for Marist.
• The Red Foxes would use the next 7:20 of action to take a 21-11 lead over Niagara, holding NU to 1-for-5 from the floor.
• Niagara would respond with a 18-5 stretch that gave the Purple Eagles a 29-26 lead.
• Erving, Gray and Bryce Moore would maked three-straight 3-pointers to give Niagara its first lead of the game.
• Marist would make it a 29-28 game at the half after making a jumper to close out the half.
Second Half
• After Marist took a 30-29 lead – the Purple Eagles would make two-straight baskets to take a four-point lead over Marist.
• Neither team would go up by more than two over the next few minutes, leading to a 38-38 game at the 15:20 mark, before Marist would go on a 5-0 run to take a 43-38 lead over the Purple and White.
• Just under three-minutes later, Gray would connect on a jumper to tie the game at 46-46 with 11:41 to play.
• With 7:11 to play, and Marist up 55-50, the Purple Eagles would go on a 7-0 run to take a 57-55 lead, highlighted by a 3-pointer from Moore.
• That led to a 60-57 Purple Eagle lead courtesy of an Erving corner 3-pointer with 2:51 left on the clock.
• Niagara and Marist would trade baskets over the next two minutes, leading to a 64-64 tie.
• With six seconds left Marist would hit the game-winning basket to hand NU its third-straight loss.
Niagara Notes
• Sunday marked the 68th meeting all-time between Niagara and Marist, with the Red Foxes improving to 36-32.
• Thomasson has led Niagara in scoring 13 times this season, and 18 times over his two-year career on Monteagle Ridge. The Houston, Texas native matched his career-high with nine assists and seven rebounds.
• Gray matched his season-high with four made 3-pointers.
• The three-game skid is Niagara’s longest of the season.
Up Next
• Niagara is back on the road for two games next weekend. On Friday, Jan. 20, the Purple and White will look to complete the season sweep of Rider, followed by the first meeting of the season with 2022 NCAA Cinderella Story Saint Peter’s next Sunday, Jan. 22.
Stay connected with Niagara Men’s Basketball on Twitter and Instagram. Follow Niagara Athletics all year long on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, purpleeagles.com, and the Niagara Purple Eagles app.
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