Strong Second Half Lifts Gulls Over Eastern Nazarene, 80-67

BEVERLY, Mass. —The Endicott men's basketball team opened the second half of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) slate with an 80-67 victory over Eastern Nazarene College to earn a regular-season sweep Saturday afternoon inside MacDonald Gymnasium.

A back-and-forth affair in the opening minutes gave way to Eastern Nazarene leading by as much as seven with 8:06 remaining in the first half on senior forward Corey Doran's (Fairfield, Calif.) layup, as the Lions managed a 34-30 edge into the break and held Endicott's senior guard Kamahl Walker (Worcester, Mass.) scoreless in the opening stanza.

Endicott used a 50-point surge in the second half, thanks in part to an 11-0 run to open the half, highlighted by senior forward Daquan Sampson's (Germantown, Md.) dunk at the 18:44 mark to give the hosts a 39-34 lead and they never looked back.

The Lions got as close as trailing 57-56 with 8:59 to go on senior guard Christian Lynch's (Alpharetta, Ga.) free throw, but the Gulls hit 5-of-10 treys attempted in the second half to create some separation.

Walker, senior forward Chris Lipscomb (West Springfield, Mass.), and freshman guard Keith Brown (Pelham, N.H.) each tallied 15 points to help the Gulls snap the Lions' five-game win streak in the comeback effort.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• The Gulls are undefeated in conference play (5-0) on the home hardwood this season.
• Endicott placed four student-athletes in double figures as Sampson added 12 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
• Endicott pulled down a season-low 19 defensive rebounds as Eastern Nazarene won the battle off the glass, 39-32.
• The Gulls tied their season-high with six blocked shots and recorded a season-low eight personal fouls on the day.

FOR THE FOES

• The Lions had two student-athletes in double figures as Lynch poured in a game-high 20 points to go with a game-high nine rebounds and game-best six assists, while Doran chipped in 18 points.

NOTES

• Endicott is 20-10 all-time and 13-5 at home against Eastern Nazarene dating back to the 1994 season.
• The Gulls have won six of the past nine meetings, including a 72-68 road victory earlier this season in Quincy, Mass. on 12/03/16.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (13-4, 8-2 CCC) travels to Milton, Mass. to take on host Curry on Wednesday, January 25 at 5:30 p.m.

Eastern Nazarene (9-8, 6-4 CCC) hosts Gordon on Wednesday, January 25 at 7:00 p.m.

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