BIDDEFORD — The University of New England had all five of its starters score in double digits, as the Nor’easters cruised to a 77-63 victory over Endicott College in a Commonwealth Coast Conference game played Saturday afternoon at the Harold Alfond Forum.

UNE, ranked 20th in this week’s D3Hoops.com national poll, ups its record to 5-1 on the season, 2-0 in conference play. The Gulls dropped back to the .500 mark both overall (3-3) and in CCC play (1-1). The Nor’easters have now won six consecutive meetings with Endicott and are 21-11 in the all-time series.

Senior Kelly Coleman paced the Nor’easters with 17 points on 8-for-14 shooting. She finished a rebound shy of a double-double with nine, including four on the offensive glass. Junior Meghan Gribbin had 13 points, eight boards and four assists. She was 6 of 7 at the free throw line. Classmate Lauren Hayden chipped in 12 points, six rebounds, three steals and three assists, while juniors Sadie DiPierro and Alanna Vose scored 11 points apiece.

Junior Kelsey Cuddy played a strong game for the Gulls, leading all scorers with 20 points. She also contributed seven rebounds, six assists, four blocked shots and a pair of steals. Junior Nicole Catizone tallied 18 points, including four 3-pointers. Senior Kayleen Whall grabbed a team-high eight caroms to go with nine points.

Leading 12-10 five minutes into the game, the Nor’easters took control with a 12-2 run over the ensuing 3:04. Vose initiated the spurt with back-to-back treys, Gribbin had a layup and free throw, then Hayden capped the outburst with a three-ball.

The Gulls got back to within four (30-26) on a Cuddy conversion down low at the 7:43 mark, but UNE reeled off 10 straight points to regain momentum.

Big Blue would lead 44-32 at intermission, thanks in large part to 50 percent (16 of 32) shooting from the floor.

The Nor’easters opened the second frame with an 11-3 start to forge a 20-point cushion. Up by 21 (54-43) with 9:51 on the clock, UNE saw its bulge reduced to nine (65-56) as the Gulls  over the next four minutes. Coleman knocked down a jumper with 4:59 to get Big Blue’s lead back up to double digits, and the Nor’easters would maintain a lead of 10 or more the rest of the way.

UNE shot 45.3 percent (29 of 64) for the contest while earning a 46-30 margin on the glass. Endicott knocked down 12 shots from beyond the arc to account for more than half of its offensive output.

The Gulls return to action Tuesday when they play at Eastern Nazarene College in a 5 p.m. start. The Nor’easters are idle until after the holidays when they travel to Lewiston Jan. 3 to take on Bates College at 2 p.m.

Endicott pulls away late for 71-59 win over UNE men

BIDDEFORD — The Endicott College Gulls closed the game with a 16-3 run to take a 71-59 Commonwealth Coast Conference victory over the University of New England on Saturday at the Harold Alfond Forum.

The Gulls pushed their record over the .500 mark to 3-2 (1-1 CCC), while the Nor’easters fell to 1-6 overall, 0-2 in conference play.

Sophomore Kamahl Walker poured in 27 points to lead all scorers. He was 8 of 14 from the floor, including a 4-for-6 performance from three-point land, and made 7 of 8 free throw attempts. Walker added six rebounds and four assists.

Senior Andre Makris scored 11 of his 13 points before halftime for the Gulls, who received nine points from sophomore Max Motroni.

Junior Devin Thompson tallied 18 points, five steals and four assists to lead the way for UNE. First-year Evrim Ozkan contributed 12 points and CJ Autry matched his career high with 11. Autry made all three of his attempts from beyond the arc.

The contest was tight the entire way until Endicott slowly pulled away late. Trailing 56-55 on a Thompson free throw with 6:15 on the clock, the Gulls would tally the next five points to grab the lead for good. Walker made a layup, then Motroni drilled a three-pointer to make the score 60-56 in favor of the visitors.

After Thompson converted 1 of 2 at the line, Motroni had a bucket on a drive to the hoop and a trey on the Gulls’ next possession to push their margin to seven (64-57) with 1:32 remaining.

UNE missed a pair of field goal tries and two attempts at the line on its next trip up the floor before Endicott sophomore Steven Baden put the game out of reach with a layup at the 1:00 mark.

The stat sheet was relatively even. The Gulls shot 41.1 percent (23 of 56) compared to UNE’s 36.8 percent accuracy (21 of 57). Endicott also had a slight edge on the boards (40-35) but two more turnovers (17-15).

The Nor’easters had led 35-32 at halftime as Thompson scored 14 points and came up with five steals.

Endicott will play another CCC tilt Tuesday when it travels to Eastern Nazarene College for a 7 p.m. start. The Nor’easters are off until Jan. 2-3 when they take part in the Wesleyan University Red and Black Holiday Tournament.