BEVERLY, Mass. (March 1, 2026) – The No. 2-seeded Western New England men's basketball team couldn't overcome a 16-0 start for the top-seeded Gulls of Endicott College in the Conference of New England Championship Game, falling by a final score of 87-66 in the title game. 

Records:

• No. 2 Western New England: 20-6
• No. 1 Endicott College: 26-1

How it Happened:

First Half:

• Endicott had the opening 16 points of the game to shock the Golden Bears early on. Elijah Kinney had the opening seven for the Gulls and ten of the 16. Luka Vlajkovic scored for the Golden Bears on an and-one to get the Golden Bears on the board. Endicott continued to roll, shooting hot from the field from the outside. 
• Western New England could only get as close as 14 in the opening half, seeing the Gulls fly past. Endicott's lead hit as many as 25 in the quarter, with Kinney delivering a dunk to give Endicott a 43-18 lead. Six Western New England points in the quarter brought the Gulls' lead down to 21, but Endicott answered with the final three points to take a commanding 48-24 lead, doubling up Western New England after the opening half. 
• WNE made just nine field goals, including only two from deep in the opening 20 minutes, shooting 2/14 from the outside. Endicott dropped six triples and hit 17 field goals, going 17/29 from the floor overall, a near 59% clip. 

Second Half:

• The Gulls held a 20+ point lead for the entirety of the second half to bury the Golden Bears and take the CNE Championship. Western New England picked up a pair of triples from Avery Mickens, but the Gulls had an answer each time, seeing Caden Sullivan and Marcus Montagnino pick up field goals as the Golden Bears could never chip away at the Gulls' lead. 
• Endicott broke away for good at the midway point of the second half, with the trio of Sullivan, Kinney, and Montagnino hurting Western New England offensively. WNE looked to its bench for any offensive production, seeing Oscar Morales and Nate Kasper score at the midway mark of the half. WNE's best run saw seven points in a row go down, but it would not be enough, seeing Endicott come away with an 87-66 victory.
• WNE outscored Endicott 42-39 in the second half, shooting 57% from the floor, going 5/11 from the outside. Endicott was held to just 12 field goals and 42% shooting in the final 20 minutes, but stepped up when the Golden Bears started making a run. 

Inside the Lines:

• WNE never held a lead in the championship game after Endicott's 16-0 lead to open the game. 
• Avery Mickens led WNE with 14 points, shooting 5/9 from the field and 3/6 from deep. Luka Vlajkovic had 11 points, seven rebounds, and two assists. 
• Nate Kasper picked up 11 points, five rebounds, and four assists, while Matt Houde picked up ten points in the loss. 
• Elijah Kinney finished the game with 23 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks, and two assists for the Gulls. Marcus Montagnino had 22 points on 7/9 shooting. 
• The Golden Bears focus on the 2026-27 season ahead.