Gulls take Bison down to the wire; Nichols wins 87-85
DUDLEY, Mass. – Trailing by eight to CCC opponent Nichols in the second half, the Endicott men’s basketball team battled back to have an opportunity to tie the game in the final minute but the Bison held on for an 87-85 victory on their home court Thursday evening.
DUDLEY, Mass. – Trailing by eight to CCC opponent Nichols in the second half, the Endicott men's basketball team battled back to have an opportunity to tie the game in the final minute but the Bison held on for an 87-85 victory on their home court Thursday evening.
The Gulls (8-12, 3-10 CCC) saw all five of their starters and one player off the bench score in double figures but a 26-point effort from Nichols junior forward Ryan Sheehan (North Attleboro, Mass.) on 11-of-21 shooting from the floor with eight rebounds helped the Bison beat Endicott for the second time this season.
Endicott was led offensively by 18 points from sophomore John Henault (Lunenburg, Mass.) and 15 points apiece from junior Lachlan Magee (Melbourne, Australia) and Andre Makris (Southbury, Conn.). Henault hit 7-of-12 attempts from the field including two three-pointers and a perfect 2-of-2 at the free the line to go along with four rebounds. He is now shooting 93.1% from the free throw line this season.
Magee added six rebounds, four assists, and two steals to his stat line while Makris was effective on the boards, grabbing eight caroms including three on the offensive glass, before fouling out late in the game. Sophomore forward Tell White (New Castle, N.H.) and senior Lance Greene (Dorchester, Mass.) added 11 and 10 points in starting roles while junior Bennett Knowlton (Shrewsbury, Mass.) contributed with 12 points which included two makes from beyond the arc and 4-of-4 at the charity stripe.
Nichols guard Gustave Koumare (Harlem, N.Y.) drained two free throws in the final seconds to make it a two possession game with just four ticks remaining. Koumare finished with 11 points off the bench with four assists and four rebounds. Sophomore Matt Langadas (Sevago, Maine) netted 10 points and hauled in five rebounds as Nichols' third and final double-digit scorer.
The Gulls shot 45.9% as a team from the field including 43.8% (7-of-16) from three-point range. Endicott got the free throw line often and converted, making 22-of-28 attempts for a 78.6% clip. Endicott held a strong three-point shooting Nichols squad to just 28.0% (7-of-25) from that distance.
On Saturday, February 2nd Endicott travels to Western New England for a 3:00 pm tip-off with the Golden Bears. The Gulls edged Western New England 69-66 back on January 5th of this year.