BEVERLY, Mass. (January 11, 2025) – The Golden Bears fought their way back from a 13-point deficit with 6:18 remaining in the game to win the game 83-80 in overtime. Marcus Montagnino's 32 points, four assists, and 8 rebounds led the Gulls, while WNE was led by Tim Restall's 21-point, 13-rebound double-double and Brian Geitner's 15 points.

Records:

• Western New England: 10-3, 6-0 CNE
• Endicott College: 7-6, 4-2 CNE

How it Happened:

Endicott got the game started by winning the opening tip-off, and Jeff Hill would score the first points of the game for the Gulls. Jake Harrison immediately made Harrison's presence known with a three-pointer on the next possession. That led to an 8-0 WNE run, with Tim Restall accumulating the other five points during that time. The teams would trade shots as the clock ticked under twelve minutes to play in the first half. Eddie McCoy would enter the game and get a bucket for WNE, but the Gulls would then go on their own 8-0 run to take an 18-16 lead with 9:12 remaining in the opening half. Marcus Montagnino got the Gulls started on that run with the Gulls' first basket from beyond the arc. The Golden Bears fought back with five points of their own, including a Matt Houde three. The teams kept trading shots, with Endicott finding a three-pointer soon after Houde's shot. There was a two-minute gap in scoring as neither team could find a basket until Cody Palazessi made a layup to give WNE a four-point lead with 4:14 remaining in the half. That was answered by a Drew Brown three for the Gulls and then a Luka Vlajkovic three. The teams battled for the remaining 3:11 of the opening half. Vlajkovic would make a free throw at the end of the half to give the Golden Bears a three-point lead at halftime. WNE shot 43.8% from the field in the first half by shooting 14 of 32. Endicott shot 11 of 30, which was 36.7%. Endicott shot 35.7% from beyond the arc to keep the score tight at half. WNE out-rebounded the Gulls 22-15 and had 17 points come from their bench. Luka Vlajkovic and Brian Geitner led the Golden Bears with six points each. Marcus Montagnino led the Gulls with eight. WNE led 33-30 at half.

The two teams traded shots early in the second half. Marcus Montagnino kept the score close with an early three-point shot. The Golden Bears kept answering each shot made by the Gulls until they were up 42-38. The Gulls went on a 9-0 run, with Montagnino picking up four of the points and AJ Forte knocking down a three to give Endicott the 47-42 lead. The Gulls would stretch the lead to seven with just over eleven minutes remaining in the game. WNE would take advantage of a few free throws to start cutting into the Endicott lead, but Endicott would respond with a few of their own to keep a seven-point lead. As the Golden Bears tried to claw back into the contest, Elijah Kinney would make a layup, and Montagnino would make a couple of free throws to extend their lead to eleven. As the clock ticked under six minutes to go in the game, the Gulls had a 13-point lead before a timeout was called. The Golden Bears would tally four free throws to cut the deficit to nine, but Endicott would extend the lead back to eleven and keep the Golden Bears at arm's length for a little. However, the Golden Bears would charge back. They scored six points in a row to cut the Endicott lead to three with 2:57 remaining in the game. Then, after the Gulls extended the lead to five shortly after, Andrew Byfield hit a three to cut the deficit to two with 2:18 remaining in the game. After two made free throws, Byfield did it again and hit another three to cut the Endicott lead to one with 55 seconds remaining in the game. The Golden Bears would force an Endicott missed shot with 32 seconds remaining, and Tim Restall would make the layup on the other end of the court while drawing the and-one foul. Restall made the free throw to give the Golden Bears the two-point lead with five seconds remaining in the game. With under a second left in the game, Marcus Montagnino would draw a foul. Montagnino made both free throws and forced overtime with the score locked at 76-76.

The Golden Bears would score the first four points of overtime. That was answered by the Gulls before Tim Restall knocked down a three-pointer to give the Golden Bears an 83-80 lead with 1:52 remaining in the game. Elijah Kinney would hit two free throws to cut the WNE lead to one. However, those free throws would be the final points, and the Golden Bears would earn a hard-fought overtime victory. The game ended with the teams almost even in field goal percentage, with WNE shooting 28 of 65 (43.1%) and Endicott shooting 25 of 59 (42.4%). WNE would tally 34 points in the paint and cause 17 turnovers. They would win the game by a final score of 83-82.

Inside the Lines:

• Tim Restall picked up a second double-double in a row by leading the team with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Restall also had three steals and two blocks to contribute even more on the defensive end of the floor.
• Brian Geitner would also finish with double-digit points by putting up 15 points. Geitner would pick up one steal and make all four free throws attempted during the game.
• Luka Vlajkovic would finish with 8 points off the bench, going 3-5 from the field, including hitting Vlajkovic's only three-pointer attempt.
• The Golden Bears came back from a 13-point deficit with 6:18 remaining in the second half to win the game 83-82 in overtime.
• Marcus Montagnino led the Gulls with 32 points, 4 assists, and 8 rebounds. Elijah Kinney would earn a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
• WNE is now 6-2 in their last eight games versus Endicott.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears will return to the Caprio Alumni Healthful Living Center as they host Gordon College on Wednesday, January 15, 2025, at 7:30 PM, with the Golden Bears looking for a third consecutive victory versus the Fighting Scots.