Boxscore
Wenham, Mass. –
Junior forward Aaron Karkow (Uncasville, Conn.)
pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds while a pair of freshman
scored in double figures to guide the Endicott men’s
basketball team to a 79-51 win over Maine-Maritime in the
semifinals of the North Shore Collegiate Tip-off at Gordon
College’s Bennett Center. The Gulls advance to
Saturday’s championship game against Gordon at 6:00 pm in
Beverly.
Karkow added ten points and five assists for the Blue and Green,
who increased a nine point halftime lead by outscoring the Mariners
41-22 in the second half. Freshman guard Bennett
Knowlton (Shrewsbury, Mass.) led all scorers with 20
points off the bench while classmate Lachlan Magee
(Melbourne, Australia) added 14 points and seven rebounds
for the Gulls (3-0).
Endicott quickly built a 12-6 lead behind a pair of Karkow
three-pointers. The Gulls, who trailed for just 1:10, led by
as many as ten in the first half before taking a 38-29 lead into
the locker rooms.
The Gulls blew the game open with a 13-0 run over the first 2:55
of the second half. Knowlton accounted for seven points in the
spurt, giving Endicott a 51-29 lead.
The Mariners (2-1) cut the deficit to 16 points on a free throw by Paul Campbell (Camden, Maine) but would not get any closer. A Magee layup ignited a 10-0 run and gave the Gulls a commanding 67-41 lead with just over eight minutes remaining.
Senior forward Chris Galbraith (Lowell, Mass.) grabbed nine rebounds while freshman forward Milan Drecun (Montenegro) helped the Endicott bench outscore Maine-Maritime 43-27 by going three-for-five from long range.
The Gulls enjoyed a 60-38 advantage on the glass by holding the Mariners to 26.5% shooting from the field.
Maine-Maritime will take on Coast Guard (1-2) at 4:00 pm in the consolation game before Endicott and Gordon (1-1) compete for the championship.
