In a nail-biting finish, Niagara edged out Iona with a 75-73 victory in New Rochelle, thanks to a last-second three-pointer by Braxton Bayless. The intense MAAC basketball game saw Niagara on a 17-0 run, and Iona struggling to find cohesion. Greg Gordon's hook shot with 6.4 seconds left gave Iona a brief lead before Bayless's game-winning shot. Gordon finished with a season-high 22 points, matched by Bayless's career-high 22 points. Niagara's Luke Bumbalough also made a critical three-pointer to break a 69-all tie. The win improved Niagara's conference record to 2-2, while Iona, which had been an NCAA Tournament team last season, dropped to 1-3 in league play. Iona will have a week off before facing Mount St. Mary's on Sunday.
2-1 Gordon
Media timeout (11:08, 1H): Niagara 27, Fairfield 8. Niagara is on an 11-0 run in the last 2:02, punctuated by Dre Bullock's dunk off an alley-oop from Braxton Bayless.
Wow- Great week for Niagara with two road wins, this one in New Rochelle came quite dramatically. #MAAC https://t.co/9W68nPv51L
New York State of Mind Niagara completes the weekend sweep in NYC after erasing a double-digit Iona lead Sunday afternoon. Four Purple Eagles recorded double-figures, led by @bayless_braxton's career-high of 22. π£π¦ π https://t.co/h6SFngZfMc
Braxton Bayless hits quite the shot β a 3-pointer with less than a second left that helps @NiagaraMBB to a 75-73 win at Iona β the Gaels were an NCAA Tournament team last season with a very different look this season. https://t.co/Visvl9YYdq
Heartbreaker for Iona. Greg Gordon gets the go-ahead basket. Niagara, w/ about 6 seconds left, works the ball down court and gets this long range BOMB from Braxton Bayless gives Niagara 75-73 lead with 0.8 left. Likely game. @lohudsports @rachelmlenzi @DalyDoseOfHoops @MAACHoops https://t.co/84AOwIsgqk
The Bayless three was definitely good. Niagara steals one from Iona, 75-73, to improve to 2-2 in #MAACHoops play. The Gaels fall to 1-3 in the league with a week off before Mount St. Maryβs comes in on Sunday.
We have a situation here. Gordon gave Iona the lead on a hook shot with 6.4 seconds left, and it appeared that Bayless drilled a deep three at the buzzer to steal it for Niagara. #ToTheMonitor they go. #MAACHoops #GaelNation
Iona stole the inbounds, then got a tie-up with the arrow in its favor. The Gaels have 12 seconds to win it. #MAACHoops #GaelNation
Tretout just drove inside and got one to go. Tobin will talk, now down one at 72-71. Niagara will inbound and both teams will play the foul game for the final 17.7 seconds. #MAACHoops #GaelNation
Luke Bumbalough, who torched Syracuse just before Christmas, just hit the biggest shot of the day to break a 69-all tie and put Niagara ahead three with 33.8 seconds to go. Iona ball, down 72-69. #MAACHoops #GaelNation
Narco in New Rochelle, with Iona having just taken a 67-66 lead with 1:53 left in regulation. #MAACHoops #GaelNation https://t.co/k3gFfkcnr6
Theyβre going down the stretch in New Rochelle, where Niagara will try to nurse a 66-64 lead to the wire. Gordonβs 22 are a season high for Iona, Bayless needs one more to match his. #MAACHoops #GaelNation
Niagara is on a 17-0 run, and Tobin just burned a full timeout with 8:21 to go. This is one of those stretches where Iona doesnβt look cohesive and the missed shots are snowballing. The Gaels are down eight as a result, 63-55 the score. #MAACHoops #GaelNation