DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- Freshman
Nate Siow (Lowell, Mass.) scored 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead four players in double figures, as Keene State held off a late charge to prevail in a battle of Little East Conference men's basketball unbeatens with a 68-67 victory over UMass Dartmouth Saturday afternoon at the Tripp Athletic Center.
A game of runs saw the visiting Owls (4-0, 4-0 LEC) use 10 unanswered points over a four-minute first half stretch to take a 30-17 lead on freshman
Mason Jean-Baptiste's (Lynn, Mass.) three-pointer, but the host Corsairs (4-1, 4-1 LEC) responded by scoring 16 of the final 21 points before intermission to close back to within a bucket (35-33) at the break on junior
Adam Seablom's (Lakeville, Mass.) lay-in. UMass Dartmouth forged a 42-42 tie on Seablom's triple from the left corner with 16:54 to play in the contest, but a three-pointer from freshman
Jordan Santos (Hollis, N.H.) gave Keene State the lead for good 39 seconds later, as the visitors used 15 unanswered points in a 3:24 stretch to take their largest advantage of the day (59-44) on Siow's trey with 11:56 remaining.
The Owls took a double-digit edge into the final 6:17 of action before the Corsairs made one final push, as junior
Marcus Azor's (Brockton, Mass.) three-pointer with 42 ticks on the clock pulled the hosts to within five (66-61). Senior
James Anozie (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) provided what proved to be a crucial lay-in with Keene State on the ensuing possession, as freshman
Isaac Percy (Pittsfield, Mass.) drained a wing three with 12 seconds to cut the margin to four. Siow missed a free throw with four seconds left in the contest, and Azor's long three-pointer as time expired accounted for the final margin.
Anozie finished with 13 points and eight rebounds in the triumph for the Owls, who received a double-double effort of 12 points, 15 boards, four assists and three steals from sophomore
Jeff Hunter (Hudson, Mass.). Sophomore
Nick Redden (Northboro, Mass.) added 12 points (including four three-pointers) and five caroms off the bench for Keene State, which shot 41 percent (26-64) from the floor overall.
Azor notched a double-double performance of 17 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and three steals in the setback for the Corsairs, who received nine points and seven boards from Percy along with nine points from Seablom. Sophomore
Jackson Zancan (Cumberland, R.I.) chipped in with nine points and seven caroms for the hosts, who received eight points from sophomore
John Martins Jr. (Taunton, Mass.) along with six points and 11 rebounds from senior
Jake Ashworth (Fairhaven, Mass.). Junior
Matt Valles (Fairhaven, Mass.) added six points and six boards for UMass Dartmouth, which shot 32 percent (27-83) from the field overall and held a 52-48 rebounding advantage for the afternoon, as the Corsairs scored 24 points off 21 Owl turnovers and converted 16 second chance points.
The two teams meet again in the back end of a home-and-home Little East set on Sunday afternoon for a Valentine's Day matinee that tips-off at 1:00 pm.
