CNE SEMIFINALS: Men’s Basketball Falls To Suffolk, 96-85

BEVERLY, Mass. — The Endicott men's basketball team lost to Suffolk, 96-85, on Thursday night in the Conference of New England (CNE) Tournament semifinal round at MacDonald Gymnasium.

Marcus Montagnino (Gloucester, Mass.) paced the Gulls with 29 points (10-16 FG, 1-2 3PT, 8-9 FT), three rebounds, and five assists.

Elijah Kinney (Nashville, Tenn.) also contributed 23 points (9-14 FG, 2-7 3PT, 3-5 FT), eight rebounds, and four assists. 

AJ Forte (Peabody, Mass.) and Matt Boen (Mansfield, Mass.) rounded out the list of Endicott's double-digit scorers with 11 points apiece. 

Keenan Robertson (Rochester, N.Y.) was the story for Suffolk as the senior swingman poured in a career-high 43 points (15-23 FG, 10-14 3PT, 3-5 FT). His 10 three-pointers made tonight are the second-most for a D3 student-athlete in a single-game this season.

Trailing 52-51 with 16:32 remaining in the second half, Suffolk orchestrated an 18-7 run over a 6:04 span to put enough distance on the scoreboard (69-59) the rest of the way. 

Robertson fueled the spurt with eight points, while Jake Gomez (Boston, Mass.) (5), Nick Verdile (Ballston Spa, N.Y.) (3), and Danny Yardemian (Belmont, Mass.) (2) factored into the run too. 

Endicott brought the game within two possessions (77-73) with 5:24 to play, but Suffolk pulled away down the stretch, leading by as many as 13 points on multiple occasions before the final buzzer sounded.

FIRST HALF NOTES

• Endicott shot a season-high 64.3% (18-28 FG, 6-11 3PT, 54.5%) from the field.
• Suffolk canned nine three-pointers (9-16, 56.3%), one shy of tying its season-high (10-18 vs. Curry, 12/7/24).
• The opening stanza featured eight lead changes and six ties.
• Endicott led for 10:21 of play, while Suffolk had an advantage on the scoreboard for 6:07.
• The Gulls' biggest lead was 11 points (16-5, 14:27); the Rams' largest differential was four (39-35, 3:44). 

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Suffolk leads the all-time series, 8-6 (four straight wins at MacDonald Gymnasium).
• The Rams earned their 20th win of the season, a first in program history. 
• Suffolk shot a season-best 59.3% (16-27) from beyond the arc (previous season-high: 51.9% vs. Nichols, 2/22/25).
• Endicott outscored the Rams in the paint (34-22) and off the bench (14-0).
• Robertson's 43 points rank tied for 11th in a D3 game this season.

WHAT'S NEXT

No. 3 Suffolk (20-7) travels to No. 1 Western New England on Saturday, March 1 for a chance to hoist the CNE Championship at 1 PM. 

No. 2 Endicott (18-8) awaits the announcement of a potential at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. The selection show takes place on Monday, March 3 at 1 PM (EST) on NCAA.com. 

For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

(Photo Credit - Bella Smith '27)