Jan. 26, 2008
BEVERLY, Mass. - Junior forward Joey Burgos (Lawrence, Mass./Lawrence) gathered the rebound after his own missed shot and nailed the put-back with 0.9 seconds remaining in overtime to lift Endicott College past The Commonwealth Coast Conference defending champion Wentworth Institute of Technology Leopards, 67-65, on Saturday afternoon in Beverly, Massachusetts.
The Leopards were quick to pounce on Endicott as the visitors rattled off a 14-2 run to open the contest, capped off by consecutive 3-balls from Todd Doyle (Mystic, Conn./Fitch) and Brad Bryant (Livermore, Maine/Livermore Falls). Endicott would pull no closer than eight in the first half, following a Cameron Twiss (Reading, Mass./Bishop Fenwick) offensive rebound and put-back to bring the score to 27-19. Wentworth would enter the dressing room with a 32-21 halftime advantage.
Weonard Bynes (Bridgeport, Conn./Central Magnet) got the second frame started with authority as he slammed home two points off a fast-break feed from Sherrad Prezzie-Blue (Norwalk, Conn./McMahon), putting Wentworth up 13.
Moment's later Graham Whitelaw (Kennebunk, Maine/Cheverus) single-handedly changed the momentum of the game as he sparked a 17-3 run that spanned just under six minutes. Whitelaw dialed in from behind the arc three times in the run, slicing the Leopards' lead to five. Freshman center Justin Martin (Cromwell, Conn./Cromwell) also came to life in the Endicott charge, as he made back-to-back buckets including a basket where he used all of his 6'8" frame as he jumped from outside the paint and banked the shot high off the glass to give the Gulls their first lead of the afternoon, 58-57, at the 1:53 mark of the second half.
Whitelaw struck again one last time in regulation as drained a 3-pointer to put the Gulls up four with 53 seconds left in regulation. Following consecutive made free throws from Doyle, the steady and patient Sherrad Prezzie-Blue sent the game to overtime as he nailed a pull-up jumper with 16 ticks left on the clock.
In overtime, Endicott held the Leopards scoreless from the floor (0-of-6 shooting), however the visitors hit four of their six attempts from the free throw line. With the score knotted at 65-all, Joey Burgos gathered a defensive board off a missed Todd Doyle 3-attempt with 34 seconds remaining. Hustling to the opposite end of the court, Burgos was rewarded with a slick entry pass, catching and turning to the rim. Closely defended, his first attempt rimmed out however he was able to gather the offensive rebound and nail the put-back with less than a second left, sealing the come-from-behind win, 67-65, for Endicott.
Wentworth was led by Todd Doyle's game-high 17 points. Weonard Bynes chipped in with 14 points and eight rebounds while Prezzie-Blue had 11 points and six assists. Brad Bryant also reached double-figures, notching 10 points and four helpers in the losing effort.
Endicott was paced by Whitelaw's 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting (4-of-9 from behind the arc). Todd Burton (Lynn, Mass./St. Mary's/Canterbury) had 13 points and four assists and Joey Burgos registered 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in the win. Cameron Twiss also played a key role off the Endicott bench, grabbing five rebounds in 17 minutes.
The victory improves Endicott to 6-10 overall and 3-2 in The Commonwealth Coast Conference. Wentworth dips to 8-7 and 2-3 in the TCCC. The Blue and Green return to action on Tuesday as they step out of conference play to host Emmanuel College at 7:00 pm.
