Connecting Niagara with two national powerhouses would have been unusual.
Now, it’s a reality for the Purple Eagles after a process that took a couple years in the making. Over the last two years specifically, Niagara developed a resume of performing in big states, including advancing to the MAAC semifinal in consecutive years and the program’s first ever appearance in the Women’s NIT one year ago.
With 10 returnees from one year ago — four of whom were part of the first MAAC semifinal team in 2021 — back in the fold, Niagara will now put its brick-by-brick approach to the test against a pair of teams vying for the national title.
The Purple Eagles (2-2) will participate in the Cayman Islands Classic to face defending national champion, No. 7 LSU, at 1:30 p.m. Friday and will then face No. 3 UCLA at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. For Niagara, the Classic will mark the first time it will face either the Tigers or the Bruins since the program started nearly 50 years ago.
As the only mid-major team to participate in the tournament, Niagara head coach Jada Pierce said the opportunity comes with some weight as MAAC play looms with a contest at Iona Dec. 16.
“It’s a good measuring stick for us because, I think, we want to be the best in our conference and we also want to be recognized, in a sense, on a national scale,” Pierce said. “So, how do you do that? You have to put (the team) in situations where they’re playing against the top teams in the country and it’s going to be a great experience for us.”
Only four games into the new season, Niagara has found itself in a variety of outcomes and different players stepping up. With both Parker sisters, Angel (knee) and Aaliyah (illness) not in the lineup, players like freshman Kylie Buckley seized the moment and scored 15 points for Niagara’s 71-69 comeback win against a winless Stonehill team Sunday.
While Angel has yet to play this season, Aaliyah had averaged a team-high 14.7 points per game, including an 18-point performance on 7 of 12 shooting in Niagara’s 95-72 loss to rival Buffalo on Nov. 14. But whoever is suiting up, the Purple Eagles will have to keep pace with a pair of teams that are in the top 10 in points per game LSU (97.8) and UCLA (93.0).
While Angel Reese, the all-American guard and hero of the national championship win against Iowa in April, has missed LSU’s last two games after being benched in the second half against Kent State on Nov. 14, head coach Kim Mulkey still has other options to test Niagara’s defense that has averaged 13.3 steals and held opponents to 73.5 points per game.
Off to a 5-1 start, the Tigers have already scored over 100 points five times, including a season-high 121 against Loyola (La.) on Nov. 1 and most recently, a 106-47 win against Texas Southern Monday. LSU enters the Classic with six players averaging double-figure scoring like Mikaylah Williams (19.2), who is shooting 56.3% from the 3-point line.
After a Sweet Sixteen finish one year ago, UCLA is 4-0 and has held its opponents to under 50 points twice. But entering the Classic, the Bruins are coming off a narrow 77-74 win against Princeton on Nov. 17. Like LSU, UCLA scores at a high clip with five players currently averaging double-figure scoring, most notably former McDonald’s All-American and sophomore Lauren Betts. After appearing in 33 games off the bench as a freshman for head coach Cori Close, the 6-foot-7 center is averaging 19.5 points and 10.8 rebounds per game along with three straight double-doubles.
One player with momentum heading into the Classic for the Purple Eagles, though, is sophomore forward Amelia Strong. The Niagara Falls native and Cardinal O’Hara graduate has started all four contests for the purple-and-white and reached double-figure scoring three times, including a season-high 13 points plus five rebounds against Stonehill Sunday.
Averaging 10.5 points and 4.8 rebounds a game, Strong is currently one of five players averaging double-figure scoring for Niagara, a group that includes Aaliyah Parker and newcomers in Longwood transfer Chardonnay Hartley (13.3) and Pittsburgh transfer Destiny Strother (11.5). For Strong, facing the Tigers and Bruins is a monumental opportunity ahead for herself and her teammates.
“(I’m looking forward to) definitely going against big competition and getting better together,” Strong said.
While Niagara is focused on preparing for the games, Pierce acknowledged how competing in early-season tournaments of this caliber is a testament to the program’s growth itself. Since taking over the program in 2015, Pierce and the Purple Eagles have recorded five seasons with double-figure wins, including an 18-13 overall finish, with 16 wins in MAAC play alone one year ago.
Pierce said the foundation for where Niagara is currently dates back to all her teams at Niagara, with the current players “standing on the shoulders” of those like recent Athletics Hall of Fame inductee and 2018 graduate Victoria Rampado.
“This was not something that we would have been invited to in the past,” Pierce said. “And so, that says a lot about where we are, where we’re going as a program. These young women have fought hard.”