# 2020–21 Niagara Purple Eagles men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Niagara Purple Eagles men's basketball team represented Niagara University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Purple Eagles, led by second-year head coach Greg Paulus, played their home games at the Gallagher Center in Lewiston, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). They finished the season 9–11, 7–9 in MAAC play, to finish in a four-way tie for fifth place. As the No. 5 seed in the MAAC tournament, they defeated No. 4 seed Marist in the quarterfinals, but lost to No. 9 seed Iona 64–70 in the semifinals.

## Previous season

The Purple Eagles finished the 2019–20 season 12–20 overall, 9–11 in MAAC play, to finish in a tie for sixth place. As the #6 seed in the MAAC tournament, they defeated #11 seed Marist 56–54 in the first round. Before they could face #3 seeded Rider in the MAAC tournament quarterfinals, all postseason tournaments were cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| December 3, 2020* 8:00 p.m., ACCRSN | | at Syracuse | L 45–75 | 0–1 | Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY |
| December 11, 2020 8:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Saint Peter's | L 54–70 | 0–2 (0–1) | John J. Moore Athletics Center Jersey City, NJ |
| December 12, 2020 8:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Saint Peter's | L 49–53 | 0–3 (0–2) | John J. Moore Athletics Center Jersey City, NJ |
| December 18, 2020 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Fairfield | W 68–51 | 1–3 (1–2) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| December 19, 2020 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Fairfield | W 81–61 | 2–3 (2–2) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| December 22, 2020* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Albany | W 70–65 | 3–3 | SEFCU Arena Albany, NY |
| January 1, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Marist | L 61–63 | 3–4 (2–3) | McCann Arena Poughkeepsie, NY |
| January 2, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Marist | W 86–72 | 4–4 (3–3) | McCann Arena Poughkeepsie, NY |
| January 8, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Rider | L 70–76 | 4–5 (3–4) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| January 9, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Rider | W 66–55 | 5–5 (4–4) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| January 15, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Manhattan | L 49–58 | 5–6 (4–5) | Draddy Gymnasium Riverdale, NY |
| January 16, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Manhattan | L 55–58 | 5–7 (4–6) | Draddy Gymnasium Riverdale, NY |
| January 22, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Quinnipiac | W 59–56 | 6–7 (5–6) | People's United Center Hamden, CT |
| January 23, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Quinnipiac | L 69–78 | 6–8 (5–7) | People's United Center Hamden, CT |
| January 29, 2021 4:00 p.m. | | Monmouth | L 67–77 | 6–9 (5–8) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| January 30, 2021 4:00 p.m. | | Monmouth | W 83–74 | 7–9 (6–8) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| February 20, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Siena | W 64–62 | 8–9 (7–8) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| February 21, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Siena | L 66–68 | 8–10 (7–9) | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| February 26, 2021 | | Canisius | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| February 27, 2021 | | Canisius | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Gallagher Center Lewiston, NY |
| MAAC tournament ||||||
| March 11, 2021 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | (5) | vs. (4) Marist Quarterfinals | W 67–62 | 9–10 | Boardwalk Hall Atlantic City, NJ |
| March 12, 2021 5:30 p.m., ESPNews | (5) | vs. (9) Iona Semifinals | L 64–70 | 9–11 | Boardwalk Hall Atlantic City, NJ |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern. ||||||
Sources: