NORTON, Mass. – The Endicott men's basketball improved to 2-0 on the young 2013-14 season after defeating NEWMAC rival Wheaton (Mass.) 97-85 in the title game of the Wheaton Invitational on Saturday afternoon in Emerson Gymnasium. The Gulls erupted in the first half, outscoring the Lyons 62-38 over the first 20 minutes, and finished the game shooting 47% from the field, 40% from three-point range, and 83% at the free throw line.
The Gulls play their home opener on Tuesday, November 19th at 7:00 pm in MacDonald Gymnasium against NECC opponent Lesley (0-1). Endicott is 2-0 all-time versus the Lynx including last season's 75-62 road victory.
Sophomore transfer Taylor Rioux (Ivoryton, Conn.) nearly scored a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds with a block to lead the Endicott big men and junior guard John Henault (Lunenburg, Mass.) scored a team-high 21 points with eight boards and four assists against Wheaton. Rioux shot 70% from the floor and snatched three offensive rebounds while Henault did much of his damage at the charity stripe, converting 12-of-13 attempts.
Off the bench, freshman guard Drew Sawyer (Norwalk, Conn.) reached double figures with 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting including three makes from beyond the arc with four assists and a steal. Junior forward Andre Makris (Southbury, Conn.) netted 10 points while fellow big man Daquan Sampson (Germantown, Md.) scored six, rebounded five, and blocked two shots for the victors. Stephen Basden (Lynn, Mass.) rebounded well from the guard position with seven caroms, four of which were on the offensive glass.
Wheaton was led with a game-high 23 points from freshman guard Aygei Gregory (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands) who made 7-of-14 shots including 5-of-8 from three-point range. Gregory also grabbed six rebounds and registered a steal and an assist.
A back-and-forth game over the opening eight minutes of the first half quickly erupted and favored the Gulls as Endicott turned a 24-21 lead at 11:57 into a 36-25 advantage just five minutes later to force a Lyons timeout. Endicott pressed even further, forcing Wheaton to stop play trailing 52-33 with 2:51 remaining following a Jesse Maresca (Sterling, Mass.) three-point make.
In the second half, Wheaton attempted a late rally by cutting Endicott's lead down to 12 (92-80) with 2:11 left in regulation. A layup by Basen and a dunk from Makris, however, sealed the game for Endicott who will take a 2-0 record into their home opener on Tuesday.