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Women's Basketball Canisius College Athletics

Women's Basketball Renews Rivalry With Niagara on ESPNU

Game No. 16 Canisius (8-7, 5-1 MAAC) vs. Niagara (2-13, 1-5 MAAC) Date and Time: Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2006 - 4:30 p.m. Site: Koessler Athletic Center (2,176) - Buffalo, N.Y.

Broadcast Information TV: ESPNU - Dean Darling (play-by-play) and Cecelia DeMarco (analyst). Radio/Internet: CJRN 710 AM - Jay Moran (play-by-play), Adam Noto and Joe Clifford (analysts) will provide the call. All Canisius College women's basketball games will be broadcast live on the school's official athletic department website, GoGriffs.com. Websites: Canisius (GoGriffs.com); Niagara (PurpleEagles.com)

Fast Break Points
  • The Canisius College Golden Griffins kickoff a three-game MAAC homestand tonight with the first meeting of the year against long-time rival Niagara in the Koessler Athletic Center.
  • The Griffs enter tonight's game on a two-game winning streak and are coming off a 51-47 come-from-behind win at Manhattan Jan. 14. Canisius is 8-7 overall and 5-1 in MAAC play.
  • This is the second consecutive season Canisius has started with a 5-1 record in the team's first six MAAC games of the season.
  • Canisius trailed 35-23 at the half against Manhattan, making the 12-point second half comeback the largest halftime deficit the program has overcome since joining the Division I level prior to the 1986-87 season.
  • This evening's nationally televised game on ESPNU is the first MAAC regular season women's basketball game to be broadcast live.
  • Tonight's live televised game in the Koessler Athletic Center also serves as the first live TV home game for the Canisius women's program.
  • Canisius has been on TV seven times over the last two seasons, with the Blue and Gold posting a 6-1 record in those contests.
  • This contest is Canisius' third MAAC game in the last six days.
  • Four Canisius players enter tonight's game against Niagara averaging double figures for their career against the Purple Eagles, with Jessica Steeves leading the way with 11.9 ppg. in seven career contests against Niagara.
  • Canisius freshman Amanda Cavo became the first MAAC freshman this season to be named the MAAC's Rookie of the Week three times after being honored by the league Monday afternoon. Cavo averaged 14.5 points in two games last week, highlighted by her career-high 19 point effort at Iona Jan. 12.
  • Sophomore Laura Granzow scored a career-high 18 points in the win at Manhattan Jan. 14, with 15 of those points coming in the second half.
  • In the team's first six MAAC games of the season, junior forward Megan Lyte leads the way offensively for the Blue and Gold, scoring 12.7 points per game against MAAC rivals.
  • Canisius allowed Manhattan to score just 12 points in the second half Jan. 14, the fewest points allowed in a half by the Griffs since Jan. 29, 2004, when the Griffs allowed Cornell just 17 points in the first half of a 63-42 Griff win.
  • Canisius enters tonight's contest with at least one 3-point basket in the last 346 games. The last time the Griffs went without a 3-pointer was Jan. 8, 1993, when the Blue and Gold went 0-for-9 from behind the arc in a 79-65 home loss to Fairfield.
Scouting Niagara
  • Niagara enters tonight's game with a 2-13 overall record and a 1-5 mark in MAAC play after falling twice last weekend at Rider and Marist.
  • The Purple Eagles have dropped 11 of their last 12 outings, posting a 61-57 win over Siena Jan. 7, at home to snap a nine-game losing streak.
  • Junior Toni Smalley is the team's active leading scorer, posting 8.8 points per game, with teammate Michelle Manfredi chipping in 7.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest.
  • Niagara's top scoring threat, junior guard Shaunna Ambrose, has missed the last four games with a foot injury. In the 11 games Ambrose has played this season, she is averaging 13.6 points per contest while shooting 35.7 percent from 3-point range.
  • As a team, Niagara is averaging 53 points per game, which ranks ninth in the 10-team MAAC, while giving up an average of 68.3 points per outing.
  • The Purple Eagles' are shooting 32.4 percent from the field and 28 percent from 3-point land.
  • Every player on Niagara's 15-person roster has played in at least nine games this year, with 12 of those 15 players making at least one appearance in the starting lineup.
Series History vs. Niagara
  • Tonight's game marks the 64th all-time meeting between Canisius and Niagara, with the two teams meeting once a season in every year since 1975-76.
  • Canisius leads the all-time series 36-27, and since the two schools joined the MAAC prior to the start of the 1989-90 season, the Griffs hold an 18-15 record in 33 conference meetings.
  • Canisius has won four straight in this series after taking all three meetings last year, the first time Canisius swept Niagara in the season series since 1998-99.
  • Niagara has won four of its last five trips to the Koessler Athletic Center, with last year's home win for Canisius snapping the Purple Eagles' four-game road winning streak in the series.
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Players Mentioned

Amanda Cavo

#12 Amanda Cavo

G
5' 9"
Freshman
Megan Lyte

#44 Megan Lyte

F
6' 0"
Junior
Jessica Steeves

#13 Jessica Steeves

C
6' 3"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Amanda Cavo

#12 Amanda Cavo

5' 9"
Freshman
G
Megan Lyte

#44 Megan Lyte

6' 0"
Junior
F
Jessica Steeves

#13 Jessica Steeves

6' 3"
Senior
C