Sunday, March 2nd, 4:00 p.m. (et).

FACTS & STATS: Site: McCann Center (3,944) -- Poughkeepsie, New York. Television: None. Home Record: Loyola-MD 11-2, Marist 9-2. Away Record: Loyola- MD 6-9, Marist 6-7. Neutral Record: Loyola-MD 1-1, Marist 1-4. Conference Record: Loyola-MD 12-5, Marist 10-7. Series Record: Marist leads, 26-16.

GAME NOTES: One of three teams locked in a first-place tie in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference standings heading into the final day of the regular season, the Greyhounds of Loyola-Maryland try to end the campaign on a high note this afternoon as they take on the Marist Red Foxes at the McCann Center. On Thursday night, the Greyhounds won their fourth straight game and the fifth in the last six outings with an 88-77 victory over Canisius at home, a win that moved the team to 12-5 in conference and subsequently into a tie with both Rider and Siena for the top spot in the MAAC. Meanwhile, Marist was in action two nights ago and snapped a three-game slide by defeating Iona in a 67-60 outing at home. The win was just the second in the last month for the team, yet the Red Foxes are still 10-7 in league play nonetheless. The Greyhounds won the first meeting of the season back on January 17th with an 83-71 triumph at home, which means Marist now leads the all-time series by a count of 26-16.

Marquis Sullivan played just 25 minutes off the bench for the Greyhounds on Thursday night, yet that was still plenty of time for him to score a career- high 28 points on 6-of-8 shooting behind the three-point line in the victory over Canisius. Gerald Brown added 27 points, Michael Tuck 16 and Brian Rudolph 13 points and six assists in the triumph. Against the rest of the MAAC this season, Brown has averaged 20.1 ppg, one of four players scoring in double figures at the moment. Sullivan checks in with 12.5 ppg, Tuck 12.2 ppg and Brett Harvey an additional 10.5 ppg for a squad generating 75.5 ppg. Taking into account the entire season, Brown (19.1 ppg) is shooting just 39.4 percent from the field, but has been feasting at the free-throw line where he has made 179 of his 225 attempts. As a group, the Greyhounds are listed as first in the MAAC at the charity stripe with 77.7 percent accuracy through 30 games.

Louie McCroskey came off the bench and knocked down 4-of-5 shots behind the three-point line, leading four players in double figures with his 18 points in the win over Iona on Friday night. Ben Farmer also shot well out on the perimeter with his 4-of-7 effort en route to 16 points, followed by David Devezin and Ryan Schneider with 13 and 12 points, respectively. McCroskey is recognized as the top scorer for the Red Foxes at the moment with his 12.8 ppg, but the fact that he has played in only 16 games this season has to mean something. A reserve the entire campaign, Jay Gavin accounts for 12.1 ppg on his 39.5 percent shooting behind the three-point line for a team that is sinking 38.6 percent from long distance. Where the squad is falling short is at the free-throw line where it is only 64.2 percent accurate, ranking the Foxes second-to-last in the MAAC.

After being the doormat in the MAAC for so long, it is only right that Loyola gets a crack at being the best team in the league this year. The squad will make its case even stronger with a win this afternoon.

Predicted Outcome

Loyola-Maryland 69, Marist 64