Worcester, Mass. – In what had the feeling of an early season must win for Clark University, the host Cougars rode the interior combination of D.J. Bailey and Brian Vayda to a thrilling 80-74 win over Endicott College in non-league men's basketball action on Saturday afternoon.

Bailey was virtually unstoppable on the inside for Clark, finishing with a career-high 29 points to go along with nine rebounds and three blocks, while Vayda stuffed the stat sheet with 19 points, nine rebounds, five assists and five steals.

The win for the Cougars pushes their record to 5-3 with one game remaining in the first semester, while the Gulls slip to 4-2 overall.

Endicott used a 17-6 run on the strength of some strong three-point shooting by John Henault (Lunenberg, Mass.) and Bennett Knowlton (Shrewsbury, Mass.) to take a 25-14 edge after a Lance Greene (Dorchester, Mass.) hoop with just under ten minutes remaining in the half.

Bailey then ignited the Clark offense scoring 13 straight points for the Cougars and 15 of their final 23 including an emphatic two-handed dunk to end the first half that evened the score at 37-37.

After the Gulls took a brief lead on a Henault finish on the break, Clark scored 13 of the game's next 17 points – nine of which came on three-pointers from Travis Curley (Trumbull, Conn.) to make the score 50-46.

Down 56-48 with less than 12 minutes to go, Endicott embarked on an 11-2 run over a four minute span to take a 61-58 lead as Andre Makris (Southbury, Conn.) sparked the spree with a pair of baskets and an assist on Shawn Grover's (Sebago, Maine) inside hoop.

Five straight points from Marcus Armstrong (Malden, Mass.) had the Cougars back in front 63-61, but Henault answered back for the Gulls and tied the game for the ninth and final time at 71-71 with 2:42 left.

Clark moved ahead 77-71 on two more Bailey hoops and a pair from the free throw line by Vayda with 1:04 remaining.

A conventional three-point play by Lachlan Magee (Melbourne, Australia) and a missed front end of a 1-and-1 gave the Gulls a chance to even the game, but Tyler Burkhart (Cromwell, Conn.) came up short on his three-point attempt and the Cougars made three of four in the final 30 seconds to secure the win.

The Cougars shot 51 percent from the field for the game, while Endicott connected on 44 percent of their attempts (28-for-64). Clark controlled the interior, outrebounding the Gulls 41-34 – including 14 offensive rebounds – and had a 46-30 edge on points in the paint.

Ball movement was excellent for both squads with the teams combining for 33 assists and just 23 turnovers.

Greene was spectacular in defeat, leading Endicott with 22 points on 8-for-9 shooting in 37 minutes. A strong drive and finish in the first half pushed his career total to 1,000 points, making him just the ninth player in school history to accomplish that feat.

Magee added 14 points and five assists, while Makris added 11 points and four rebounds and Henault chipped in with ten points and five boards.

In addition to Bailey and Vayda's outstanding performances, Armstrong added 11 points, three rebounds and three assists off the bench and Curley totaled nine points on three three-pointers. He now has 107 career triples – good for tenth on the school's all-time list.

Clark, now 5-0 all-time against Endicott, returns to the hardwood on Tuesday with a non-conference meeting with Western Connecticut State. Tip-off is slated for 6:00 p.m.