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Posted: Nov 19, 2022

Vikings Fall in First Day of The New England Big 4 Challenge

Vikings Fall in First Day of The New England Big 4 Challenge

MEDFORD, Mass. – Salem State men's basketball fell to Endicott College, 79-62, on the first day of the New England Big 4 Challenge hosted by Tufts University. ­­The Vikings travel back to Medford, Massachusetts tomorrow for the final day of the Big 4 Challenge to take on the host team, Tufts University.

Josiah Green (Springfield, Mass.) led the way for the Vikings with 17 points and eight rebounds. Jarret and Conner Byrne (Melrose, Mass.) each added 10 points to go along with 12 and nine rebounds, respectively, in the loss.

The Gulls saw three players score in double figures with Dillon Grant scoring 13 (Dennis, Mass.), Matt Garry (Southington, Conn.) with 12, and Jalen Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) with 11 in the victory.

The opening ten minutes was a game of runs as the Gulls opened the game with six unanswered points and would hold onto the lead until the 11:29 mark when Salem saw their first lead in the game after Green knocked down a three pointer to bring the score to 17-16. The Vikings would lead by as many as five points after a Byrne layup and a perfect trip to the charity stripe courtesy of Green. From there, Salem and Endicott would trade baskets and the lead for a majority of the back side of the first half before the Gulls went on a 10-0 run to regain the lead with a slight cushion at 35-27. The Gulls would hold onto the lead for the remainder of the half, entering the break with the nine point, 41-32, lead.

Six minutes into the second half, the Gulls had their biggest advantage to that point after a Grant layup brought the score to 50-37. J. Byrne gave his squad some life two minutes later with a dunk that would bring Salem within 10 and the score to 53-43. But, the Gulls were able to increase their lead with just over nine minutes remaining in the game by scoring nine straight points, bringing the score to 68-49. An Echevarria three-pointer with just over two minutes left in the contest gave the Gulls a 20-point lead, which would carry them to the 79-62 victory over the Vikings.