NIAGARA FALLS, New York – In the first game of the MAAC season, the Red Foxes put on a show with a dominant offense and a smothering defense to take the win at Niagara 87-58.
 

SUMMARY

• Niagara's Jai Moore started the Purple Eagles off strong with 3-pointers on the first two possessions
• Marist answered back, scoring on five straight possessions for ten straight points to take the lead
• The Red Foxes led by 3 at the end of the quarter with Willow Duffell scoring four points to pace the team
• To start the second, Marist goes on a 20-2 run to earn an 18 point lead over Niagara
• Allie Best reaches a season-high of ten points before the end of the half, shooting 4-of-5 from the field
• The Red Foxes score a season-high 32 points in the second quarter to cap off a season-high of 48 points in a half. The Purple Eagles had 23 at the half, held to 24% shooting compared to 53% from Marist
• Alana Gilmer heats up in the third, scoring six straight points to bring Marist's lead to 29 points
• With eight minutes left in the game, every player for the Red Foxes had scored as the lead ballooned to 31 points.
• Rebekah Hand grabbed her tenth rebound with eight minutes left to reach a double-double, with 21 points and an assist
• Sarah Barcello makes two 3-pointers to cap off the game and Marist comes away with an 87-58 victory

KEY STATS

• Rebekah Hand's double-double was Marist's first of the season, and her first since playing Siena in the MAAC semifinals on Mar. 4, 2018
• Willow Duffell grabbed a season-high nine rebounds and matched her season-high in scoring with 13
• Allie Best scored a season-high of 12 points along with seven assists and two rebounds

GAME NOTES

• This win marked the 14th-straight year of MAAC opener victories for the Red Foxes
• Marist has not lost at Niagara since 2010

QUOTE FROM THE COACH

"It was probably the most complete team-win we've had this year. We had great contributions from the bench with three of our kids under the weather" lauded Coach Brian Giorgis. "With ten kids, we got everyone to score and get double-digit minutes. We were very efficient on the offensive end, and while we didn't turn them over much, we contested a lot of shots and were able to rebound and get out in transition."
 

UP NEXT

Women's basketball (9-4, 1-0 MAAC) will stay in the Buffalo area to play Canisius (3-9, 1-0 MAAC) on Saturday, Jan. 5 at 2 p.m. Canisius earned their first win over Manhattan this afternoon, topping the Jaspers 47-44. D'Jhai Patterson-Ricks and Sara Hinkriksdottir scored 17 and 16 points to lead the Golden Griffins to victory.