DUDLEY, Mass. – Sophomore Marcos Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half and freshman DeAnte Bruton (New London, Conn.) netted 26 points as top-seeded Nichols College advanced to the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Championship contest with an 83-74 win over No. 5 Wentworth Thursday night at the Nichols Athletic Center.
 
Echevarria was held to six points on 2-of-7 shooting in the first half, but sank three 3-pointers and made 6-of-6 from the free throw line over the final 20 minutes. He also contributed seven assists, snared six boards, and collected two steals. Bruton, meanwhile, scored 14 points in the second half and notched eight rebounds, two assists and two steals for Nichols, which shot 50 percent in the second half and went to the free throw line 19 times after taking just two in the first half.
 
Senior co-captain Devin Stallings (Waterbury, Conn.) came alive in the second half and finished the night with 16 points (12 in the second half) and six rebounds. Freshman Jerome Cunningham (Westbury, N.Y.) recorded his fourth-consecutive double-double, finishing with 11 points, three blocks, and a game-high 16 rebounds in 33 minutes. He, too, was at his best in the second half, pulling down 11 rebounds.
 
The win extends the Bison's win streak to 10 games and sets up a meeting with two-time defending conference champion Endicott (22-5) Saturday at noon in Dudley. The two teams split the season series, with the Bison scoring a 92-87 win in the most recent meeting back on February 8.
 
Junior Jason Ganley (Northbridge, Mass.) scored a game-high 30 points for the Leopards while senior Dan DeVaux (Wethersfield, Conn.) knocked down six 3-pointers and finished with 20 points. The Leopards shot 39 percent for the game (25-of-65) and made 11 three-pointers.
 
Wentworth jumped out to a quick six-point lead (16-10) as DeVaux canned a pair of three's and had eight points during the span. Nichols scored 14 of the next 18 points to grab a 24-20 lead with 8:38 on the clock behind 10 points from Bruton.
 
Two free throws from Ganley at the 3:51 mark put the Leopards up two, and they carried a one-point lead (32-31) into halftime. Ganley led all student-athletes with 13 points (6-of-8 free throws) while Bruton paced the Bison with 12 points. Each team pulled down 22 rebounds and shot under 40 percent in the stanza.
 
The Leopards opened up a seven-point lead at 47-40 following a three-ball from DeVaux with 11:33 on the clock. Nichols then ripped off an 18-0 run that put them in front for good at 58-47 with 6:21 to go, led by six from Bruton and five each from Stallings and Echevarria. Stallings banged his second triple of the half one minute later to extend the lead to 14 points, followed by another triple from Echevarria on the break that made it 67-50.
 
Wentworth made a late 16-8 run to get to within nine with 1:19 remaining before a dunk from Stallings at the other end made it an 11-point margin with 65 ticks on the clock. Nichols outrebounded the Leopards 28-13 over the final 20 minutes and closed the game with 20 points off 13 WIT turnovers.
 
All-Time Series
Today's game marks the 46th all-time meeting between Wentworth and Nichols College. The Bison have won eight of the last nine contests and lead the series, 24-22.
 
Next Games
Nichols (22-5) – Saturday, February 25 vs No. 2 Endicott, 12:00 p.m.
Wentworth (14-13) – Season Complete