KSC Recovers After Wasting Double-Digit Second Half Lead, Keeps Pace in LEC Race

KEENE, N.H. – With 10:17 left to go on Saturday afternoon at Spaulding Gymnasium, it seemed the Keene State College men's basketball team – which had led for all but 59 seconds – was well on their way to a win with a comfortable 12-point edge.  Less than four minutes later, they found themselves trailing by one mostly thanks to a nuclear effort from Western Connecticut State University's Kendall Robinson.  However, the Owls did eventually regroup thanks to an impressive combined 39 points and 28 rebounds from Octavio Brito and Jeff Hunter in a 75-69 Little East Conference victory, keeping pace with the league's first, third, and fourth-place teams who all won on the day.

Records

• Keene State:  15-5, 10-3 LEC
• Western Connecticut:  11-10, 5-8 LEC

How It Happened
Looking to begin righting the ship after three tough losses in the past four games, all of which they led or were within one possession in the final 10 minutes, the Owls' more balanced attack ultimately prevailed over Robinson, but not without some tense moments in the end.  After KSC trailed for just 20 seconds in the opening half en route to a 38-28 lead at the break, it appeared as if they had withstood Western's second half surge, turning what became a 44-41 game back into a 56-44 lead with 10:17 left. However, appearance was not reality, as the visitors had other ideas, scoring a lightning quick 13 consecutive points – nine from Robinson – in 2:57 to suddenly take a 57-56 lead with 6:23 to go. WCSU had not been in front since the 12:49 mark of the opening half and had trailed by 12 on two separate occasions, but was right there down the stretch in a topsy-turvy season that has now seen them lose three of four, win three straight, and then lose three of four again over the past 34 days.  Keene State finally broke the run with a huge answering triple from Brito 24 seconds later on the next trip, and the Owls never trailed after that, going on a timely 12-5 burst over nearly five minutes of game action to go in front 68-62 with 1:30 left.  Brito buried two big threes in that stretch, including the one to put KSC up two possessions, as he finished with more than 20 points in a game for the third time in his rookie season.  The Lincoln, R.I. native has 13 double-figure games, is shooting 51 percent from the floor on the season, and finished with 23 points (8-16 FG, 4-8 3-PT, 3-4 FT), eight rebounds, and three assists today.  He had hit a rough patch recently, scoring just six points over the past two games, but is somebody the Owls will hope to have going down the stretch with just three regular season games remaining, as KSC is 12-1 this year when he records double-digit points.

Down six with 1:10 left and without the ball after Jaheim Young missed a three, WestConn's full court pressure forced the Owls into turnovers on consecutive possessions, eventually leading to Robinson being at the free throw line for two shots with 51 seconds to go down four (68-64).  However, he made only made one of two – an exceedingly rare misfire by him on the day but not from Western at the foul line, who went just 11-for-21 (52 percent) – and Hunter easily beat the press to make it a 70-65 game seconds later.  Nate Siow swiped the ball from Maximus Cruz right after and cruised in for a layup, and at that point the Owls could exhale as they beat Western for the ninth time in the past 11 meetings.  They also escaped despite Robinson's massive 38-point, 11-rebound double-double on 13-of-18 shooting, 5-of-7 from three point range.  He scored 23 of his points – 23 of WCSU's 41 – in the second half, when he made seven of 10 shots (4-6 3-PT, 5-6 FT).  The WCSU junior entered the game hot, having scored 51 points on 20-for-27 shooting in his last two outings, and left scorching, surpassing his previous season-high point total that he set in his last game (a 78-72 win vs. Rhode Island College) by 11.

The Owls' overall balance ultimately prevailed, as in addition to Brito, Hunter finished with 16 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the field and 20 rebounds (eight offensive).    Mason Jean Baptiste added 14 points and three rebounds, while Ryan Donahue came off the bench with another solid effort of 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting and four steals.  Hunter's 20 board game was the first by an Owl since star big Nate Howard grabbed 23 against Colby-Sawyer College in the 2013-2014 season.  Overall while improving to 8-2 at home, KSC dominated the glass 45-31 including 19-9 on the offensive end, which nullified being outshot 48 percent to 43 percent.

Western Connecticut actually shot 50 percent in the opening half, but was outrebounded by 11 (24-13) and outscored 18-3 from behind the three-point line (KSC 6-13, WCSU 1-2) as they played from behind for nearly the entire time.  The Owls ran out to an 8-2 lead in 2:06, and then after very briefly falling behind 17-16, outscored the visitors 22-9 over the next 11:46 for their first double-digit advantage.  Although it did not always last, they ultimately had an answer for every WestConn punch, even if it did not come without a little drama at the end.

Inside the Paint

• Hunter is now averaging a double-double per game (17.5 points, 10.1 rebounds).  The 20 boards today were two better than his previous career-mark of 18 on February 25, 2020 at Plymouth State University.  The Owl big man is shooting 62 percent from the floor this season, also a career-high.
• The Owls have now won double-digit LEC games four of a possible six times under head coach Ryan Cain, who is 65-29 in the league regular season and 112-62 overall in his seventh season.
• KSC is 36-19 all-time against Western Connecticut, including 21-8 here.
• Donahue has notched consecutive double-figure scoring games, shooting 9-for-13 in the process, and had a team-high plus-12 rating today.  He has made 22-of-36 from the floor this season, 8-of-18 from three, and all three free throws.

Up Next

• Keene State has an important contest at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (17-2, 9-1 LEC) on Wednesday, February 9 at 7:00 p.m.  The Corsairs decimated the University of Southern Maine 96-57 today to remain in first place, and are currently two games ahead of the Owls in the loss column.  UMD plays the Huskies again in Gorham tomorrow, and then has another home-and-home next weekend against Plymouth State University.  Sandwiched between, if KSC can end a three-game losing streak against the Corsairs on Wednesday, the race for first place could become very interesting down the stretch.
• WestConn has a week off before they host Castleton University (5-15, 0-11 LEC) next Saturday, February 12 at 4:00 p.m.