Hammond forces OT, Niagara pulls away from Iona late, 100-91

Feb 29, 2020, 09:31 pm

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. -- Marcus Hammond took a half-court pass, dribbled once and drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key at the buzzer to pull Niagara even and force an overtime period the Purple Eagles dominated in a 100-91 win over Iona on Saturday.

Hammond's buzzer-beater pulled Niagara even for the first time since Iona tied the game at 24-24 with more than six minutes left to play in the first half. The Purple Eagles never led in the second half.

Justin Roberts and Raheem Solomon hit back-to-back 3s to put Niagara ahead in overtime, 90-87 and ignited a 12-1 run to put the game out of reach.

Hammond finished with 27 points for Niagara (11-18, 9-9 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference). Solomon had 16 points as Niagara earned its fifth straight home victory. Greg Kuakumensah added 16 points. Roberts had 14 points.

It was the first time this season Niagara scored at least 100 points after putting up a season-best 49 points in the second half.

Tajuan Agee scored a career-high 28 points and had eight rebounds for the Gaels (11-14, 9-9). E.J. Crawford scored a season-high 25 points and had 13 rebounds. Isaiah Ross had 19 points.

The Purple Eagles improve to 2-0 against the Gaels on the season. Niagara defeated Iona 70-69 on Jan. 12. Niagara plays Siena on the road on Wednesday. Iona matches up against Quinnipiac at home on Wednesday.

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