HAMDEN, Conn. -- Ike Azotam scored a career-high 32 points to lead Quinnipiac to an 85-81 victory over Niagara on Thursday night.

The sophomore forward dominated inside for the Bobcats (6-5), who outscored the Purple Eagles 44-30 in the paint. That helped offset Niagara's huge advantage in bench points, a 30-10 edge that nearly enabled the Purple Eagles (4-8) to overcome a 46-37 halftime deficit.

Quinnipiac took an early 15-4 lead and had that nine-point cushion at halftime thanks largely to Azotam, who scored 19 points in the first half. He finished with 13 of 18 shooting, made 6 of 8 free throws and grabbed nine rebounds, just missing a double-double.

Two teammates accomplished that feat. Point guard Dave Johnson had 13 points and 10 assists while Ousmane Drame got his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Antoine Mason led Niagara with 22 points and Malcolm Lemmons added 13.