Jan. 8, 2009
LEWISTON, Maine - Bates' Brian Ellis hit two free-throws with 0.6 seconds left on the clock to lift the host Bobcats to a come-from-behind 70-68 victory over Endicott on Thursday evening in Lewiston, Maine. With the win, Bates improves to 7-5 while the Gulls slip to 4-6.
The Bobcats trailed for nearly the entire second half and faced an eight-point deficit with 4:19 to play. But Alex Gallant's jumper with :54 seconds left completed a late Bates comeback and gave Bates a 68-66 lead. Bobby Montrond (Brockton, Mass.) drained a pair of free throws to retie the game for Endicott with 49 ticks left in regulatioin, and Bates committed a turnover with 22 seconds left to give the Gulls a shot at the game-winner. However, Montrond's three-point attempt with three seconds left took a high bounce, and Aaron Karkow (Uncasville, Conn.) was called for a foul on Ellis as the players vied for the rebound. Ellis hit both foul shots, and Endicott was unable to inbound successfully for a desperation shot with six-tenths of a second left.
Karkow and Chris Galbraith (Lowell, Mass.) led Endicott with 16 points apiece, while Montrond added 11 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds. Ross Stewart (Palm Harbor, Fla.) chipped in with 12 points.
Gallant led the Bobcats with 18 points, including a 12-13 performance at the foul line. Ellis was the only other Bobcat in double figures, with 11. Scott Place scored 9 and tied Ellis for the team lead with 6 rebounds.
Bates controlled most of the first half, building a lead as high as 13 points on three occasions. But Endicott outscored Bates 16-8 over the final five minutes of the period to cut the deficit to 42-37 by halftime, fueled by a pair of threes by Graham Whitelaw (Kennebunk, Maine), five more points from Karkow, and three points and three assists by Montrond.
Endicott opened the second half on the same note, quickly taking the lead at 49-45 five minutes into the period with six points by Galbraith and three apiece by Montrond and Karkow. Bates didn't allow the deficit to reach double figures, but the Gulls took a game-high 64-56 lead on a three by Stewart with 4:19 to play. Gallant responded with a pair of free throws, then converted a big steal by Jimmy O'Keefe into another pair of freebies to cut it to 64-60 with 3:19 left. O'Keefe later had a three-point play off an offensive rebound to make it 66-63 following a Karkow jumper, then a deep three-pointer by Marshall Hatch tied the game at 66 with 1:53 to go. A subsequent Endicott turnover led to a missed three-point attempt by Bates guard Chris Wilson (6 points, 4 assists), but Ellis grabbed the carom to reset the Bates offense, resulting in Gallant's go-ahead jumper with 54 seconds remaining.
Bates scored 22 points off of Endicott's 20 turnovers, while Endicott mustered only 6 points off of 10 Bates giveaways. Bates also had a 24-11 edge in second-chance points and a 36-18 edge in bench points.
Bates will next play a non-conference game at rival Colby on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. Endicott looks to rebound as the Blue and Green open The Commonwealth Coast Conference play as they host Eastern Nazarene on Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
