KEENE, N.H. – Powered by a three 20-point nights for Keene State's senior Nate Siow, fifth year Jeff Hunter and junior Octavio Brito, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth slipped, 76-104, to #9 ranked Keene State on Wednesday. The Corsairs suffered just their second loss on their conference schedule, as they slide to 9-7 overall and 6-2 in in the LEC. Meanwhile, the Owls continue to roll as they advance to 13-2 overall and remain perfect in the LEC with an 8-0 mark.
It was UMass Dartmouth that opened up the game hot, jumping out to a 9-2 lead through the first two and a half minutes of action. The Owls then found themselves on offense, rattling off a 16-2 run to claim a seven-point lead with 13:17 to go in the half. Keene State continued to push the pace offensively, extending their lead to 56-29 at the end of the first half.
UMD looked to turn around their offensive struggles in the second half, beginning with a lay-in from sophomore transfer
Cam Dunbury that marked his first double-figure scoring performance as a Corsair. The UMass Dartmouth offense doubled their point total from the first half just eight minutes into the second half. Despite the increase in production offensively, they were unable to halt the scoring attack of the Owls, who hit the 100-point mark with 5:04 remaining.
The UMD scoring was led by Dunbury and sophomore
Josh Lopes, who combined for 45 of the Corsairs' 76 total points. Dunbury had his best performance as a Corsair since joining the squad at the beginning of 2024, posting 21 points and seven rebounds, shooting 10 for 16 from the floor. Lopes scored a game-high 24 points with eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Leading the way offensively for RIC was the trio of Siow, Hunter and Brito, who tallied 22, 20 and 20 points, respectively. Hunter and Brito each recorded double-doubles with 10+ rebounds, with Hunter shooting a remarkable 10 for 11 from the field. Sioh fell one assist shy of a double-double of his own. The Owls also saw two players score in double figures off the bench in senior Alonzo Linton who scored 15 and freshman Wesley Odiase who added 11.
The Corsairs return to action on Saturday, January 20
th, when they travel to Connecticut College for a non-conference matchup with the Camels. Tip off is set for 2:30PM in New London, Ct.
