Vikings Secure 87-82 Victory in Season Opener

NEW LONDON, N.H. – Salem State men's basketball opened their 2023-24 season on the road tonight as they traveled to New London, New Hampshire for a 7 p.m. tipoff against the Chargers. Nicholas Martinez (Revere, Mass.), Michael Makiej (Andover, Mass.), and L.J. Hicks (Gardner, Mass.) all made names for themselves in their first showings as Vikings notching 22, 19, and 18 points, respectively, to lead Salem to the 87-82 victory over Colby-Sawyer.

Makiej scored back-to-back buckets to start the game before N. Martinez notched his own jumper to push the Vikings out to the 6-0 lead. They would hold the slight lead for a majority of the first half before finally finding a double-digit lead with five minutes to play after a Liam Byrne (Melrose, Mass.) layup put the Vikings ahead by ten (39-29). Salem would lead by as many as twelve points before the Chargers closed out the half on an 8-0 run to make it a one-point game (45-44) heading into the break.

The offensive duo of Makiej and N. Martinez would keep the Vikings slight advantage alive until the Chargers went on an 8-0 run five minutes into the second to take their first lead of the game (55-53). Both squads would trade the lead over the next three minutes before a N. Martinez jumper reignited the Salem State offense, which allowed them to reclaim a six-point cushion with under eight minutes to play in the game. When it looked like the game was over, a Colby-Sawyer three-pointer made it a three-point game with 17 seconds to play but shortly after Makiej would go a perfect 2-2 from the charity stripe to secure the 87-82 victory for the Vikings on the road.