Gulls Pounce on Leopards, 83-68
Jan. 25, 2007
BEVERLY, MA - The Endicott College men's basketball team set the tone early as they got off to a 13-0 run and never looked back, picking up an impressive Commonwealth Coast Conference victory Thursday night over the Wentworth Institute of Technology Leopards, 83-68 in Beverly, MA.
The Leopards came into Thursday night's game riding a seven game winning streak, but failed to find an answer to the Endicott attack. The Gulls used the early combination of a strong inside game from Joey Burgos (Lawrence, MA/Lawrence) and Nemanja Marinkovic (Belgrade, Serbia/Second Baptist, Houston, TX) and profited off the slick outside shooting of Graham Whitelaw (Kennebunk, ME/Kennebunk) to build an early 13-0 advantage. Endicott would push their first half lead to as many as 20 when Joey Burgos swatted a Bryan Gaine (Braintree, MA/Braintree) shot and Ross Stewart (Palm Harbor, FL/East Lake High School) grabbed the loose ball and found Marinkovic for the easy lay-in, putting Endicott up 38-18.
The Gulls carried the momemtum of a strong first half into the dressing room, as the home team jogged off the MacDonald Gymnasium hardwood with a 41-28 halftime advantage.
Endicott continued their strong play in the second frame, as the Gulls extended their lead to 23 points at the midpoint of the second half. The Gulls would lead by as many as 27 on Tuesday night, capped off by a Ross Stewart theft and dish to Todd Burton (Lynn, MA/St. Mary's/Canterbury School) for the up-and-under lay-in. Former CCC Rookie of the Year (2004-2005), Sherrard Prezzie-Blue (Norwalk, CT/McMahon), did his best to keep the visitors close, but his 26 points weren't enough as the Gulls defeated Wentworth, 83-68.
Endicott's Nemanja Marinkovic had a stellar game for the blue and green, as the senior forward cashed in for a double-double as he picked up 18 points, 10 boards and seven assists. In all, Endicott had four players in double figures as Whitelaw, Burgos and Burton scored 15, 13, and 11 points respectively.
With the win, Endicott improves to 6-8 overall and 4-2 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. Next up for the Gulls is a CCC showdown with Curry College on Saturday (Jan. 27) at 3:00 PM in Milton, MA.