BEVERLY, Mass.- The Endicott men's basketball team fell just short, 71-65, at the hands of visiting Eastern Nazarene College in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action Saturday afternoon at MacDonald Gymnasium.
With the loss, the Gulls fell to 3-3 overall, 1-1 in conference play, while Eastern Nazarene improved to (8-0, 2-0 CCC) on the season.
The Gulls took a narrow 39-37 lead into the break after rallying from being down 19-8 with 12:11 left in the first half.
The Lions turned it up in the second half, outshooting the Gulls, 36.4 percent (4-of-11) to 7.1 percent (1-of-14) from three point land in the half.
Endicott climbed to within three down 53-50 with 7:11 remaining, but the Lions held the Gulls without a basket for nearly the next three minutes as they slowly pulled away.
Junior guard Max Motroni (West Warwick, R.I.) tallied his six straight double-digit scoring attack of the season with 17 points and three rebounds to lead the Gulls' offense.
BEYOND THE BOX
- Junior guard Kamahl Walker (Worcester, Mass extended his double-digit scoring streak to 18 consecutive games dating back to when it began on Jan. 31, 2015 with a 13-point effort on the day.
- Junior forward Daquan Sampson (Germantown, Md.) recorded his third double-double (second consecutive) of the season as he tallied 12 points and a team-leading 13 rebounds.
- Junior guard Drew Sawyer (Norwalk, Conn.) added 11 points as the Gulls placed four student-athletes in double figures.
FOR THE FOES
- Senior guard Justin Wagner (Oklahoma City, Okla.) paced the Lions' attack with 16 points, hitting 4-of-8 from long distance.
- Senior guard Jeremy Wagner (Oklahoma City, Okla.) brought down 10 rebounds and led the team with three assists.
- Senior guard Jaylen Owens (Johns Creek, Ga.) and senior guard Eric Lynch (Alpharetta, Ga.) chipped in 15 and 13 points, respectively.
NOTES
- Endicott is 18-9 all-time and 12-5 at home vs. Easter Nazarene dating back prior to the 2002 season.
- In the most previous meeting before tonight, Endicott edged Eastern Nazarene, 87-80 (OT) in Beverly, Mass. on Feb. 26, 2015 in the CCC Semifinals.
- The Gulls have won four of the past six meetings.
- Eastern Nazarene opened the season 9-0 in 2014-2015 before suffering its first loss to Endicott (88-70) on 12/09/14.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Gulls (3-3, 1-1 CCC) will host Salve Regina University on Tuesday, December 8 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Nazarene (8-0, 2-0 CCC) hosts Gordon College on Tuesday, December 8 at 7:00 p.m. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
