Hawkeye--first of all i want you to know all four of my picks today are small plays...i really don't like the docket..and I get leary playing B games...But, since you asked ...my lean on the best of the three is Iona...see if you read into this like I have:
Good Luck !....crib
NIAGARA
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Purple Eagles finally back at .500
LEWISTON - Niagara has become a living illustration for a favorite coach's axiom: It's not how you start but how you finish.
After struggling through the first part of the season, the Purple Eagles' men's basketball team has put together its first significant winning streak of the campaign, winning their third in a row with an 84-74 victory over Iona in front of 1,514 at the Gallagher Center Friday.
The Purple Eagles, now at .500 (11-11) for the first time since Dec. 6, are still in the mix in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference race at 7-4 and tied for fourth place, one game out of first place. Meanwhile, defending conference champion Iona (10-13, 7-5) lost a chance to gain some ground, falling to sixth place.
"As happy as we are, we feel like we can play even better," said Niagara coach Joe Mihalich. "And we know we have to. I think we finally have a genuine, sincere confidence about us. A genuine kind of chemistry that's coming together."
What's coming together is a consistent offense for Niagara, even if it takes them a little while to warm up.
The Purple Eagles began the game just 2 for 10 from the field, but went 13 of 17 over the final 12 minutes to take a 42-35 halftime lead.
Same story, different half as Niagara opened the second half just 1 of 8 from the field. But the shooting touch quickly returned. By the end of the game, Niagara made 30 of 59 shots, including 8 of 16 from the three-point line.
"Congratulations to Niagara. When a team shoots 50 percent from the field and three-point line they deserve to win," said Iona coach Jeff Ruland. "Our defense was nowhere near where it needs to be. . . . It's one possession at a time. Each possession adds up. We win championships here because we play defense. You can't give up 50 from the floor and 50 from the three. I'm surprised it wasn't a 20-point game."
Four players hit double figures for Niagara, led by Michael Schmidt, who went 4 of 5 from three-point range and made all four of his free throws for a team-best 16 points. Tremmell Darden and Daryl Greene each had 13 while James Reaves had 13 points with 11 rebounds.
"I think we've all learned our roles and what we have to do to win," Reaves said. "Everybody has contributed, from the starters to the people on the bench. When we all work together, we win, so we're going to keep doing that."
Iona had jumped out to a 16-9 lead, thanks to cold Niagara shooting. But Greene took control, hit back to-back three pointers and a layup to give Niagara a 17-16 lead it would never relinquish.
Iona battled back into the game, thanks in large part to 24 points from Greg Jenkins and 16 from Jamestown's Maceo Wofford.
While Niagara went up by as many as 10 in the second half, the Gaels cut the lead to 71-68 on Dyree Wilson's jumper with 3:20 to play. But Darden hit one of two free throws and Schmidt hit a three-pointer with 2:08 to play to effectively put the game away for the Purple Eagles.
"I think we started to play harder and concentrate more on offense," Greene said. "I think we settled down a little bit and started taking even better shots than before. I think that's the reason why we were making them and the ones we missed, we'd get offensive rebounds by Mook (Reaves) and Tremmell to get stick backs and that helped a lot, too."
Sunday Niagara travels to New Jersey to take on Rider (12-8, 8-3), tied for first place in the MAAC with Marist.
