DUDLEY, Mass. – For the fifth-straight season, the Nichols College men's basketball team has earned the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) and the #22 Bison will host No. 8 seed Western New England University on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. in the Athletic Center.
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CCC CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
Attending the game? Tickets are $5 for adults and seniors, while children under 12 get in free. Nichols students will also get in free with ID. Fans are encouraged to arrive early since seating is limited, however the indoor track will be open for standing room seating.
HOW THEY GOT HERE
Nichols enters the postseason having won eight-straight games to end the regular season. The Bison went 22-3 overall and 16-2 in league games to secure the conference's top seed for the fifth-straight season.
Western New England ended the regular season at 11-14 overall and 7-11 in the CCC to earn the conference's No. 8 seed after a tie-breaker went in favor of No. 7 Salve Regina. The Golden Bears had lost three-of-four games headed into the final weekend of the season, but enter the postseason coming off a dominating 111-89 win over the University of New England this past Saturday.
BISON VS. GOLDEN BEARS SERIES HISTORY
The Bison and Golden Bears have met 39 times since the series began in 1954 and Nichols leads the all-time series, 25-14. Nichols has won 11 of the past 13 meetings, including a CCC Quarterfinal matchup in 2016.
This season, the two teams split their regular season matchups as the Golden Bears claimed the lone victory by a visiting team in Dudley, Mass. with a 100-94 victory in overtime over the Bison back on January 6. The Bison had no answer for junior Mikey Pettway, who knocked down 17-of-24 shots en route to a game-high 38 points to lead the Golden Bears.
In their last meeting, junior
Marcos Echevarria scored 29 points, while sophomore
Jerome Cunningham added 16 of his own, and classmate
DeAnte Bruton added a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds as the Bison earned a 73-61 win over the Golden Bears in Springfield, Mass. on February 10.
NICHOLS LEADERS (22-3, 16-2 CCC)
#4
Marcos Echevarria (22.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.9 apg, 2.0 spg, 100 3PTM) – CCC Player of the Year, All-CCC First Team
#1
DeAnte Bruton (16.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 3.7 apg, 2.1 spg) – All-CCC First Team
#2
Daequon Antoine (14.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.9 spg, 74 3PTM) – All-CCC Third Team
#3
Tyler Dion (11.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 2.4 apg, 44.7% 3FG, 84.4% FT)
#13
Jerome Cunningham (11.5 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.0 spg, 1.2 bpg) – All-CCC Third Team
WESTERN NEW ENGLAND LEADERS (11-14, 7-11 CCC)
#3 Mikey Pettway (19.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 5.7 apg, 1.2 spg, 55.5% FG) – All-CCC Second Team
#35 Zach Tavitian (12.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.0 apg, 1.6 bpg, 50.4% FG) – CCC Rookie of the Year
#11 Mike McGuire (11.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.2 spg, 54 3PTM, 93.2% FT)
#4 EJ Day (11.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.2 apg, 1.5 spg)
#13 Alex Sikorski (8.9 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.2 apg, 44 3PTM, 44.9% 3FG)
Commonwealth Coast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
CCC Quarterfinals – Tuesday, February 20th
#8 Western New England at #1 Nichols, 7:00 p.m.
#7 Salve Regina at #2 Gordon, 7:00 p.m.
#6 Wentworth at #3 Endicott, 5:30 p.m.
#5 Univ. of New England at #4 Roger Williams, 7:00 p.m.
CCC Semifinals – Thursday, February 22nd
#1/8 winner vs. #4/5 winner, TBA
#2/7 winner vs. #3/6 winner, TBA
CCC Finals – Saturday, February 24th
Semifinal winners at highest seed, TBA
