SALEM, Mass. - Brian Clark (Deerfield, MA) hit for 31 points and eight rebounds, and Tavone Wynder (Boston, MA) added 27 points to help the Salem State Vikings top the Curry Colonels in overtime, 97-94, in a hard fought non-conference game on Thursday night. Salem State improved to 8-14 on the year while Curry drops to 11-11.
The Vikings, who opened up a seven point lead midway through the first period, were led early on by Wynder, who scored seven of Salem State's first 18 points to give the home team an 18-11 cushion with 9:33 remaining.
The Vikings opened up a 14 point lead on a basket by Clark and a three-point basket by Justin Nieves (Lawrence, MA) to give Salem State a 33-25 edge. Curry battled back in the final five minutes behind Rodney Bennett’s (Mattapan, MA) seven points and Michael D'Amato’s (Redding, CT) six points, keeping the visitors within striking distance at 35-25 before the break.
In an explosive second half which saw the teams combine for 100 points, the Colonels battled back from a 12-point deficit to take their first lead at 63-62 with 6:21 remaining.
Tristian Shannon, who finished with seven points and a game-high 11 rebounds gave the Vikings their largest second-half lead at 52-40 with a layup at the 12:46 mark before the Colonels started to rally again.
Led by the sharp-shooting of Mark Mastrullo (Billerica, MA), who hit 5-of-8 three-pointers to finish with 31 points, Curry went on a 13-1 run to tie the game at 53-53 with 9:10 remaining.
Neither team was able to garner more than a five-point lead the rest of the way as the teams continually traded baskets down the stretch.
After a D'Amato three gave the Colonels a 75-70 lead, Wynder answered with his own three-pointer and Nate Simpson (Lowell, MA) added a layup to tie the game at 75-75 with 1:20 left. Curry added two free throws late to go up 80-77, but Wynder answered with one of his seven three-point baskets to tie the game with 20 seconds remaining. Mastrullo missed a jumper at the end of regulation that would have won the game.
Salem State built a four-point lead in overtime thanks to a Wynder three and a basket and free throw by Brennan Bennett (Northbridge, MA). Curry answered with a five-point run on consecutive baskets by Rodney Bennett and a three by Mastrullo to make the score 90-89 Salem State with 1:20 remaining. Brian Clark provided the spark the Vikings needed to secure the win with a layup and blocked shot with 35 seconds remaining to preserve a 94-91 lead. Bennett added a free throw and Wynder hit two clutch free throws with the Vikings clinging to a one-point lead to make the score 97-94. Mastrullo missed a three-pointer at the end as Salem State hung on for the win.
Bennett finished with eight points including several key baskets down the stretch to keep Salem State close. The Vikings finished shooting 21-25 from the free throw line and 33-67 (49%) from the field to win for the fourth time in their past five games.
D'Amato had 12 points and Rodney Bennett tallied 22 points and nine rebounds for the Colonels, who shot 56% percent from the field in the second half. (Game recap courtesy of SSC Sports Information)
Box Score/Play-By-Play
