BEVERLY, Mass. – In front of a capacity crowd inside MacDonald Gymnasium Saturday afternoon, the #2 seeded Endicott men's basketball team captured the 2015 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Championship by a score of 90-60 over #4 Wentworth for their sixth conference title since joining the league for the 1999-00 season.
Sophomore guard and CCC Co-Player of the Year Kamahl Walker (Worcester, Mass.) erupted for a game-high 27 points with seen rebounds, four steals, and two assists and senior captain and All-CCC Second Team guard John Henault (Lunenburg, Mass.) used an efficient 7-of-12 shooting performance that included 4-of-6 from three-point range to add another 21 points in the winning effort.
With their 14th straight victory, Endicott improved their 2014-15 record to 23-5 which matches the program's record for single-season wins previously set in 2003-04. The Gulls will now eagerly await the Selection Show for the NCAA Division III Tournament which will be held on Monday, March 2nd at 12:30 p.m. on the NCAA.com website. The opening round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament is scheduled for Thursday, March 5th with opponent, location, and game time to be determined.
Playing in search of their first CCC title since the 2006-07 season, Wentworth (14-14) got 15 points, three rebounds, and a steal from All-CCC First Team senior forward John-Michael Fragnoli (Schenectady, N.Y.), 10 points off the bench from junior guard Kyle Romich (Groton, Mass.), and a stat-filled line of nine points, six rebounds, three assists, a block, and a steal from freshman guard Cesar Fulcar (Watertown, Mass.).
The opening half between the Gulls and Leopards was a back-and-forth game with seven lead changes and one tie. Endicott used 10 offensive rebounds to get second chance opportunities while Wentworth played stingy defense by limiting the Gulls to 36% shooting in the first half with four team blocks. The Leopards also saw Fragnoli score 10 of his 15 points in the period.
One of sophomore forward Daquan Sampson's (Germantown, Md.) two three-point field goals in the first half at the 5:10 mark, however, put Endicott ahead 24-23. The Gulls would outscore Wentworth 15-7 over the final five minutes of half which included a half-court, buzzer-beater three from Henault with 0.5 seconds on the clock to make it a 39-31 Endicott lead going into the break.
Over the opening 3:12 of the second half, Endicott's eight point lead was quickly doubled as Walker scored his team's first nine points of the stanza before Wentworth freshman forward Jason Ganley (Northbridge, Mass.) halted the sophomore's torrid run. Another three-pointer from Sampson made it a 51-35 game at the 16:48 mark of the second half.
Wentworth's deficit would remain in the double digits for the remainder of the game, reaching its peak of 31 points with 1:44 left in regulation.
Gulls senior forward and captain Andre Makris (Southbury, Conn.) scored nine of his 10 points in the second half and totaled two boards and four blocks in the win. Those numbers secured Makris' position in the Endicott men's basketball record books as he became the third player in program history to reach the 1,000-point, 500-rebound plateau. He is two blocks shy of passing former Gull Erik Callo '12 as the program's all-time blocks leader who has 146 swats.
Endicott also got seven points, four rebounds, two assists, and a block from sophomore guard Stephen Basden (Lynn, Mass.) who knocked down 3-of-5 shots from the floor including his only three-point attempt. Sampson would finish with 13 points and five rebounds, senior forward and captain Tell White (New Castle, N.H.) totaled four points, seven rebounds (three offensive), four assists, and a steal, and sophomore guard Max Motroni (West Warwick, R.I.) dished out four dimes in the win.
Endicott shot 47% from the field overall, 36% (10-of-28) from three-point range, and 83% (10-of-12) at the free throw line. The Gulls outrebounded Wentworth 47-35 including a 16-12 edge on the offensive boards. The team scored 40 points in the paint, 12 points on fast-break opportunities, and got 23 points off the bench.
Wentworth made 34% of their shots, just 14% (2-of-14) from three-point territory, and 84% (16-of-19) at the charity stripe. Romich's 10 points and eight from Ganley helped the Leopards generate 21 points from their reserves.
2015 CCC MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Quarterfinals • Tuesday, February 24
#8 University of New England 50, #1 Nichols 49
#2 Endicott 76, #7 Western New England 52
#3 Eastern Nazarene 61, #6 Roger Williams 46
#4 Wentworth 60, #5 Gordon 53
Semifinals • Thursday, February 26
#8 University of New England 61 at #4 Wentworth 70
#3 Eastern Nazarene 80 #2 Endicott 87 OT
Championship Game • Saturday, February 28
#4 Wentworth 60 at #2 Endicott 90
