Nichols 73, Gordon 66
Dudley, Mass. – Nichols Athletic Center
Thursday, January 14, 2016
All-Time Series & Streaks
Nichols has won three in a row and five-straight regular season games against the Fighting Scots to pull even in the all-time series at 19-all.
1) Nichols junior Devin Stallings (Waterbury, Conn.) – notched a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds in 27 minutes; also had two blocked shots
2) Gordon junior Sam Johnson (Chatham, Mass.) – snared a game-high 23 rebounds (14 defensive) and also went for nine points, four assists, one assist, and one block
3) Nichols senior Irving Eggleston (East Lyme, Conn.) – scored a game-high 23 points (9-of 11 FT) to go with five rebounds, four assists, and three steals in 34 minutes
Nichols overcame a sluggish start which left it behind by seven at the half and defeated Gordon 73-66 Thursday night in CCC action at the Nichols Athletic Center. Eggleston led the way with 23 points while Stallings collected 14 points and 14 rebounds. The Bison shot 42 percent in the second half and received 12 points from Stallings over the final 20 minutes to secure the win. Freshman Garrisson Duvivier (Brockton, Mass.) netted a team-high 17 for the Fighting Scots.
Key Stat of the Game
The Bison forced 18 turnovers while committing just six of their own. As a result, they held a 17-3 edge in points off turnovers.
Turning Point
After trailing by 10 early in the second half, Nichols finally pulled ahead on a pair of free throws by freshman Marcos Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) with 7:40 on the clock (60-58). Gordon responded with a pair of free throws from sophomore Jake Hart (Allendale, N.J.) to tie the game before a jumper from Eggleston at 7:10 put Nichols ahead for good.
Quick Hits
-Nichols senior Gustave Koumare (Harlem, N.Y.) had a strong game, finishing with 15 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block in 34 minutes.
-The Bison were outrebounded 30-18 in the first half, but closed the gap over the final 20 and ended up trailing 49-43.
-Both schools were excellent from the free throw line. Gordon sank 21 of its 25 attempts (84 percent) while Nichols drained 20-of-24 (84 percent).
-Hart, sophomore Jaren Yang (San Francisco, Calif.), and freshman Jake Haar (Huntington Beach, Calif.) each scored nine points.
-Gordon shot 34 percent (20-of-59) while Nichols was right behind at 33 percent (25-of-75).
-The schools combined to go 8-of-37 from behind the arc (22 percent).
"Gordon did a great job on defense and rebounding in the first half. Our guys came out in the second half and made shots. Gordon is a really tough team. Quite honestly, that's probably the best win that we've had since I've been here. I'm very proud of the kids. When shots weren't going down, we clamped down and defended well. We knew the shots would fall eventually." – Nichols head coach Tom Glynn
"The game slowed down in the first half and they played their style of offense. Their defense was frustrating (to play against), but you have to adjust to the flow of the game. The message at halftime was just to play our game. We started playing our style and moving the ball in the second half, and the shots started to fall." – Nichols senior Gustave Koumare
Nichols (11-3, 5-2 CCC) – Saturday, January 16 @ Curry, 3:00 p.m.
Gordon (7-7, 4-3 CCC) – Saturday, January 16 @ Endicott, 3:00 p.m.