WENHAM, Mass.—Nichols College improved to 3-0 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference with an 11-point win over host Gordon College on Tuesday night at the Bennett Center. Matt Langadas (Sebago, Maine) owned the scoring the first half and Irving Eggleston (East Lyme, Conn.) finished off the Scots with 17 in the second half to lead the Bison to a 68-57 win. Gordon falls to 1-2 in the CCC with the loss.
Gordon found some early offensive magic thanks to a dramatic height advantage down low against the Bison. Hans Miersma (Whitinsville, Mass.) and Jason Dempsey (Wallingford, Conn.) scored the first six points for the Scots, as the team was able to figure out Nichols' press at the start. Dominic Paradis (Rochester, N.H.) and Taylor Bajema (Whitinsville, Mass.) made it a 10-4 lead for Gordon just five minute into the game when the Bison finally countered.
After some early success against Nichols' press trap, the speed and feistiness of the Bison three-guard attack started to make a difference. Nichols turned the Scots over 17 times in the first half and scored 18 points off those turnovers to help open a lead as large as 10 with 5:30 to play. Dylan Marshall (Purcellville, Va.) had a deep three with 23 seconds to make it a six-point game, but Langadas drained a shot at free-throw line before the buzzer for a 35-27 halftime lead.
Gordon wasn't turnover prone in the second half despite the continued persistence of the Bison in the full-court defensive scheme, but the offense sputtered in the half court. The Scots shot under 40-percent in the second half and missed all six attempts from behind the arch.
On the other side of the court, Nichols was efficient. The Bison made nearly half of their attempts for the game and capitalized on 13-of-15 free throws in the final period to pull away from their hosts. Eggleston found success off the dribble against the Scots, consistently beating Gordon to the cup in the second half. The junior made three of his six shots from the floor in the final half and was an impressive 11-of-12 at the line.
Eggleston and Langadas combined for 42 points and 11 rebounds in the game to lead the Nichols effort. Junior guards Christian Horton (Rutland, Mass.) and Gustave Koumare (Harlem, N.Y.) each dished out four assists, while Koumare's five steals in the press gave the Scots fits. Joe Gallant (Salem, N.H.) had three blocks.
Dempsey had his highest scoring effort of the season for the Scots with 21 points and nine rebounds. Many of the senior forward's points came off of second-chance opportunities. Bajema was the only other Gordon player with more than 10 points, chipping in 11 and two assists. Jaren Yang (San Francisco, Calif.) struggled from the floor, but dished out six assists in 30 minutes. Miersma had a game-high 11 rebounds.
Nichols (5-3) will travel to Springfield College on Friday for a 6 p.m. start, while Gordon hopes to break a losing streak at Fisher College on Thursday at 7 p.m.
