SALISBURY, Md. – A back-and-forth overtime battle to open the 2022-23 season for the Salisbury University men's basketball team went against the Sea Gulls as the Eastern Eagles prevailed in overtime, 87-79.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Ryan Marshall scored the first points of the year for Salisbury in the first possession of the game with a driving layup under the basket.
• After trading baskets for the next few minutes, Eastern went on a 10-0 run that gave the Eagles a 16-6 lead with just over 14 minutes left in the first half.
• The Sea Gulls battled back and tied the game at 23 after David Kokora grabbed an offensive board and threw it down with 7:49 to go in the period.
• The teams went back-and-forth again and with the game tied at 28 with just under three minutes left, Salisbury went on a 9-0 run capped off by a Greg Bloodsworth jumper to close out the half with the Sea Gulls up 37-28.
• The Sea Gulls maintained the momentum to start the second half and after a Bloodsworth three-pointer, were up by 46-33 with 16 minutes left.
• The Eagles did not back down and found themselves within one point of Salisbury, 51-50, after Kaeshawn Ward made a fast break layup with 11:20 on the clock.
• Salisbury responded with its second 9-0 run of the game highlighted by three baskets from Brandon Craig.
• Eastern began to chip away at the lead for the next several minutes, and with three minutes to go, Ward made a three-pointer to retake the lead, 72-71, for the Eagles.
• A few possessions later, Bloodsworth drilled back-to-back jumpers to put Salisbury up 77-74 with just over a minute to play.
• Sam Gallardo tied the game up with a deep ball with 42 seconds left in regulation. The Sea Gulls had a shot attempt with 22 seconds left, but came up short and the game went into overtime.
• Eastern used the momentum in the overtime period, and outscored Salisbury, 10-2, to give the game it's final score of 87-79.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Salisbury shot 51.3 percent (33-for-64) from the field.
• Greg Bloodsworth led the Sea Gulls with a career-high 25 points on 12-for-23 shooting. He also grabbed four rebounds and dished out three assists.
• Brandon Craig scored 20 points on 8-for-12 shooting and grabbed a team-high eight boards.
• Ryan Marshall and Cameron Heard each scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds.

EASTERN GAME NOTES

• Eastern shot 55 percent (33-for-60) from the field, including 47 percent (8-for-17) from deep.
• Kaeshawn Ward led the Eagles with 21 points on 9-for-11 shooting, including 3-for4 from deep.
• Zubair Lee scored 20 points off the bench on 7-for-10 shooting.

UP NEXT

• Salisbury will host No. 10 Johns Hopkins on Saturday, Nov. 12.
• Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. in Maggs PAC.

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Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football, Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse and the Metropolitan Swimming and Diving Conference for men's and women's swimming. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, and dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on-and-off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 22 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 187 conference championships and 43 Academic All-Americans.
 
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or on social media @SUSeaGulls.