Men’s Basketball Suffers First Loss, Falls to Endicott 88-70

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene College men's basketball team absorbed its first loss of the season Tuesday evening, dropping an 88-70 decision to Endicott at the Lahue Physical Education Center.

The Lions sink to 9-1 on the year and 2-1 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference with the result. The Gulls improve to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in league play with the win.

Jaylen Owens (Johns Creek, Ga.) netted a game-high 24 points to lead Eastern Nazarene while adding three rebounds. Eric Lynch (Alpharetta, Ga.) and Alex Jarman (Portsmouth, R.I.) each finished with nine points and six boards. Corey Doran (Fairfield, Calif.) recorded eight points and three rebounds off the bench.

The visitors sprang out to a 15-7 edge 4:51 into the game as Kamahl Walker banked in a layup.

The hosts cut the deficit to two with 13:16 on the clock as Christian Lynch (Alpharetta, Ga.) tossed in a layup, 15-13.

Endicott pushed its advantage to 15 points on a pair of free throws by John Henault with 3:38 remaining in the half, 40-25.

The Gulls sported a 20-point lead at the intermission after Henault buried a half-court heave as time expired, 49-29.

Jarman paced the Lions at halftime with seven points while Doran added six points.

Eastern Nazarene was held to 27.5% shooting from the floor in the opening half and 22.2% shooting from long range. Endicott drained 54.5% of its field-goal attempts in the first frame and 58.3% of its shots from the perimeter.

The home side narrowed the gap to 14 with 6:32 left to play in the second period as Eric Lynch knocked down a layup, 76-62.

The Gulls managed to maintain a double-digit lead throughout the remainder of the contest en route to picking up their second conference victory of the season.

Henault led the visitors with 24 points while Max Motroni contributed with 21 points and five assists.

The Lions connected on 33.8% of its field-goal attempts on the evening and just 6-of-21 from beyond the arc. The Gulls shot 47.6% from the floor while making 12-of-26 three-point attempts.

Up next, Eastern Nazarene will return to the hardwood January 6 as it travels to the Ocean State to take on Roger Williams.