BEVERLY — The Endicott men’s basketball team defeated Western New England (WNE), 87-85, in overtime on Tuesday evening in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at MacDonald Gymnasium.
Ty Vitko (Dover, N.H.) led the way off the bench with a season-high 21 points (6-10 FG, 5-8 3PT, 4-4 FT) and three steals.
Jalen Echevarria (Lynn) also added 18 points to go alongside four dimes, while Mark Barrett (Brookline) collected his second double-double of the season via 10 points and a career-high 12 boards.
Dillon Grant (Dennis) rounded out the individual highlights with 10 points and five boards.
In the opening stanza, the Gulls generated a 17-5 spurt to lead 39-31. The run was powered by Cam Homsey (Windham) (6), Grant (5), Barrett (3), and Echevarria (3).
The Blue and Green led 39-36 at the break, but the Golden Bears countered with a 15-5 run midway through the second half to gain a 56-48 lead with 13:06 left in the contest.
Endicott responded with a 12-3 run of its own to snag the 65-61 advantage with 8:58 to play. A pair of three-pointers, a layup, and two free throws by Vitko and a Parker McLaren (Newburyport) short corner jumper paced the hosts.
In the final minute, Echevarria deadlocked the game at 75-75 courtesy of a layup eventually sending the game to overtime.
In the extra session, WNE’s Mike Resnick knocked down two threes to open overtime, but Jeff Hill (Lynn) answered by banking in a three-ball of his own.
Hill and Vitko followed with momentum-shifting buckets to lead, 85-83 with 1:11 left.
With 15 seconds remaining, Vitko nailed two clutch free throws to make it a two-possession game.
The Golden Bears scored a layup on the ensuing possession, however, Hill escaped a trap in the corner to give the Gulls the triumph.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Endicott leads the all-time series, 18-11.
- The Gulls are 7-1 in CCC home games this season.
- Endicott’s bench outscored Western New England’s reserves, 32-7.
- The game saw five ties and five lead changes.
- The Blue and Green are 2-0 in overtime games this season.
- The Gulls forced 15 WNE turnovers, resulting in 20 points off those miscues.
WHAT’S NEXT
Endicott (12-9, 8-6 CCC) stays in friendly confines on Saturday, February 11 as the Gulls host Curry at 3:00 PM. Saturday’s contest will serve as Senior Day for the Gulls.
Western New England (16-4, 12-2 CCC) visits Pratt for a non-conference tilt this Thursday at 6:00
(Photo Credit – Leanna Puccio ’24)
