Owls Ensure They Can Finish No Lower Than Third in LEC With Resounding Second Half on Senior Night

KEENE, N.H. – The Keene State College men's basketball team took what was a close game at halftime and blew it to pieces in less than seven minutes in the second half, overwhelming Castleton University by scoring 23 of the first 25 points to ease to an 84-54 drubbing of the Spartans in Little East Conference action at Spaulding Gymnasium Tuesday night.

Records

• Keene State:  16-6, 11-4 LEC
• Castleton:  5-19, 0-15 LEC

Postgame Player Interviews (click name to view)
Mason Jean Baptiste
James Anozie

How It Happened
Although the Owls trailed for just 21 seconds in the game by one point, they could not get away from Castleton until an avalanche to begin the second half that saw a four-point game turn into a 25-point game in only 6:52 of game action.  KSC made 9-of-14 shots from the floor in that span while harassing the Spartans into eight turnovers and four missed shots.  CU committed 16 turnovers after halftime overall and shot 30 percent (6-of-20) from the field while the Owls made as many field goals in the second half (20-for-40) as the Spartans attempted in the runaway.  While Keene State's swarming defense was swallowing up Castleton and recording 15 steals, the Owls took care of the ball themselves, turning it over just six times after halftime (and 13 overall in the game).  KSC shot just 37 percent in the opening half – actually eight percentage points worse than Castleton – but ramped it up after the break, connecting on 50 percent while seeing 12 different players score.  Mason Jean Baptiste busted out of a slump at a good time heading in to the postseason, pouring in 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting (5-of-9 from three).  He scored 13 of his points in the opening 20 minutes, nearly half of the Owls' 30 as a team, to keep them in front despite a rocky showing.  Lyndon Prayer, honored on Senior Night before the game along with Justin Williams, and James Anozie, scored nine points on 3-of-6 shooting from deep, while Nate Siow had nine points, 10 assists, and four steals.  Williams had eight points and three rebounds for the Owls, who finish their regular season home schedule at 9-2.  Tonight's win clinches at least third place for Keene State in next week's Little East Conference tournament.  They cannot fall lower than that and the only way they can finish higher – jumping to the No. 2 seed in the conference and possibly hosting two playoff games – is if Eastern Connecticut State University loses at home to cross-state rival Western Connecticut State University tomorrow night in Willimantic, Conn. and the Owls win Saturday at the University of Massachusetts-Boston.  The University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth clinched the top seed with a 91-66 home win over Plymouth State University last Sunday.

The Spartans' lone lead tonight, 6-5 at the 15:21 mark of the first half, lasted 21 seconds before Octavio Brito's layup kicked off a 6-0 burst in 1:23 for an 11-6 KSC edge, but as mentioned, KSC struggled to pull away early.  Oluwadare Sownmi scored inside for the last of five points in a row for CU that tied the game at 11, and it was still even at 18 with 5:27 left in the half after two Johnny Torrence free throws.  Jean Baptiste answered by knocking down three triples in barely over two minutes, giving KSC a 28-20 advantage with 2:49 remaining in the half, but Justin Schwarzbeck and Eric Shaw connected from distance themselves as Castleton stayed right there, trailing just 30-26 at halftime after scoring six of the final eight points.

It seemed letting the Spartans, who had lost 15 consecutive games including the last seven by double-figures, would become more and more dangerous as the game went on, but KSC rapidly removed any doubt about the outcome and any hope for CU by scoring the opening seven points of the second half to go up 11.  The run ballooned into a 23-2 walloping over the opening seven minutes that made it 53-28, and Keene State was well on their way from there.  Ryan Donahue connected from three and Jeff Hunter inside to make it a 26-point gap (58-32) with 11:14 to go, and the Owls went up 70-40 on a triple from LJ Hicks at the 5:34 mark.  The seniors got one final run, with Williams and Prayer running off 10 points in a row to make it 80-43 before the final media timeout.  What started as a game where Castleton seemed to be hanging around ended with them actually falling into their largest deficit of the season (39).

Joe Alamprese paced the Spartans with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting off the bench.  Johnny Torrence added 13 points (9-12 FT), but Castleton shot just 30 percent in the second half, committed 26 turnovers as a team in the game, and was outscored 25-4 on second chance opportunities.  KSC had a 15-8 edge on the offensive glass despite being just plus-two in that category overall.

Inside the Paint

• Tonight was Siow's second 10-assist game of the season.  He has 23 helpers in his last three games, and in two of which committed just two turnovers.  The Owls as a team had more assists than turnovers tonight, which had happened just once since January 22 (eight games).
• Keene State has won all 10 meetings all-time against the Spartans, eight by double-figures, and all six conference matchups.

Up Next

• Keene State wraps up the regular season with a visit to UMass-Boston on Saturday, February 19 for a 3:00 p.m. tip-off.  The Beacons are 6-4 at home, but have lost their last two at the Clark Athletic Center, including a 71-68 final to Rhode Island College in their last action.  UMB is 2-4 in their last six overall.  KSC took the first matchup 85-71.
• Castleton, already locked into the No. 9 seed in the Little East tournament and a road play-in contest, closes their slate on the same day against first place UMass-Dartmouth (20-3, 11-2 LEC) at 3:00 p.m.