Beverly, Mass. – With six new faces seeing playing time for the Endicott men's basketball team since last season, including two starters, the Gulls started the 2010-11 season off on the right foot with a 70-66 victory over Liberty League opponent Vassar College in the season opener.
Senior center Chris Galbraith (Lowell, Mass.) and freshman forward Lachlan Magee (Melbourne, Australia) each had with a game-high 14 points to lead an Endicott offense that erased a one-point halftime deficit to win their first contest of the season. Freshman guards Jordan Lewis (Windsor, Conn.) and Bennett Knowlton (Shrewsbury, Mass.) contributed double-digit figures with 12 points each.
The Gulls shot 43.3% from the floor as a team and were effective at the free-throw line, hitting 84.6% of their attempts.
Vassar, also playing in their season opener, dropped to 0-1 on the season despite 14 points from sophomore forward John Donnelly (Williston, Vt.) and 12 points apiece from guard Jon Herzog (Greenwich, Conn.) and junior Ethan Shanley (Old Town, Maine).
The Brewers showed their ability to hit the three-ball, knocking down 9-of-20 attempts from beyond the arc. Herzog hit four shots from long range.
In the first half proved that the game would be close as the two teams exchanged the lead on nine different occasions. Each team found offensive spark from their benches as the Gulls got 15 bench points and the Brewers saw 14 points from their non-starters. Both Donnelly and Shanley scored nine of their points in the first half to lead all scorers.
The Gulls showed their strong defensive presence with five blocks in the opening stanza, including two by junior big man Aaron Karkow (Uncasville, Conn.). Endicott also forced 11 of Vassar's 21 turnovers in the first half.
In the second half with 8:31 remaining in the game, Endicott's Galbraith knocked down a jumper in the paint to put the home team up 54-51. On the next Vassar possession Herzog hit one of his four three-pointers to knot the score at 54-54, but a 7-1 Endicott run capped off by clutch free throws by freshman Spencer Calling (South Windsor, Conn.) gave the Blue and Green their largest lead of the game at 61-55.
Vassar would trim the Endicott lead down to two points, but a three-ball by Magee and two free throws with 19 seconds remaining by Lance Greene (Dorchester, Mass.) lifted the Gulls to the 70-66 win.
Greene led all players with five assists and a game-high 31 minutes on the court. Shanley and Herzog each had four assists for the Brewers.
Endicott will play their second game of the season on the road against Framingham State on Wednesday, November 17 at 8:00 pm. Vassar hosts Bard on the same night starting at 7:00 pm.