Endicott edges Rivier for Tip-Off Tournament Crown

(Nashua, NH) The Rivier University Raiders Men's Basketball team battled hard but fell short in the final seconds as Endicott College captured the 2012 Rivier University/Coca-Cola Tip-Off Tournament Championship, 65-60 in front of about 100 people at the Muldoon Gymnasium.

It was a classic back and forth affair as the Raiders, who trailed by 7 points with 6:05 remaining, battled back to knot things up at 24 on a jumper by senior Brian Troy (Westmoreland, NH). The Gulls would get a layup from Lance Greene and a free throw from Andre Makris before Troy knocked down a pair of free throws for a 27-26 halftime score.

Rivier (2-1 overall) used a 19-12 run to open the second half as they led 45-36 with just 11:38 to play. However, after a pair of missed technical free throws, the Gulls charged back highlighted by baskets from John Henault and Ben Knowlton and tied the score at 45 inside 8 minutes left. The teams would trade buckets as the game was knotted at 60 with 1:49 remaining. Henault sank two free throws to give the Gulls a slight lead. On the following possession, Rivier missed a 10 foot jumper that would've tied the game and Greene came away with the board to secure the game for Endicott.

Troy paced the Raider offense as he had 15 points – game high – and shot 5-for-15 from the floor. Junior Tom Poitras (Bow, NH) and senior Garon Whitney (Dover, NH) each had 12 points and junior Nick Walch (Dedham, MA) had 10 to account for all of the double-digit Rivier scorers. Whitney also collected 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.

The Gulls were led by Greene (12 points and 10 rebounds) and Henault (14 points and 5 rebounds) who combined for 26 points and 15 rebounds. Bennett Knowlton added 14 points off the bench, including going 2-for-3 from beyond the arc, while Lachlan Magee contributed 14 points of his own.

Rivier held the edge in rebounds at 32-30 but the game was won at the line as Endicott shot 71.4% compared to Rivier's 61.9% from the charity stripe.

Henault was awarded as the Tournament's Most Valuable Player as he averaged 14 points per game in the two wins. Joining Henault on the All-Tournament Team was teammate Lance Greene and Rivier's Whitney and Walch. Sarah Lawrence's Greg Smith and Framingham State's Yemi Ajao were also selected to the All-Tournament Team.

Rivier will return to action when they host New England College for a 5:30pm tip-off on Tuesday night (11/20). Endicott will have a long wait before their next scheduled contest on November 28th when they host Salve Regina in a 7:30pm Commonwealth Coast Conference match-up.