WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS. 1/3/2004 - Chris Timson (Beverly, Mass.) scored a game-high 24 points and Matt Wheeler (Shrub Oak, N.Y.) hit all of his eight shots from the field to finish with 17 points to lead the Keene State College men's basketball team to a 86-71 victory over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the consolation game of the Williams College Purple and Gold Tournament held in Williamstown, Mass., on Saturday.
With the victory, KSC improves to 7-2 while RPI falls to 3-4.
Leading by five (41-36) at the break, the Owls pulled away from the Engineers in the second half. Keene State, which began the half with a 12-4 run, took a 53-43 lead on a free throw by Ben Maynard (Nobleboro, Me.) at the 16:55 mark. The Owls extended their advantage to as many as 20 points (68-48) on a three-pointer by Nate Bondini (East Granby, Conn.) later in the half.
"Unlike yesterday (a loss to N.J. City University), I thought we maintained our intensity throughout the game," said KSC Coach Rob Colbert. "We used our press and played more typical KSC basketball and were able to fatigue them early."
"I tied to get everyone involved with my scoring and passing," said Timson, who was named to the all-tournament team. "It was very important for us to play well in this tournament and get the team some recognition."
Maynard topped the Owls on the boards with eight rebounds while Alphonse Michalski (Northampton, Mass.) had nine assists.
John Van Schiak led RPI with 20 points while Jared Hite finished with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Keene State will be at Springfield College on Thursday for a 7:30 p.m. game.
