Beverly, MA - Today in men's basketball action, the Endicott Gulls hosted Commonwealth Coast Conference member, Nichols College. The hot shooting by Matt George and Josh Oxton's eight assists enabled the Gulls to cruise to an 88-66 victory.
In the first eight minutes of the game, the lead shifted back-and-forth between the Gulls and the Bison. But George's shooting was on the mark today, as he helped the Gulls steadily pull away from NC. George was 5-7 from the field, 4-for-4 from beyond the arc. The junior was perfect at the foul line, going 4-for-4, all of which contributed to his game high, 18 points.
In addition to his eight assists, Oxton was the game's second leading scorer with 15 points. Zach Ellis chipped in 12 points for the Gulls, all of which were three pointers. It was Nemanja Marinkovic who dominated the boards. The sophomore grabbed 10 rebounds, and helped on offense by scoring 10 points for EC.
As a team, Endicott only missed one free throw the entire game. Collectively, the team was 15-16 from the foul line. Along with George, Marinkovic and Todd Burton were perfect from the charity stripe, going 2-for-2 and 6-for-6 respectively. All EC players saw time in the 22-point victory.
Anthony Smith was the leading scorer for Nichols. Smith was 3-for-4 from the field, 4-for-7 from the charity stripe and he dished out four assists. Justin Lewis, Casey Butler and Scott LaTorra all tallied nine points apiece for the Bison.
The Gulls improve their overall record to 13-5 and continue their CCC winning streak, which now stands at eight. The Bison drop to 6-14, 4-7 in the CCC. Tomorrow, the Gulls travel to Anna Maria College for a make-up game. The game was originally scheduled for January 22nd, but canceled due to weather conditions. Tip-off time is 1:00p.m. Nichols travels to Anna Maria on Tuesday for an 8:00p.m. game