DUDLEY, Mass.- The Endicott men’s basketball team pulled off a 82-78 overtime road victory to open Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play at the Nichols College Athletic Center behind a career-high night for junior forward Daquan Sampson (Germantown, Md.).
With the win, the Gulls improved to 3-2 overall, 1-0 in conference play, while Nichols dropped to (4-2, 0-1 CCC) in the home opener for the Bison.
Sampson recorded his second double-double of the season with a career-high 23 point, 19 rebound, three blocks performance, his most points and rebounds so far this year.
The Bison took a 34-30 lead into halftime, though leads didn’t last long as the teams exchanged 23 lead changes in the game and featured 17 ties.
Junior Nate Tardy (Moodus, Conn.) made a game-tying three for the Bison with 22 seconds to go in regulation to send the game into overtime, tied 65-65. Endicott then had a chance to win the game, but Walker’s shot from the corner was off-target.
Junior guard Kamahl Walker (Worcester, Mass.) put the Gulls ahead for good with a jumper at 2:34 of overtime.
BEYOND THE BOX
- 15 rebounds was Sampson’s previous single game career-high set on Dec. 7, 2013 against Eastern Nazarene.
- Sampson’s career-high19 boards (eight offensive) are good for second on the all-time program list for most rebounds in a single game. (Nemanja Marinkovic had 20 against Gordon on Jan. 20, 2003).
- This was the second time these two teams have gone to overtime all-time (Endicott previously won 69-68 in OT on Jan. 11, 2011 in Dudley, Mass.).
- The Gulls are 1-0 in overtime this season, while Nichols is 0-1 in OT.
- Junior guard Kamahl Walker (Worcester, Mass.) fouled out for the fifth time in his career (58 games) and first of the season, but still managed to score 20 points (seven rebounds, five assists, one steal) to extend his double-digit scoring streak to 17 consecutive games dating back to when it began on Jan. 31, 2015.
- Junior guard Max Motroni (West Warwick, R.I.) tallied his fifth double-digit scoring attack of the season with a 16-point, nine rebounds, two assists, two steals performance.
FOR THE FOES
- Three-time CCC Rookie of the Week freshman guard Marcos Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) s finished with 13 points on 4-of-16 shooting (3-of-10f from three-point range).
- Junior forward Devin Stallings (Waterbury, Conn.) notched a double-double with 11 points and a team-high 15 rebounds
- Senior guard and captain Irving Eggleston (East Lyme, Conn.) led the Bison with 21 points but shot just 6-of-22 from the field.
- Nichols placed four players in double-figures (Eggleston, Koumare, Echevarria, Stallings).
NOTES
- Endicott is 15-8 all-time and 5-6 on the road against Nichols dating back to the 1999-2000 season.
- In the most previous meeting before tonight, Endicott edged Nichols, 85-80 in Beverly, Mass. on Feb. 11, 2015 to snap a five-game losing streak versus the Bison.
- Walker came into the game ranked third in the country for NCAA Division III in points per game (30.8).
- Endicott claimed the 2014-15 CCC Championship, while Nichols was the regular-season champion.
- Endicott handed Nichols its only conference loss last season.
WHAT’S NEXT
The Gulls (3-2, 1-0 CCC) will host Eastern Nazarene College on Saturday, December 5 at 3:00 p.m.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Endicott Women’s Basketball Results
DUDLEY, Mass.- The Endicott women’s basketball team came away with a 86-61 victory to open Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play on the road at the Nichols College Athletic Center.
With the win, the Gulls improved to 2-2 overall, 1-0 in conference play, while Nichols dropped to (0-5, 0-1 CCC) in the home opener for the Bison.
The Gulls trailed just once early on as the team exploded for a lights out 9-of-17 from downtown. Junior guard Ilyza Holman (Ashland, Mass.) made a career-high 4-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Junior forward Sarah Hood (Burlington, Mass.) scored a career-high 17 points to go with a game-high eight boards.
The Gulls put four players in double-figures tonight, the second-most this season (six vs. UMaine-Presque Isle) as senior guard Kelsey Cuddy (Madison, Conn.) had 16, Holman tallied 12 points on and sophomore guard Hannah Kiernan (Wenham, Mass.) chipped in 11 points to go along with Hood’s team-leading night.
BEYOND THE BOX
- The Gulls’ 86 points is the team’s second-highest point total so far this season (94 vs. UMaine-Presque Isle)
- The Gulls’ largest lead of the game 78-48 (30 points) came with 6:23 remaining in the game on a Cuddy layup.
- Cuddy has recorded double-digit points in every game this season.
- Sophomore guard Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.) paced the Gulls with six of the team’s 25 helpers.
- Endicott out-rebounded Nichols, 48-35.
- Freshman guard Mia Bellinghieri (Miami, Fla.) scored her eight for her first career points.
- Freshman forward Emma Mancini (Lynnfield, Mass.) and freshman guard Catie Lipscomb (West Springfield, Mass.) made their career debuts tonight.
FOR THE FOES
- Junior guard Taylor Daniels (Dudley, Mass.) led the floor with 21 points on 9-of-20 from the field.
- Sophomore forward Allison Cerrato (Rockland, Mass.) had 16 points for the Bison.
NOTES
- Endicott is 18-5 all-time and 9-3 on the road against Nichols dating back prior to the 2002 season.
- The Gulls have won 10 of the last 11 against the Bison.
- In the most previous meeting before tonight, Nichols edged Endicott, 81-73 (OT) in Beverly, Mass. on Feb. 11, 2015.
- This was the second-largest margin of victory ever for Endicott over Nichols, as the Gulls defeated the Bison, 87-56, prior to the 2002 season.
- The last time the Gulls put up at least 86 points in a conference game was a 97-91 (2OT) loss to Western New England on Jan. 16, 2010.
WHAT’S NEXT
The Gulls (2-2, 1-0 CCC) will host Eastern Nazarene College on Saturday, December 5 at 1:00 p.m.
Information supplied by Endicott Sports Information Office
