NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, New York – The Marist men's basketball team completed a sweep of the Canisius/Niagara New York trip for the second time in program history on Sunday. Patrick Gardner hit a baseline jumper with 6.8 seconds remaining, which proved to be the game-winner in the Red Foxes' 66-64 victory.
 

Summary

• Marist scored the game's first five points and jumped out to a 21-11 lead with 7:20 left in the first half on a layup by Gardner.
• The Purple Eagles hit three-pointers on their last three possessions of the first half, which gave them a 29-28 halftime lead.
• A 5-0 spurt gave Niagara its largest lead of four with 18:30 remaining.
• Neither team led by more than five in the final 20 minutes. A free throw by Kam Farris gave Marist a 55-50 lead with 7:11 remaining. However, a 10-2 Niagara run punctuated by a three-pointer from Lance Erving put the Purple Eagles up 60-57 with 2:51 left.
• In the final 2:24, Gardner scored Marist's final nine points. His three-pointer tied the score with 1:45 left. Two free throws again knotted the score with exactly one minute left. He then secured the rebound on Niagara's ensuing possession, which set the stage for his game-winner.

 

Stats

• Gardner finished with 31 points. He shot 11-for-16 from the field, 2-for-6 from three-point range, and 7-for-8 from the free-throw line.
• Farris finished with 18 points. He shot 6-for-9 from the field and 2-for-2 from three.
• Isaiah Brickner led the Red Foxes with five rebounds. He added five points and two assists.
• Marist shot .533 (24-for-45) from the field, .412 (7-for-17) from three-point range, and .786 (11-for-14) from the free-throw line.
• Noah Thomasson led Niagara with 19 points and had game highs of nine assists and seven rebounds.

 

Notes

• Marist's only other sweep of the Canisius/Niagara trip came in the 2014-15 season.
• Gardner had the first 30-point game by a Red Fox this season.
• Farris' 18-point game was his highest total since going for 20 against American in the season opener.
• Marist's field goal percentage of .533 was its second highest of the season, trailing only its mark of .551 of Friday at Canisius. This is the first time this season Marist has shot over 50 percent in back-to-back games.
• Marist's seven turnovers were the team's second-lowest total of the season.
• Marist has tied a season high with its three-game winning streak.
• Marist is 4-0 in day games this year.
• Marist is 3-2 in games decided by five points or less.

 

Records

• Marist is 7-9 overall and 3-4 in MAAC play.
• Niagara is 9-8 this season and 4-4 in conference play.

 

Up Next

• Marist returns home to face Saint Peter's on Friday, Jan. 20.
• Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.