PAXTON, Mass. – The Nichols College men's basketball team wrapped up the first semester of the 2017-18 campaign with a 106-76 victory at Anna Maria College on Saturday afternoon in Paxton, Mass.
 
The Bison finish 2017 at 8-1 overall, the best start for Nichols since the 2000-01 team also opened the year 8-1. Anna Maria falls to 2-6 on the year with the setback.
 
Junior Marcos Echevarria scored a game-high 26 points to go with seven assists, three rebounds and three steals. Senior Daequon Antoine buried 4-of-7 three-pointers en route to 20 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals, while sophomore DeAnte Bruton added 19 points, five rebounds, two assists and four steals. Sophomore Tyler Dion chipped in 15 points, with freshman Matthew Morrow coming off the bench to score 13 points and grab eight rebounds.
 
The AMCats were led by a double-double of 17 points and 13 rebounds from sophomore Mike Rapoza. Senior Kenneth Graham added 14 points and five rebounds, while junior Sidney Limage chipped in nine points of his own.
 
Nichols shot 42-of-90 (46.7%) from the field, 16-of-37 (43.2%) from beyond the arc, and 6-of-8 (75%) from the free throw line in the win. Anna Maria connected on 31-of-79 (39.2%) of its shot attempts, 3-of-16 (18.8%) of its threes, and 11-of-15 (73.3%) of its free throws. Each team grabbed 43 rebounds apiece, but the Bison committed only five turnovers in the game while forcing 17 Anna Maria miscues and turning them into 22 points off turnovers.
 
Anna Maria took its first lead of the game with 14:34 to play in the first half as a jumper from Sidney Limage put the AMCats in front 13-11. The lead changed hands over the next few possessions and a layup from Daequon Antoine at the 10:43 mark put the Bison back in front 20-17. The AMCats tied the game at 20-20, and a Rapoza layup with 8:42 remaining pulled the home team to 25-24.
 
Nichols would rattle off a 13-4 run capped by an Antoine layup to put Nichols in front 38-28, and a triple from the senior at the 3:05 mark would keep the Nichols advantage at 10, 44-34.Morrow would give the Bison a 51-38 lead headed into the break as he scored on a nifty baseline move before the halftime buzzer sounded.
 
The Bison opened up the second half with a 7-1 run to grab a 58-39 advantage, but the AMCats would fight their way back into the game as a three-pointer from senior Liam Pickett pulled Anna Maria to 61-49 with 15:33 remaining. Nichols answered with another run, this time a 13-2 stretch, to open up a 74-51 lead following a triple from Tyler Dion.
 
Anna Maria would claw back to 77-58 on a three from sophomore Bobby Perette, but a 7-0 personal run from DeAnte Bruton gave the Bison an 84-58 lead and forced an Anna Maria timeout.
 
The AMCats would only get as close as 24 the rest of the way, while the Bison lead grew to as many as 32 in the victory.
 
All-Time Series
Nichols and Anna Maria met for the 47th time in program history on Saturday and Nichols leads the all-time series, 26-21. The Bison have won three-straight in the matchup, including the 2016 ECAC Championship game at Colby-Sawyer College in 2016.