BOX SCORE

SALEM, Mass. - In a game that featured eight lead changes, the Salem State men's basketball team held off Bowdoin down the stretch to take a 66-61 victory and win the 2008 Viking Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday evening. The Vikings improve to 2-0 this season. Bowdoin falls to 2-1.

Tied at 28 at halftime, Bowdoin was able to open up a five-point lead early in the second half after a Mike Hauser three-pointer, 39-34. Salem rallied to tie the game on a Dylan Holmes jump shot with 8:31 remaining, 45-45. The teams traded buckets until under four minutes to play when a quick 7-0 spurt by Salem State moved the Vikings from two points down to a 60-55 lead with 2:13 left.

Bowdoin was able to cut the lead to three points on two occasions, but could get no closer. Mark Phillips was the lone Polar Bear in double-figures, scoring a game-high 20 points despite foul trouble limiting him to just 20 minutes. Salem had a pair of players in double digits, including Stevie Celestin, who had 12 points in the second period and finished with 19. Holmes ended with 12 for the Vikings.