KEENE, N.H. 1/29/05 - Erik Schlacter (Marlborough, Mass.) had a season high 20 points and David Sontag (Mont Vernon, N.H.) added 19 points including several key free throws down the stretch to led the Keene State College men's basketball team to a come-from-behind 91-81 Little East Conference victory over UMass-Boston at Spaulding Gym on Saturday.

Scoring on their transition offense, the Beacons raced out to a 45-40 halftime lead. James Hall (Jacksonville, Fl.) gave UMB its biggest lead (29-16) with a jumper at the 7:35 mark. Tony Barros (Dorchester, Mass.) had 14 points and Hall added 12 first half points for the Beacons. KSC came back to close the gap behind Schlacter. The freshman forward , who had 14 first half points, hit a three-pointer with 1:44 to play as KSC got the deficit down to five points.

Early in the second half, the Owls tied the game on a pair of free throws by Adam Gervais (Chelsea, Me.) and took its first lead of the game (48-46) on a tip-in by Sean Sullivan (Athol, Mass.). Consecutive threes by Schlacter and another by Joe Shaw (Concord, N.H.) gave KSC a 64-52 lead with 10:43 to play.

The pesky Beacons made things interesting down the stretch. Eddie Ramos's lay-up (Malden, Mass.) cut KSC's lead to four (85-81) with 49 seconds to play. After a pair of three throws by Matt Hickey (Mahopac, N.Y.) and a UMB turnover, Sontag put the Owls up 89-81 with two more shots from line.

The Owls hit 21 of 21 free throws in the second half including 11 down the stretch to gain the victory. "Sontag hit some clutch free throws for us," said KSC Coach Rob Colbert. "We made some adjustment by going to a smaller line-up in the second half and we were able to slow them down."

Sean Sullivan (Athol, Mass.) had a strong game for KSC with 18 points while Harley Davis (Newburyport, Mass.) had eight points and a team high 12 rebounds.

Barros finished with a game high 24 points to lead UMB (5-13, 2-6), which has dropped its last eight games. Alberto Paniagua, a four-time LEC rookie of the year, scored 14 points.

Winners of three straight, KSC improves to 10-7 (4-4 LEC). The Owls, who lost to the Beacons (86-78) earlier this season in Boston, have won 16 of 17 meetings between the two teams.

KSC hosts Tufts University on Tuesday (7:30 p.m.).