Men's Basketball 1/6/2026 9:27:00 PM

Men’s Basketball Faulters Late In Second Half, Drops CNE Contest At Endicott

Box Score BEVERLY, Mass. (January 6, 2026) – The Western New England men's basketball team held a lead with under seven minutes remaining in the second half against the 22^nd-ranked Gulls of Endicott College before seeing the Gulls go on a 53-52 20-3 run in the final six minutes of the game, sending the Golden Bears to their second Conference of New England (CNE) setback of the season.

Records:

Western New England: 8-4, 2-2 CNE
No. 22 Endicott College: 12-1, 4-0 CNE

How it Happened:

First Half:

Nate Kasper had the opening four points for the Golden Bears in between a bucket from Endicott's Matt Boen, as the game opened quickly with scoring. Scoring did not continue that way, as the teams combined for just 21 points through the midway point of the opening half. The Golden Bears never lost their lead through the first ten minutes; however, after Will Laplante III, Travis Mangual, and Matt Houde contributed offensively for the Blue and Gold, leading Western New England to a 13-8 lead with 10:00 remaining in the opening half.
The Gulls quickly closed Western New England's gap with a pair of free throws from Caden Sullivan and a layup from Liam Dunfee to get back within a point. Luka Vlajkovic stopped the run for the Gulls with a layup at the rim as the two teams went back and forth in the opening half. Endicott tied the game at 18 with a pair of free throws as Western New England got itself in early foul trouble, becoming over the limit on fouls with seven minutes remaining in the half.
The Golden Bears went ahead by five following a tip-in bucket from Avery Mickens, but saw Endicott respond with the next eight of their own to take a three-point lead with 3:54 remaining in the half, 27-24. Endicott got hot from outside the arc, burying four threes through the first 16 minutes of the opening half and took its largest lead of the half, 30-25, forcing a Western New England timeout.
Endicott held its five-point lead heading into the break after Western New England struggled to shoot in the opening half, leading WNE 35-30. The Golden Bears hit 13 field goals, all but one inside the arc. They held Endicott to just nine field goal makes but allowed four triples to the Gulls overall. The Golden Bears were doomed by their free-throw shooting, going 3/9 at the line while Endicott hit 13 of their 16 attempts. Nate Kasper led all scorers in the game at the half with 12 points.

Second Half:

The Golden Bears had a quick six points to open the second half to reclaim the lead again as Luka Vlajkovic, Avery Mickens, and Nate Kasper were on the board early on, seeing the Blue and Gold nab a 36-35 lead. The Golden Bears extended their lead to three following a layup from Will Laplante, but the Gulls responded with eight of the next nine points, and 11 points in a two minute span to retake the lead, taking a 46-41 advantage, forcing a timeout from the Golden Bears.
Endicott continued to stay hot from the outside, converting four of their eight three-pointers through the first seven minutes of the second half, leading by as many six through that time. Jason Britschge provided a spark off the bench for the Golden Bears, getting aggressive on the offensive glass and causing Endicott to foul, sending himself to the free throw line, where he would get the Golden Bears within three, 51-48, at the midway point of the half. The first triple of the half for Western New England at the 8:22 mark of the frame forced a timeout from Endicott as the Golden Bears got within one, 52-51, on Vlajkovic's 16 points on the night.
The Golden Bears would overcome Endicott's lead and take the lead back with 7:28 to play following a pair of free throws from Will Laplante III, who was up to nine points on the night. The Gulls answered quickly, however, scoring the next ten points overall to take a 61-53 lead with five minutes remaining in the half. Western New England went ice cold from the field, not making a field goal for over five minutes in the game as the Gulls began to pull away from the Golden Bears for good.
Western New England needed a timeout with 3:25 remaining in the half after Endicott's leading scorer, Marcus Montagnino, began to get hot from the field after the Blue and Gold shut down the Endicott forward for much of the 40 minutes of action. The Gulls stayed hot from the field while Western New England went over seven minutes without a field goal from the field, allowing the Gulls to come away with a home victory over WNE, 73-58.

Inside the Lines:

Western New England committed 23 fouls in the game, costly, as Endicott went 22/28 from the free-throw line overall.
Luka Vlajkovic led the Blue and Gold with 17 points, shooting 7/16 from the floor, picking up eight rebounds.
Nate Kasper was also in double figures with 14 points on 7/14 shooting.
WNE shot just 34% from the field in the second half and was 1/9 from the outside.
Western New England missed ten free throws in the game, going just 8/18.

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