Endicott men’s basketball Canadian excursion recap

MONTREAL, Quebec – The Endicott men's basketball team faced off against stiff competition in their two-game north of the border exhibition swing with games against Laurentian and Queen's in the Nike Tournament, hosted by Concordia University. 

The Gulls are now just six days away from the official start to the 2012-13 basketball season and already have a solid foundation for the year after 10 days of practice and three days of international basketball competition under their belts. 

Endicott vs Laurentian (Nike Tournament)

Taking on a Laurentian squad that nearly defeated Northeastern University, the Blue and Green battled for 40 minutes in a 105-78 loss.  Three Gulls players scored in double figures with sophomore guard John Henault (Lunenburg, Mass.) leading with 19 points on 8-of-16 from the floor. 

Reigning CCC Rookie of the Year Andre Makris (Southbury, Conn.) picked up where he left off last season with a 14-point game, showcasing his ability to score from anywhere on the court with two of his six field goals coming from beyond the three-point arc.  Junior Lachlan Magee (Melbourne, Australia), Endicott's leading scorer with 389 points (13.4 ppg) came off the bench with 13 points, six rebounds and two steals in the loss. 

Junior Bennett Knowlton (Shrewsbury, Mass.) dropped eight points on 2-of-3 shooting and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. 

Endicott big men, sophomore Matt Kneece (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and freshman Shawn Grover (Sebago, Maine) combined for 10 points and 10 rebounds.  Kneece blocked two shots and Grover added another block for the Gulls who averaged 5.2 blocks per game in 2011-12.  Freshman forward Nick Mazzotta (North Granby, Conn.) contributed off the bench with seven points. 

Endicott vs Queen's (Nike Tournament)                                                           

In their second game of the Nike Tournament, Endicott trailed by 18 points with three minutes to go in the game but rallied with a 15-5 run to the end the game as they lost 98-90 to Queen's.  The Gulls were electric from behind the three-point line, sinking 11-of-18 attempts including four by junior Tyler Burkhart (Cromwell, Conn.), three by Henault  who led Endicott with 15 points, and two by junior Nick Maglio (Barrington, R.I.). 

Burkhart and Maglio, who were relatively quiet in game one versus Laurentian, both scored in double figures with 14 and 11 points, respectively.  Both players had two assists and a steal. 

Kneece was perfect from the field and the free throw line while totaling 13 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.  Freshman James Kapthanasis (Westbrook, Maine) gave a solid overall effort in just 13 minutes on the court with five points and three steals. 

The Gulls wrapped up their tour after experiencing the festive downtown mall of Montreal and enjoying the Canadian city's hospitality.

The Blue and Green will begin their official preseason practices on Monday, October 15^th in anticipation of their November 16^th-17^th opening weekend games at the Rivier Tournament.